NEW YORK — The Bronx Zoo has welcomed a new bouncing baby tree kangaroo.
Matschie’s tree kangaroos are native to Papua New Guinea, live in mountain rainforests, and are an endangered species as determined by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. There are fewer than 2,500 in the wild, The Associated Press reported.
They are smaller than the Australian red kangaroos, with adult males weighing between 20 and 25 lbs.
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A joey is about the size of a human’s thumbnail when born and climbs through its mother’s fur to get into her pouch shortly after birth. Seven months later, they finally emerge.
Right now the joey’s head is sticking out of its mom’s pouch, but not for long.
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“As it matures it will begin to explore its environment and start spending short periods of time outside the pouch,” zoo director Jim Breheny told the AP in a news release.
This is the first of the species born at the Bronx Zoo since 2008, the AP reported.