GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — John Ball Zoo is introducing some new additions!
Three lynx kits were born on Thursday, May 23, and are now getting accustomed to their new home.
The zoo said 3-year-old Becca, the kits' mother, is doing well. This was her first litter with Thor, the zoo's 11-year-old male lynx.
Thor has been with the zoo since 2018 and Becca came to the zoo in 2023. Officials say the two quickly got along. Once Becca was pregnant, her care team supervised her to make sure she would have a healthy pregnancy.
She went into labor Thursday morning and had the kits by that afternoon.
The newborn kits will not open their eyes until they are about two weeks old. They are expected to leave their den once they are about five weeks old.
Lynx kits at John Ball Zoo
“Our animal care team is closely monitoring Becca and her kits as she cares for her litter during their first few weeks of life,” said Jaime Racalla, animal care supervisor at John Ball Zoo. “So far, Becca has been an extremely attentive and natural mom, and we are so excited to welcome these precious babies to the John Ball Zoo family.”
Becca and Thor are a matched breeding pair through the Species Survival Plan Program organized by the Association of Zoos & Aquariums. The program works to grow populations of endangered species. The Canada lynx is considered a threatened species in the U.S.
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