Baby Animals Thrive At Zoo Miami

SOUTHWEST MIAMI-DADE (CBSMiami) – There is a lot to be happy about at Zoo Miami as a nearly two-month old lion cub, which faced many challenges after its birth, makes some big improvements, and several other babies continue to thrive as well.

First, the lone male lion cub that was born on December 15th has made significant improvements over the last several weeks, according to Zoo Miami's Ron Magill.

Soon after it was born to first time mother, "Asha," the cub began to lose weight and faced several bacterial infections.  However, thanks to the dedicated efforts of zoo staff, the cub is now thriving and its prognosis for long-term survival is good.

GALLERY: BABY ANIMALS THRIVE AT ZOO MIAMI

This past weekend, it was separated from its mother to receive its vaccinations and then quickly returned to her without incident.  The unnamed cub will remain off exhibit with its mother for several weeks with the hope of introducing it to the rest of the pride in the future.

In another part of the zoo, a black handed spider monkey baby turned four months old Monday and can now be regularly seen on exhibit with its mother.  These threatened primates are found throughout much of Central America where they live in a variety of tropical forests feeding on primarily fruit.  They have extremely long arms and legs as well as a prehensile tail that works like a fifth appendage.  This little female is the 5th spider monkey to be born at Zoo Miami.

The most recent birth at Zoo Miami was a female Nyala which was born on Wednesday, February 5th.

The newborn weighed approximately 13 pounds and appeared to be in general good health during its neonatal exam this past weekend.  If all continues to progress normally, the baby should be out on exhibit by sometime next week.  The Nyala is a relatively common antelope found in lowland woodlands and dense thickets of Southern Africa.