NETHERLANDS: HARDERWIJK DOLFINARIUM CELEBRATES THE BIRTH OF A NEW BABY WALRUS CALLED BOIKA

Record ID: 645970

  • Title: NETHERLANDS: HARDERWIJK DOLFINARIUM CELEBRATES THE BIRTH OF A NEW BABY WALRUS CALLED BOIKA
  • Date: 22nd June 2003
  • Summary: (U6)HARDERWIJK, THE NETHERLANDS (JUNE 23, 2003) (REUTERS) SCU: (SOUNDBITE) (English) SENIOR TRAINER BE KIKKERT SAYING: "Our happiness with Olga is that she is a very good mother. She gives a lot of milk and she is doing a great job with her son." (GLITCH IN PICTURE) VARIOUS OF WALRUS OLGA WITH NEW-BORN SON (5 SHOTS) VARIOUS OF WALRUS IN SHOW (4 SHOTS) CU: WALRUS SWIMMING CLOSE UP WALRUSES HEAD IN WATER AND WAVING WITH FIN MV: TRAINER AND WALRUSES WAVING GOODBYE Initials **GLITCH IN SEQ.6** Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
  • Embargoed: 7th July 2003 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: HARDERWIJK, THE NETHERLANDS
  • Country: Netherlands
  • Topics: Environment / Natural World
  • Reuters ID: LVA3J9FOG2S6GAEETV9HC0S5E10A
  • Story Text: Europe's biggest sea mammal park has something to celebrate. For the second time in its history one of their walruses has given birth to a healthy baby.
    The Harderwijk Dolfinarium in the Netherlands is the only sea mammal park in Europe where there have been successful walrus births. After a pregnancy of 15 months, 21-year-old walrus mother Olga on Sunday (June 22) gave birth to a healthy baby boy called Boika.
    The birth of the baby took about 40 minutes, which is a short time for the birth of a walrus. Measuring almost one metre long, Boika, which means fighter in Russian, weighed 50 kilos at birth and already had a great moustache.
    Trainers in the park, who are monitoring the little one around the clock, said Boika was quick to find his mothers milk and that he is growing fast.
    "Our happiness with Olga is that she is a very good mother. She gives a lot of milk and she is doing a great job with her son," said Be Kikkert who works as a trainer in the park.
    It was the second time that Olga gave birth in captivity.
    In 1995 she also gave birth to a son named Nikolai, who still lives in the dolphinarium. Every day, he performs in a show together with his father Igor to entertain the hundreds of visitors. Soon, they will be joined by Olga and Boika.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2015. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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