Amazon World Zoo Park is celebrating the birth of endangered pygmy slow loris twins.
The twins were born on the 2nd May to Amazon World’s breeding pair Ramina (9 years old) and Lapek (14 years old)
These are the 4th pair of loris to be born at the zoo since the pair arrived in December 2020. They are the only ones to be born in the United Kingdom in the last 12 months and only 7 other zoos in Europe have bred them in the last 12 months (according to ZIMS – the Zoological Information Management System)
Pygmy slow lorises are a species of primate that comes from the Rainforests and bamboo thickets of Vietnam, Laos, eastern Cambodia and southern China.
They are the world’s only venomous primate. They produce oil from the brachial gland on their upper arm. When they raise their arms and lick the gland, enzymes in their saliva mix with the oil to produce venom that gets pulled into their toothcomb, and by grooming their babies they can protect them from predators.
They eat mainly tree gum, saps and nectar, as well as insects.
Pygmy slow lorises are nocturnal and often sleep curled into a ball in a tree. They can be found in our Twilight area of the zoo.
Pygmy slow lorises are classified as endangered on the IUCN Red List as the species is estimated to have undergone a decline in its population of more than 50% over the last 24 years.
This decline is due primarily to hunting for the pet trade, food, and ‘medicinal’ purposes. This species is also impacted by habitat loss from human settlements and agriculture especially cashew plantations and corn and rice paddies.
