These are the first images of the extremely rare baby deer which is extinct in the wild but has now been born in a Dutch safari park.
The baby Pere Davids’ deer (Elaphurus davidianus), was born at the Beekse Bergen safari park, located between the cities of Tilburg and Hilvarenbeek in the south of the Netherlands, at the end of May and images now show it being cared for by its mother.
In the video, the cute baby deer named Fokko can be seen lying on the ground as its mother grooms it before it springs to its feed and takes a walk in the shallows of a body of water.
Fokko can also be seen walking with other members of the herd in the sun.
Safari park worker Yvonne Vogels said: “He is nice and playful, also towards the other deer. He can be found a lot at the waterfront. That fits perfectly with this species.”
Pere David’s deer, listed as ‘Extinct in the Wild’ by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, are native to Chinese river valleys but they were hunted to extinction in the 19th century.
The species was saved from complete extinction by Europeans who had taken them back to zoos and bred them.
A large herd exists at Woburn Abbey in Bedfordshire, with a group being taken from the country house in the 1980’s and reintroduced into China where around 700 now exist in the wild, with around 1,500 in total worldwide.
Deer extinct in nature born in Dutch safari park Beekse Bergen 
Deer extinct in nature born in Dutch safari park Beekse Bergen
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Story By: Alex Cope, Sub-Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Newsflash
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