NEW twin agoutis have been welcomed as the newest additions to West Oxfordshire’s Cotswold Wildlife Park.
The duo were born in the Burford park and have taken up home with the squirrel monkeys.
Small mammal keeper Estelle Morgan said: “Agoutis are found in South America around parts of the Amazon rainforest which they rely on the cover of. They are a prey animal for lots of carnivores, so they are very cautious and incredibly fast because they have to be.”
Agoutis are a rodent will replicate a porcupine's quills with the hair on its back as a defence mechanism.
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The animals can jump up to 6ft to avoid predators and learn to run within an hour of being born.
She added: “It is quite difficult to pick up on characteristics of agoutis when they are born, they are very nervous because they have to be cautious of everything. So the babies are still sticking with mum quite a bit.
“The mum however is very nosey and confident and I am sure they will follow in their mothers footsteps, the dad walks round like he owns the place.”
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