The LA Zoo announced today the arrival of newborn triplet Chacoan peccaries, a rare pig-like mammal from South America. The babies are now on display.
All together now: awwww!
The three little 'piggies' were born on June 3rd to first time parents at the LA Zoo. Peccaries aren't pigs, but are related and very similar looking in appearance. The Chacoan is the rarest of the three peccary species, with only 3,500 individuals left in the wild. They were once thought to be extinct, known only through fossils until they were discovered in 1971 in their namesake Gran Chaco region. The Gran Chaco is a dry area that covers parts of Paraguay, Bolivia, and Argentina.
The LA Zoo partners with the Chaco Center for Conservation and Research to preserve the critically endangered animal, which faces threats of hunting and loss of habitat in its natural range. According to this fact sheet from the LA Zoo, they are quite touchy-feely and totes adorbs: "two or three animals are frequently seen grooming each other and resting together."
Once again: awwwwwwwww.
