Singapore Zoo’s baby Malayan tapir brings its tapir total to eight

This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.

Victoria, a one-month-old Malayan tapir, is the most recent addition to the Singapore Zoo‘s Malayan tapir population (her birth brings the total to eight). When she’s fully grown, Victoria will likely weigh between 550 and 700 pounds (although specimens have been found weighing more than 1,000 pounds) and measure about 6-8 feet in length.

Malayan tapirs are the largest of the four tapir species and the only one native to Asia. They have very poor eyesight but, as one might imagine, a fabulous sense of smell!

Malayan and Brazilian tapirs are classified as vulnerable, and their cousins the Baird’s tapir and the mountain tapir are endangered. All four species are the victims of both hunting and habitat loss.

Victoria recently received a visit from jazz singer and conservation activist Laura Fygi. Photos of the odd twosome together after the jump!

--Lindsay Barnett