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New year excitement at birth of oryx
A RARE creature which is extinct in the wild has been bred successfully at Flamingo Land.
The baby scimitar-horned oryx has been named Evie as she was born on New Year's Eve at the zoo near Malton.
Steve Nasir, zoo collection manager, said: "Everything is going well so far – she is standing up and feeding well.
"It's the mother's first baby and she has accepted her. It's also a good sign that the whole group is showing interest in her."
Flamingo Land is home to five female and one male scimitar-horned oryx, along with the new baby, and two of the females are currently pregnant.
Mr Nasir added: "There are approximately 300 females in the whole of Europe and our five are in the top 15 of the most genetically important.
"Our male is actually the third most genetically important in Europe, so it's very important for us to breed the species successfully."
The animals are part of the European Endangered Species Programme and their future offspring could be released into a semi-wild state in Tunisia.
The female oryx were brought to Flamingo Land in 2000 and the male was introduced in March 2008 for breeding.
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Weather for Scarborough
Saturday 26 May 2012
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