On 26th December Colchester Zoo welcomed its very own Christmas calf as an adorable Philippine spotted deer was born to first time mum Luna and dad Mulhouse.

We can now confirm that the new arrival is male and that his keepers have named him Cosmos!

Cosmos is continues to grow strong and healthy and has been spending lots of time outside with the rest of his family, whilst getting to know the Visayan warty pigs who he shares his home with.

Colchester Zoo has not welcomed a spotted deer calf since 2008 when new mum Luna was born so this is very exciting news for this species which is currently listed as endangered on the IUCN red list and is one of the rarest and most narrowly distributed mammals in the world!

Our spotted deer share their home with a group of Visayan warty pigs another species home to the Philippine’s which is also at risk with a listing of critically endangered.

Why not stop by and see them at their enclosure ‘Island Dwellers’ next to Tiger Taiga.