Meet the Fort Worth Zoo’s New Porcupette, Whose Sex Will Be Revealed in a Surprising Way

The Fort Worth Zoo is celebrating a typical delivery!

On May 17, a mini porcupette — a babe prehensile-tailed porcupine — was calved to mom and dada Piper and Quilliam, according to an Instagram post from nan zoo. The caller summation weighed successful astatine only 404 grams — "about nan size of a loaf of sandwich bread," per nan post.

In an accompanying video, nan porcupette tin beryllium seen perched connected a woody station and sniffing nan mitt of a zoo worker holding it. The animal has a agelong tail and unique tufts of soft hair.

"Baby porcupines are calved pinch soft, reddish hair, though they instantly statesman to turn their hard, protective quills. In conscionable a fewer weeks, this small porcupette will beryllium afloat quilled," nan zoo noted.

The porcupette has spent its first 2 weeks bonding pinch its mom, nursing and, apparently, increasing for illustration a champ.

"Our animal attraction squad is weighing nan mini tot regular to show its growth, and it’s already astir doubled successful size!" nan zoo said.

Porcupine activity organs are internal, truthful it tin return up to six months earlier a baby's activity is known, according to Smithsonian's National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute. Therefore, nan Fort Worth Zoo plans to do a quill DNA trial connected its caller porcupette to much quickly find if nan animal is simply a antheral aliases female. "So enactment tuned for Piper’s small one’s gender uncover — and sanction — successful nan coming weeks! 🩵🩷," nan zoo teased successful its post.

In nan comments section, animal enthusiasts and chap zoos shouted nan baby's arrival.

"Oh my gosh, I was not prepared 🙀😻. What an absolute cutie!!" 1 personification wrote, while Michigan's John Ball Zoo wrote, "This really needed a cuteness warning. 💀😍."

The Naples Zoo successful Florida chimed in: "STOP 🥹cuteness overload."

Some moreover threw retired sanction suggestions. "If it’s a girl, it should beryllium named Quillizabeth!" 1 personification wrote.

In a second video shared connected Instagram, nan porcupette tin beryllium seen yawning arsenic it woke up. The zoo captioned nan adorable clip, "Rise and radiance small porcupine! ⛅️💛."

According to a Feb. 25 Instagram post, nan infant's parents arrived astatine nan Texas zoo earlier this year.

"This bonded brace are said to beryllium funny and nosey (no pun intended) astir what is going connected astir them. They emotion to munch, particularly connected maize and coconut, and are ever broadside by side," nan zoo wrote, alongside a video of nan brace snacking connected corn.

"This porcupine type is known for their prehensile tails that are adapted for holding objects, balancing connected branches and moreover climbing character limbs," nan zoo added. "As ambassador animals, Quilliam and Piper will prosecute audiences successful shape shows and participate successful regular, voluntary training and attraction pinch their keepers — each while serving arsenic ambassadors for their astonishing species!"

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A saccharine video shared connected TikTok successful March shows 1 of nan porcupine parents leaning guardant to hug nan camera.

According to nan National Zoo, prehensile-tailed porcupines — which are besides called coendous — are 1 of 12 type of New World porcupines. They are autochthonal to South America, wherever they unrecorded successful trees.

They usage their prehensile tail — half nan weight of which is composed of musculus — to grasp, and are nocturnal. When a female is pregnant, nan babe gestates for astir 203 days. Weaning occurs astatine astir 10 weeks, and nan porcupette reaches afloat size astatine astir 48 weeks.