Sophie Tyson Helps Rare Aardvark Birth Chester, Womble Thrives

Chester Zoo has helped raise a rare aardvark birth chester after keepers stepped in for a newborn nicknamed Womble. The calf’s mother, Oni, was not producing enough milk to fully support it, so zookeepers bottle-fed warm milk every few hours through the night for several weeks.

Chester Zoo Womble

Sophie Tyson said: “Oni's new arrival is only the second aardvark to be born at the zoo in our 94-year history, so it’s a really special addition for us all.” The calf was healthy at birth, but keepers still gave supplementary feeds and placed it in a cosy incubator each evening during the first few weeks.

Tyson said: “For the first few weeks, we placed the youngster into a cosy incubator each evening, and it was bottle-fed warm milk every few hours throughout the night before being carefully reunited with mum each morning.”

Oni and the Calf

The calf is too young for keepers to tell whether it is male or female. Tyson said: “While we don’t yet know whether the calf is male or female, as it's a little too young for us to tell, the nickname ‘Womble’ has definitely stuck.”

She added: “With the calf’s giant ears, long snout and playful personality, we think it’s the perfect fit for the time being.”

Womble now lives full-time back with Oni after going from strength to strength. Tyson said: “Womble has gone from strength to strength and is doing brilliantly, so now lives full-time back with mum Oni - and it’s wonderful to see them snuggled up side-by-side together.”

Aardvarks at Chester Zoo

The zoo said Womble is the only aardvark calf born in the UK since 2024. It also said there are 68 aardvarks in European zoos and 114 worldwide. Aardvarks are native to sub-Saharan Africa, where they use long snouts and a heightened sense of smell to find termites and ants, and powerful claws to dig insects out of the ground.