Alipore: A baby kangaroo that first peeped out of its mother's pouch at Alipore zoo in May came out for a few minutes earlier this week.
The joey was born to one of the four kangaroos brought to the city from a zoo in Japan last October.
Female marsupials give birth when their young ones are still in the foetal stage, approximately between 31 and 35 days of gestation. The little one crawls out from the vagina into the pouch (marsupium) within minutes of birth and remains inside for around four months. It becomes self-sufficient and leaves the pouch permanently after around eight to 10 months.
"The mother had conceived in March. The baby has now started coming out for brief intervals. It is exploring the outside world and getting used to it. It should be out completely by December," said Asis Kr Samanta, the zoo director.
Four Eastern Grey Kangaroos (Macropus giganteus) - Mint, 1, Melonpan, 2, Punka, 1, and Kinako, less than a year old - came from Kanazawa Zoological Garden in Yokohama.
The mother of the newborn, whose gender could not be determined yet, is Punka. "We are not sure who Punka mated with but going by Melonpan's tendency to stay near Punka and be protective about her and the baby, it seems that he could be the father," said a vet looking after the mother.
The officials are concerned about the joey because of their experience with marsupials. Four red kangaroos brought from the Czech Republic in 2011 had died within a year at Alipore zoo. A female born to one of them died in October 2015.
CCTV cameras have been installed in the kangaroo enclosure to keep an eye on the animals. A team of vets, dieticians and keepers is monitoring the mother and baby round-the-clock.
The joey is feeding on mother's milk and trying to eat grass. "It is imitating its mother eating grass. It cannot chew anything at this age. But it is a sign that the baby is doing fine," the vet said.
The mother is on a diet of mixed fruits - carrot, apple, banana, cucumber and watermelon - and vitamin supplements, along with grass.
"Eastern Grey Kangaroos are generally sturdier than red kangaroos, but we are not taking chances," said Samanta.
A glass wall was erected around the kangaroo enclosure in February to shield the marsupials from nosy visitors. The old enclosure, where the kangaroos had died, was closer to the road outside, inviting the sound of traffic. The new enclosure is quieter and greener.
"Kangaroos are extremely shy and tend to become anxious when exposed to too many people and a lot of noise. They prefer mating in peace," Samanta said.
The zoo also welcomed a lion cub on Sunday. The parents are Sruti, 4, and Viswas, 10, who had come from Nehru Zoological Park, Hyderabad, on October 29.
"The mother is keeping the cub extremely close to her. Even the keepers have barely got a glimpse of it," said the director. The mother and cub have been separated from the father for the baby's safety.
