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Bison calf attracts visitors at Vandalur zoo

         Chennai: The birth of a bison calf at the Vandalur zoo here is attracting visitors. With the birth of the calf on Wednesday, the bison population in the city's Aringnar Anna Zoological Park or Vandalur Zoo has gone up to six. Zoo officials said the calf's mother, Geeta, was brought to the zoo after being rescued by forest officials from Coimbatore in 2004. "On Wednesday, one of our female bisons named Geeta gave birth to a young one. It is the first born to Geeta and the fourth to the zoological park," said Manimozhi, a biologist at the Zoo. So far, zoo officials have not been able to identify the gender of the calf, as its mother is not allowing any visitor near her newborn. Bison babies are generally born weighing between thirty and seventy pounds. They can suckle immediately. Within a few minutes of their birth, the calves can stand and in about three hours, they are able to run.
-April 11,  2007