SCHNECKSVILLE, Pa. — For the first time in three years, there’s a new addition to the Trexler Nature Preserve.
“We suddenly saw this little light brown fuzzy in the grass and we thought, you know, is that a baby?” said Elleke Moyer, who visited the bison with her family.
The calf was born nine days ago, bringing the herd’s number up to 11 bison.
“Mom has not let us close enough to kind of figure out what we got yet,” said Elizabeth Bernardo.
Bernado is the assistant curator at the Lehigh Valley Zoo. She told us the herd does what it wants, so they were shocked to see the little bundle.
“We’re like, she’s being quite protective. And there was baby,” said Bernardo.
Their last calf was born back in 2023, and it’s that very same calf that gave birth.
“So, we’re very excited that she was the one to give us another calf,” said Bernardo.
Bison haven’t had the easiest life, being pushed to the brink of extinction in the 19th century from over-hunting.
But the Lehigh Valley Zoo, Lehigh County, and The Wildlife Restoration Foundation all have worked hard to protect them and their natural habitat.
“We want to make sure that our bison are nice and genetically healthy, and we also want help protect the areas where they naturally roam,” said Bernardo.
Fulfilling Harry Trexler’s mission to conserve wildlife.
“I think he’d be pretty excited that we’ve continued on with this legacy and what we’re doing with that,” said Bernardo.
And thanks to their hard work, the herd is here to stay.
Photo courtesy of LV Zoo
LV Zoo said guests can view the herd when exiting the Zoo through the nearly 2,000-acre Trexler Nature Preserve.
The Zoo is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. all week long. Guests can purchase tickets at lvzoo.org.