The Hattiesburg Zoo has welcomed a new, adorable furry friend to its animal family.
On October 17, the only surviving hyena born in North America in 2022 from a breeding pair recommended by the Species Survival Progam made its debut in Hub City.
According to Kristen Moore, animal curator for the Hattiesburg Zoo, the birth of this hyena was especially miraculous given hyena births are difficult in the wild, much less in a zoo environment.
The cub, known as “Baby H” by staff at the Hattiesburg Zoo, was born to mother, Pili and father, Niru, who were both brought to the zoo in 2021 for breeding purposes.
“We are thrilled with the birth of this cub. We feel good that Pili is doing well and is being a great mom to her first-born cub,” Moore said. “Pili is nursing her baby who is suckling well, but we have hurdles yet to cross so we are cautiously optimistic at this point.”
One day after hyena’s birth, the animal care team was able to weigh the cub, and at that time weighed 1.45 kilograms. As of Thursday, Baby H is in good health and weighs 3 kilograms.
