2 newborns join Vandalur mouse deer family

“In 2017, under the animal exchange programme, two male and three female mouse deer were sent from Hyderabad zoo. After two years, in 2019, one of the female mouse deer delivered three fawns, and recently another mouse deer has literred two young ones, which has increased the number to 10 at Vandalur zoo,” said an official.

The zoo staff are monitoring the shy animals round the clock and the young ones are fed five kilos of fruits and vegetables, including apples, bananas, sweet potatoes, cucumber. These animals are endangered and are protected under Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. Mouse deer are found in the rainforests of Western Ghats and their sightings are rarer than that of tigers and leopards, wildlife sources said.