A female Indian rhino is about to become the first of her species to give birth after conceiving through artificial insemination.  The birth will be the reward for eight years of research for Cincinnati Zoo scientist Monica Stoops. For conservationists this birth is an important step in the effort to protect Indian rhino populations.

For more, visit UPI.com.

Read more about Indian rhinos at Animal Fact Guide.

Airport staff in Thailand found a live tiger cub packed into a suitcase filled with stuffed animals. The staff noticed what looked like a live cat when x-raying the suitcase. When they opened the suitcase to investigate they found the two-month-old cub. The cub had been sedated.

For the whole story, visit CNN.com.

Photo: Alabama Convention and Visitors Bureau

Seventy-three loggerhead sea turtles hatched at an Alabama beach Wednesday and entered the waters into the northern Gulf of Mexico.

For the past two months, scientists have deemed the Gulf of Mexico unsafe for sea turtle hatchlings due to BP’s catastrophic oil spill.  They have transported 28,000 eggs from Alabama and Panhandle beaches to Florida’s Atlantic coast.  After incubation at a Kennedy Space Center facility, the hatchlings were released into the Atlantic at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.

However, after further examination of the Gulf waters, scientists have determined the northern Gulf of Mexico is now safe for sea turtles.

According to Dianne Ingram of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, “It was a good decision based on the best information we can get. It was more risky to ship them to Florida than it was to let them go straight into the water.”

The group of loggerhead hatchlings that entered the Gulf Wednesday was the first batch in Alabama allowed to enter their native waters.

For more information: AL.com.

In April we wrote about Lonely Lilly, a meerkat without a mate. To aid in her quest for love, the owners of the park she lives in created a website called Meerkat Match. It was through the website that Lilly met the meerkat of her dreams, Mr. Darcy.

It must have been love at first sight because Lilly is now the proud mother of four!

SeaWorld rehabilitation experts have been working around the clock tending to a baby manatee orphan.  Every three hours, the 3.5-foot, 41-pound marine mammal is bottle-fed with a nutrient-rich formula. Every other day, the animal care specialists weigh the manatee and monitor her progress. Although her condition remains guarded, park veterinarians hope to eventually release her back into the wild.

The manatee, just weeks old, was rescued from the waters of Daytona Beach, Florida and transported to SeaWorld by the Florida Wildlife Conservation Commission.

In the wild, all three species of manatee are considered threatened by the IUCN Redlist. The Florida manatee subspecies is considered endangered.  Threats include habitat destruction, red tide, and boating accidents.

SeaWorld animal care specialist Jeff Braso bottle-feeds a baby manatee, Tuesday, July 27, at SeaWorld’s Rescue & Rehabilitation Center in Orlando, Fla. The park’s animal staff has been providing 24-hour care for the animal since she was orphaned by her mother in Daytona Beach, Fla. on July 24, 2010. (Photo by SeaWorld Orlando)

One of the most reclusive primates in the world, the Horton Plains slender loris has only been spotted four times since 1937. So rare were sightings that researchers thought the loris had gone extinct sometime between sightings in 1939 and 2002.

All species of slender loris are native to Sri Lanka and southern India. Deforestation has led to a decline in all populations and prompted a study of the nocturnal animals.

It was during this study the photograph of the male Horton Plains slender loris was taken.

For more, visit CNN.com

Imagine seeing up to 1000 dolphins swimming together – would it frighten you or make you stare in awe? Such a sight was recently seen by wildlife spotters off the coast of Skye in Scotland. The pod of short-beaked common dolphins are thought to have grouped together to chase a shoal of fish.

For more and an amazing video, visit the BBC.

On June 15 the National Zoo welcomed its second baby kiwi since March. The chicks are both female and doing well. The zoo has set up a camera to observe the new chick via the internet. You can watch it here; the best time see the chick is in the evening as kiwi are nocturnal.

Kiwi are native to New Zealand. There are five species, all of which are endangered. The main threats to kiwi are habitat loss and invasive mammals.

Fun fact: The kiwi lays the largest egg in relation to its body size of any species of bird.

For more, visit the National Zoo website.

Meet the sloths from Amphibian Avenger on Vimeo.

The world’s only sloth sanctuary is located in Costa Rica. Film-maker Lucy Cooke created this fantastic video while visiting.

Read more about the sloth sanctuary at their website.

A pair of red-ruffed lemurs have been born at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay. The two were born on April 21st of this year to Maditra and Bozeny, who have lived at the zoo for 3 years. The babies are still too young to have their gender identified and they have not been given names yet. Once full-grown they will weigh between 8-10 lbs.

Read about the red-ruffed lemur’s cousin the ring-tailed lemur at Animal Fact Guide.