Sheep Make Easter Deliveries at N.C. Zoo
ASHEBORO -- While Easter is usually considered the season for visits
by a well-known bunny, it was the sheep making the deliveries over the holiday weekend at the North Carolina Zoo.
Zookeepers were counting sheep as five Costwold lambs, including
two sets of twins, were born to three different adult females (ewes) last Friday and Sunday in the zoo's Hardee's Touch and Learn Center (TLC). A female lamb was born to one ewe and a pair of males to another sheep mom on Friday. The double deliveries were followed on Sunday by a second set of male twins delivered by yet a third ewe. One male sheep (ram) fathered all the offspring.
The lambs averaged around 10 pounds in weight and were reported in excellent health by zookeepers Tuesday.
An English breed known for coarse wool that lies along the body in distinct locks, Cotswold are among several rare domestic animal breeds exhibited in the TLC located in the zoo's North American section.
The TLC presents visitors with opportunities to learn about the
important role that domestic animals have played in human development. It also stresses the importance of preserving minor domestic species that have dwindled in numbers as modern agriculture has focused on fewer, but more specialized, high-yielding animal breeds. The five Cotswold lambs are already on exhibit in the TLC during regular zoo hours of 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Easter was also a busy period for visitors at the zoo, with 24,667 people attending over the Friday-through-Monday holiday period. That figure marked an increase of more than 3,700 visitors over the 1997 Easter holidays and the second largest Easter at the park in 15 years.
The zoo is located on Zoo Parkway (N.C. 159) six miles southeast of
Asheboro off U.S. 220 and U.S. 64. The park is open year-round except Christmas day. Admission is $8 for adults and $5 for children 2-12 and senior citizens. Admission is one benefit of membership in the N.C. Zoological Society. For general information, call 1-800-488-0444.
The zoo is an agency of the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources.
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Contact Person: Rod Hackney, 336-879-7204.
Date Posted: April 14
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