An onager foal – one of the most critically endangered animals in the world – has been born at Chester Zoo.
The beautiful baby is an exceptionally rare addition, with only around 600 of the species believed to still exist in the wild.
Onagers are related to the domestic donkey and are from the family equidae, which also includes horses, mules and zebras.
There used to be species in abundance across Mongolia, China and Iran, but nowadays the Asiatic wild ass is only found in two protected areas in the semi-desert regions of Iran.
The beautiful animals have been left teetering on the edge of existence thanks to illegal poaching, overgrazing, drought and disease passed from farm animals.
Their numbers have plummeted by more than 50% in the last two decades alone, and are now listed as endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and face a very high chance of extinction.
Jasper the Onager foal with his mum at Chester Zoo. Credit: SuppliedJasper the Onager foal with his mum at Chester Zoo. Credit: Supplied
Chester Zoo is a leading part of a European-wide conservation breeding programme that’s working to safeguard the species.
The foal that has been born this week has been named Jasper, which means ‘bringer of treasure’ in Persian.
The ‘leggy youngster’ was born to mum Azita following a year-long pregnancy.
Mike Jordan, Animal and Plant Director at Chester Zoo, said: “Onagers are the most threatened equid species in the world and one of the rarest animals that we care for here at the zoo, so we’re absolutely delighted a new foal has been born – he’ll help to boost global numbers of this little-known species.
The new Onager foal at Chester Zoo is one of the rarest animals in the world. Credit: Chester ZooThe new Onager foal at Chester Zoo is one of the rarest animals in the world. Credit: Chester Zoo
“The leggy youngster, who has been named Jasper by our team, is doing very well and mum Azita is doing a fantastic job of nurturing and bonding with her new charge. He’s full of energy and enjoys playfully kicking up sand as he races around his habitat.
“With numbers having declined so rapidly in the wild, and the species now teetering on the edge of existence in Iran, it’s sadly very possible that onagers could become extinct in the wild within our lifetime.
“That’s why we’re part of an international conservation breeding programme, to ensure there’s a viable safety-net population of onager in zoos. In time, Jasper will go on to contribute to these efforts, helping to safeguard this charismatic species and preserve options for their conservation into the future.”
Manchester’s ‘busiest’ road Mancunian Way to close for resurfacing
Emily Sergeant
Mancunian Way is set to close for resurfacing works next month.
As Manchester City Council looks to ‘improve’ what is, by far, one of Manchester’s busiest and most-used roads, given the fact it is the main thoroughfare in and out of the city centre, it has been confirmed that Mancunian Way is due to undergo crucial resurfacing works.
With an estimated 15 million journeys taken along this road annually, the Council says it’s vital that necessary maintenance is carried out to keep traffic flowing.
As a result, plans are now in place to resurface Mancunian Way overnight during a four-week period, beginning from next Monday (3 March)
The resurfacing work will be split into two sections, starting with the eastbound carriageway from River Street to Fairfield Street, before moving on to the westbound lane from Fairfield Street to Upper Brook Street.
Work along the eastbound section – in the direction of Ashton Old Road – will run between Monday 3 March to Friday 14 March, with the operating hours being between 7pm and 5am, during which the carriageway will be fully closed, while the westbound carriage in the direction of Regent Road will take place overnight between Monday 17 March until Friday 28 March, with closures at the same time.
Manchester’s ‘busiest’ road Mancunian Way will be close for resurfacing next month / Credit: Pixabay
Due to events taking place during this period of works, slightly later road closures will be in place from 7:30pm on the 7, 10 and 14 of March during the eastbound section, and on 19 March during the westbound secion.
No work will take place Europa League fixture dates, or on Saturday or Sunday nights either.
“These works are taking place overnight to mitigate any potential disruption,” explained Councillor Tracey Rawlins, who is the Executive Member for Clean Air, Environment and Transport at Manchester City Council.
“But as always, we would encourage people to plan their journeys ahead of time and allow more time to travel if they need to go via the Mancunian Way.”
Signed diversions will be in place during the course of the works, and details of this can be found on the Council’s dedicated webpage here.
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Travel & Tourism
Life-saving defibrillators to be installed on dozens of trains travelling through Greater Manchester
Emily Sergeant
Life-saving defibrillators are set to be installed on dozens of trains travelling through Greater Manchester.
Rail operator TransPennine Express (TPE) has started work to install the units on all 51 of its Class 185 trains over the next two months, and can be used by both staff and passengers if someone goes into cardiac arrest.
The defibrillators will be fitted by technology company Siemens Mobility, and will be located in an emergency equipment cupboard in the middle of the train.
Every defibrillator being installed on the trains has step-by-step, spoken word instructions built in to them, which explain how to use on someone in an emergency, so passengers and staff need not panic if they’re unsure what to do.
Computers inside the defibrillators will work to analyse a person’s heart rhythms to find out if an electric shock is needed, and if required, electrodes then automatically deliver the shock.
⚡Work has started to fit defibrillators across more than 50 TransPennine Express trains
🚆 The life-saving units will be installed on all 51 of our Class 185 trains by the end of March
The defibrillators – which are already installed on TPE’s Nova 1 trains – have been purchased from the British Heart Foundation charity, which is the biggest independent funder of heart and circulatory research in the UK.
The news that the defibrillators are being installed on trains travelling through Greater Manchester and across the UK come after it was announced back in 2023 that the machines were being installed at more than 100 Northern stations to help save people in cardiac arrest.
Speaking on the installing of the defibrillators on trains, Bushra Khan, who is the Head of Engineering at TransPennine Express, said: “Our defibrillators are a huge benefit to both our customers and the communities we serve.
“This rollout will ensure that people travelling on our services will feel safe and confident that defibrillators are available to help in the event of an emergency, potentially saving lives.”
Daisy Jackson -
2nd August 2024 
