Baby Lynx Welcomes Visitors To Worlds Oldest Zoo

Story By: Joseph GolderSub-EditorMichael Leidig, Agency: Newsflash

Newsflash/Zoo Vienna

This is the adorable baby lynx that has been born at the world’s oldest zoo and who can be seen in this footage apparently welcoming visitors.

The footage was shot at Schoenbrunn Zoo in the Austrian capital Vienna and shows the adorable lynx kitten getting used to its surroundings and exploring under the watchful eye of its mother.

The zoo was constructed in 1752 next to the palace of Schloss Schoenbrunn on the orders of the then Holy Roman Emperor Francis I, husband of Austria’s beloved Empress Maria Theresia. It was created as an imperial menagerie and is the oldest continuously operating zoo in the world.

The kitten, a Eurasian lynx (lynx lynx), was born on 27th May at the zoo and as can be seen in the footage, it is already pretty good at climbing around. It is also very curious about its surroundings and can be seen going up to the enclosure entrance when one of the keepers comes to feed meat to the adult lynxes.

Newsflash/Zoo Vienna

Its mother does not seem too pleased about this, however, and promptly picks the baby up in her jaws and takes it away to safety, but not without a little tussle as the kitten tries to break free from its mum.

According to zookeeper Sonja Sladky, the baby lynx is still only feeding on its mother’s milk and is too young for solids yet.

She said: “But it won’t be long before it becomes curious about what its mum is eating and starts to eat meat.”

The zookeeper added that the little one spends a lot of the time sleeping but visitors hoping to get a peak are most likely to see it in “mornings and evenings, when it is most active”.