Recent birth announcements have also included Humboldt penguins, reindeer and two seal puppies called Eufrazie and Queenie. This was also an exciting year for takins (a Chinese cross between a cow and an antelope), who back in March gave birth for the first time in the zoo's history.

In the reindeer section, mama Floortje and papa Yolf gave birth to a baby named Kisa, while a whopping 10 coati (members of the raccoon family, see photo) have survived birth, and two gentoo penguins were born in early June. In addition, a rare and endangered Congo Peacock, which arrived at the zoo two months ago, has laid eggs.

The birth weights vary enormously, with the baby elephant tipping the scales at 80 kilos, whereas a little baby sloth weighed in at just 557 grams.

The zoo still has to decide what to do with the new animals, a spokesman told Flanders Today. "We would obviously like to set some of them free in the wild, but this is a very long process, and the animals would struggle to find food, fight off prey and look after themselves. So for the moment, their futures remains undecided."

www.zooantwerpen.be