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June 29
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Animal Tales storytelling program
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July 6
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Zoo Patrol session I
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Endangered “Miracle Kitten” Born Through Artificial Insemination at Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo
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 Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo is proud to announce that a rare endangered ocelot kitten was born at the Zoo on Halloween. The male kitten was conceived through artificial insemination (AI), just the third time in history that AI has successfully produced an endangered ocelot kitten in captivity. It is also the first time that the AI procedure has been used specifically to manage this endangered species. And, on top of all those “firsts,” it is also the first ocelot kitten born at Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo!
“This really is a miracle,” stated Gregg Dancho, Zoo Director. “It’s always a big deal when our animals give birth, but the fact that cutting edge technology was used to produce a rare and genetically valuable kitten makes it even more exciting. We hope everyone will come to visit and welcome him into the world.” Both the kitten and its mother have been in seclusion bonding for the last several weeks and are expected to remain in seclusion for another month. The mother and kitten are expected to be introduced to the public sometime in January 2009, if all goes well.
Like humans, the endangered Brazilian ocelot parents were unable to breed naturally and underwent the artificial insemination (AI) procedures at Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo in August 2008. AI procedures are part of a key initiative supporting the Zoo’s goal of animal conservation. Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo worked with one of the world’s leading experts on cat reproduction for these procedures, William F. Swanson, DVM, Ph.D., director of animal research at the Center for Conservation and Research of Endangered Wildlife (CREW), at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden.
According to Swanson, “The first ocelot AIs were conducted in the 1990s for pure research purposes. This is the first successful AI ocelot birth globally in the last decade and it is significant because it was done specifically to manage this rare species.”
There are only between 25 and 30 Brazilian ocelots in captivity in North America and the species has been on the endangered species list for approximately 25 years. The American Zoo and Aquarium Association (AZA) established its first Species Survival Plans (SSP) for small-field cats, including the ocelot, in 2001. Small sized cats, including the ocelot, have been severely neglected in both scientific and conservation circles, with little information on their natural history or conservation status in the wild. Population projections indicate that several small cat species, including the ocelot, will see their genetic diversity reduced to dangerously low levels in the next 50 years.
Reproductive sciences are playing a key role in helping to address the conservation and management challenges associated with maintaining these small cat SSP species. Reproductive sciences include multiple research disciplines including electroejaculation (for semen collection), artificial insemination (AI), in vitro fertilization (IVF), embryo transfer (ET), sperm and embryo cryopreservation, among others.
We hope you will stop by in January once the mother and kitten are on exhibit in our Tropical Rainforest Building.
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