A baby onager, the world’s rarest equine, was born this year at Chester Zoo in the United Kingdom. A relative of the domestic donkey, the animal is an Asiatic wild ass that lives in semi-desert regions.
The foal, named Jasper, was born after his mother Azita was pregnant for a year. Of Persian origin, his name means “bearer of treasure”.
Despite being found in abundance in the deserts of Mongolia, China and Iran, there are only a few species of wild donkeys left. The animals became targets of poaching, overgrazing, drought and disease, which led to a decline in the number of donkeys. Currently, there are only 600 of these animals in the wild.
“The long-legged youngster, whom our team calls Jasper, is doing great, and mom Azita is doing a wonderful job of parenting and bonding with her new charge. He is full of energy and loves playing in the sand while running around his habitat,” said Mike Jordan, director of animals and plants at the zoo.
Since there are very few animals in the world, this species is listed as endangered on the list of International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). These are some of the most endangered animals in the world.
