Bronx Zoo welcomes otter pup, fruit bats to the jungle

BRONX PARK, Bronx (WABC) -- An otter pup and a colony of fruit bats are the latest additions to the Bronx Zoo's jungle experience.

The cute little otter pup was born this spring to a pair of Asian small-clawed otters. The playful species is well adapted for life on land and in the water, but it's habitat in Southeast Asia is shrinking. The species is classified as "Vulnerable" by IUCN and is threatened by habitat loss and exploitation.

Not far away, a colony of Rodrigues fruit bats is hanging around. The colony is sharing an exhibit with the Matschie's tree kangaroos. The bats are also known as "flying foxes," and they like to munch on all kinds of fruit. They are found only on the island of Rodrigues in the western Indian Ocean, where they are threatened by deforestation.

The animals are now on display at the the Bronx Zoo's JungleWorld exhibit.