For Immediate Release April 2, 2008

For More Information: Katie Gray Supervisor, Public Relations (416) 392-5941

April 2, 2008, Toronto, Ontario: A baby gaur, a type of wild cattle beast from South and Southeast Asia, was born at the Toronto Zoo on March 25th, 2008 to Mom Flower and Dad Hercules. The baby, a male, joins the Zoo's group of two adult males and three adult females. A total of 12 gaurs, which are the largest of all wild cattle, have been born here.

"The baby is up and nursing," says Toronto Zoo Curator of Mammals Maria Franke. "This is an important birth because gaurs are listed as Vulnerable in the wild. The wild population of gaurs has decreased dramatically. Threats include domestic cattle, which are often driven into their habitat to graze, bringing disease and loss of grazing area, encroaching human population, and hunters.

"The Toronto Zoo participates in the North American Species Survival Plan (SSP) for gaurs. While the birth is important for conservation reasons, the gaur is truly a magnificent and imposing animal in its own right. A large male can stand up to 6.5 feet and weigh up to 1,000kg."

Gaur live in forests, bamboo jungles and grasslands near forests. While grass is the staple food, they are especially fond of young bamboo shoots.

After a gestation period of from 270 to 280 days, a single calf is born. The baby, which will nurse for approximately nine months, will become sexually mature in its second or third year.

Drop by the Zoo's Gaur House, adjacent to the Indo-Malaya Pavilion, to see the Zoo's first spring baby for 2008.