Miracle baby earns her stripes at Werribee Open Range Zoo
A two-month-old zebra foal, who was born against the odds at Werribee Open Range Zoo, is charming visitors and making some interesting new friends as she inquisitively explores the savannah on her own for the very first time.
The very precious and curious Falah [pronounced: Fa-lah], is spending time learning from her older half-sisters and becoming acquainted with a herd of antelope - after previously only staying close by mother’s side.
Falah was welcomed into the world in May after her mother, Furaha [pronounced: Fu-ra-ha], underwent extensive medical treatment in 2019 for a malignant tumour that grew behind her right leg.
Savannah keeper Lance Weldhagen said it was fantastic to see young Falah “earning her stripes” and developing her confidence.
“It’s great to see Falah’s personality starting to shine through,” Mr Weldhagen said. “She’s learning from the herd and her surroundings every day - including her four older half-sisters - which is an important part of her early life development.
“She has also become very friendly with a herd of Eland, who have fascinatingly accepted her as one of their own too, which is wonderful to see.”
“It’s great to see Falah’s personality starting to shine through,” Mr Weldhagen said. “She’s learning from the herd and her surroundings every day - including her four older half-sisters - which is an important part of her early life development.
Mr Weldhagen said Falah is displaying all the positive, natural behaviours keepers would expect to see for a young zebra foal.
“She’s jumping and zooming around in the morning as you’d expect a young foal to do, but is often understandably flat-out exhausted after that, resting around lunchtime.”
The name Falah translates to happiness and success in Arabic – one of the many dialects spoken throughout Africa.
Visitors to Werribee Open Range Zoo can see Falah and the rest of the zebra herd while on one of the savannah bus tours, which run throughout the day and are included in entry.
Plains zebras are native to Africa and are classified as near-threatened in the wild. Their population of 250,000 is in decline, with habitat destruction, poaching and competition with agriculture threating the species.
Anyone can support zebra conservation through Zoos Victoria’s Beads for Wildlife initiative. Funds raised through the sale of handmade beadwork via Zoos Victoria’s retail stores go towards protecting the rangelands where zebras reside in Northern Kenya.
Zoo members and visitors are reminded that all tickets to the Zoo must be pre-booked at zoo.org.au and asked to follow the current COVIDSafe directions at www.coronavirus.vic.gov.au