Spring has sprung a little early this year at Taronga Western Plains Zoo, with the birth of a female Zebra foal in the early hours of the morning on Thursday 29 August 2019.

Keepers arrived at work to find mother Kioni on exhibit with her newborn foal. Both mum and foal were doing well and have been going from strength to strength ever since.
The foal has been named Dalia meaning gentle in Swahili. This is the fifth foal for experienced mother Kioni and was sired by Bwana. 

“Kioni is a very natural and protective mum. She is the lead mare in the herd and only has to lower her ears towards another herd member to warn them to not get too close to her foal,” said Zebra Keeper, Carolene Magner.

“The filly is very confident and strong, which was evident from the moment she was born.” 

“The foal is staying close to mum which is a natural behaviour for the first few weeks. Soon she will start to venture away and explore her surrounds, under the watchful eye of mum,” said Carolene.

“At present the foal is nursing well and resting quite a bit, as newborns grow quickly and tire easily. Over the coming weeks she will start sampling and nibbling on hay and grass, mimicking her mum and the rest of the herd.”

“The foal is easy to spot on exhibit with mum and the rest of the herd. She usually has bursts of energy in the mornings and late afternoons, whilst resting throughout the middle of the day,” said Carolene.

The newest addition brings the total number of the Zebra breeding herd to six. Additionally the Zoo has four male Zebra on the Giraffe exhibit, and three on the African Savannah.