Cotswold Wildlife Park has welcomed a rather significant addition to the Chapman’s Zebra family just in time for Christmas. The birth marks a milestone in the Park’s history as not only is the newborn the tenth breeding success for parents Stella and Spongebob, but she is also the fiftieth Chapman’s Zebra to be born at Cotswold Wildlife Park. It is the only zoological collection in the UK to successfully breed this iconic African species this year. The adorable foal has been named Flora by her keepers. 

Cotswold Wildlife Park has been home to these legendary African mammals since 1972. After a gestation period of approximately twelve months, females give birth to a single foal so to have bred 50 foals in nearly 50 years is an impressive achievement for the Park. Curator of Cotswold Wildlife Park, Jamie Craig, explains: “Repeating successes can be tricky when breeding animals, so to have reached the milestone of fifty foals since we opened is a real triumph for all the dedicated keepers, past and present, who have cared for our Zebras over the years at the Park”.