{"id":372696,"date":"2026-08-16T02:06:10","date_gmt":"2026-08-16T02:06:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/372696\/"},"modified":"2026-08-16T02:06:10","modified_gmt":"2026-08-16T02:06:10","slug":"zoo-miami-welcomes-rare-southern-hairy-nosed-wombat-joey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/372696\/","title":{"rendered":"Zoo Miami welcomes rare southern hairy-nosed wombat joey"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Zoo<\/p>\n

Zoo Miami celebrated a historic first: a southern hairy-nosed wombat joey born Jan. 19, the only successful birth of the species in the zoo\u2019s history.<\/p>\n

Ron Magill<\/p>\n

Zoo Miami<\/p>\n

Big ears, stubby legs and an extra-strong butt \u2014 Zoo Miami celebrated the newest addition to its animal family Friday. However, this tiny girl \u2014 a southern hairy-nosed wombat \u2014 is a historic landmark for the zoo and a rare sight for the nation.<\/p>\n

The tiny baby, known as a joey, is thought to have been born on Jan. 19, Zoo Communications Director Ron Magill said. Hairy-nosed wombat births are hard to spot, as after about a 30-day pregnancy, the joey crawls into its mother\u2019s pouch. There, it develops for up to six months.<\/p>\n

The joey\u2019s arrival was the first successful birth of a southern hairy-nosed wombat in Zoo Miami\u2019s history. It is also the only successful birth of the species across the U.S. this year, Magill said.<\/p>\n

\"Newborn Newborn southern hairy-nosed wombats stay in their mother\u2019s pouch for up to six months. Ron Magill Zoo Miami <\/p>\n

Born to first-time parents Gordon, the 8.5-year-old father from the Los Angeles Zoo, and Adelaid, the 9.5-year-old mother from the Brookfield Zoo, the unnamed joey has only recently begun to emerge from its mother\u2019s pouch.<\/p>\n

The southern hairy-nosed wombat is the smallest of three species of wombats, all found in Australia, typically weighing between 45 and 65 pounds. The species is distinguished by relatively large ears and broad snouts covered with fine hairs.<\/p>\n

One of the wombat\u2019s most unusual defense adaptations is its \u201cheavily reinforced rear end\u201d containing strong cartilage. It uses its \u201cpowerful\u201d butt to block the entrance to its burrow, and help defend against predators.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s not the species’ only quirk. Wombats are also the only mammals to produce cube-shaped poop.<\/p>\n

Take a look at Zoo Miami\u2019s newest friend:<\/p>\n

\"The The joey\u2019s arrival was the first successful birth of a southern hairy-nosed wombat in Zoo Miami\u2019s history. It is also the only successful birth of the species across the U.S. this year. Ron Magill Zoo Miami \"Zoo Zoo Miami celebrated a historic first: a southern hairy-nosed wombat joey born Jan. 19, the only successful birth of the species in the zoo\u2019s history. Ron Magill Miami Herald <\/p>\n


\n \"Profile
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

Devoun Cetoute<\/a><\/p>\n

Miami Herald<\/p>\n

Miami Herald Cops and Breaking News Reporter Devoun Cetoute covers a plethora of Florida topics, from breaking news to crime patterns. He was on the breaking news team that won a Pulitzer Prize in 2022. He\u2019s a graduate of the University of Florida, born and raised in Miami-Dade. Theme parks, movies and cars are on his mind in and out of the office.\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Zoo Miami celebrated a historic first: a southern hairy-nosed wombat joey born Jan. 19, the only successful birth…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":372697,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[123,125,124],"class_list":["post-372696","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-miami","tag-miami","tag-miami-headlines","tag-miami-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/372696","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=372696"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/372696\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/372697"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=372696"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=372696"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=372696"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}