Giant (baby) anteater!

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Friday, June 19, 2015
Researchers estimate only about 5,000 giant anteaters remain in the wild.
The species' population is declining because of habitat loss from urban development and farmland, hunting for meat and leather, wildfires, and road kills.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) lists the giant anteater as vulnerable in its native habitat of Honduras, Brazil, and northern Argentina.
At birth, an anteater pup is born with its full coat of hair-just a smaller version of the adults.
Conservation actions are important for the survival of this species.
Anteater pups ride on the back of their moms for about the first four months of life. Currently, the two can be seen on Sundays, Mondays, and Tuesdays in the zoo's Tropic World.
Giant (baby) anteater! Researchers estimate only about 5,000 giant anteaters remain in the wild.
Jim Schulz/Chicago Zoological Society

BROOKFIELD, Ill. (WLS) -- Brookfield Zoo welcomes a new addition- a giant anteater!

The baby giant anteater, called a pup, doesn't have a name yet. She was born on May 18, and she will spend the first four months of her life riding around on her mom's back.

When she sleeps, her mother, Tulum, covers the baby with her tail.

At birth, an anteater pup is born with a full coat of hair and looks like a smaller version of her parents.

In the wild, giant anteaters live in Honduras, Brazil and northern Argentina. However, their numbers are declining. Researchers estimate only 5,000 of the animals remain in the wild.

Brookfield Zoo is part of a program to keep the species going. There are about 100 giant anteaters in 55 North American zoos, including Brookfield.