2 ‘Critically Endangered’ Animals Born at Iowa’s Blank Park Zoo

Blank Park Zoo is celebrating the birth of TWINS last month! Cotton-Top tamarins Kida and Eddie are now first time parents!

According to a new post on the Facebook page for Des Moines' Blank Park Zoo, Kida gave birth to two babies on February 22nd in the zoo's Discovery Center. It says that the keepers were happily surprised when they "eagerly discovered the twins clinging to their parents backs." Twins are apparently pretty typical for for cotton-top tamarins, but keepers won't be able to determine the sex of each baby until the five-week mark. That's when the the twins will wean and staff will be able to perform a full exam. As of right now, Kida and Eddie are "exceptional" co-parents of their little ones.

Kida and Eddie first arrived at the zoo in April of 2023 and are part of a species survival program (SSP). The zoo says that there are less than 8,000 cotton-top tamarins left in the wild, which makes this birth incredibly special. The post says that "responsible breeding of threatened species managed by SSP plans are vital to sustaining genetically diverse populations."

For the latest updates and photos of Blank Park Zoo's cotton-top tamarins, you can check out the official Facebook page HERE. We can't wait to see the twins in-person!

Blank Park Zoo is currently preparing for their annual Wild Lights Festival, which will kick off April 5th and run Wednesdays through Sundays until May 27th (READ MORE). Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased on the Blank Park Zoo's website HERE.