There’s a double dose of joy in the zoo's Patagonian mara enclosure following the birth of twins!

The two lovely little ones were born to mum, Martha, and dad, Barry, at the start of the month and are both thriving. Keeper Josh Luxton said:

“Mum and dad are doing a fantastic job of looking after the youngsters. The parents normally mate for life so it’s a real team effort rearing their young. The twins have been enjoying playing together and are running circles around their mum and dad. They are slowly starting to try solid foods now and are looking strong and healthy.”

Keepers have not yet sexed and named the youngsters. That will be done when they are microchipped in a few weeks time.

The Patagonian mara is the third largest rodent species in the world and is classed as near threatened on the IUCN Red Data list due to the loss of its habitat.