- For the first time in the zoo's history, a deer boar was born at Zoo Miami
- The zoo has not officially identified the sex of the deer boar, but believes it is male
- READ MORE: First photos of the doe's birth
Zoom Miami welcomed the birth of a “bizarre-looking” endangered “hog deer” to parents Maggie and Harry.
The baby deer boar was born on December 15 – the zoo just announced the event – and is said to be healthy as it awaits its debut in isolation with its mother.
Isolation of mother and child is critical to safety in the enclosure, Zoo Miami communications director Ron Magill told .
Zoo officials said they were excited about the new bundle of joy since Maggie had already given birth to a stillborn a year ago.
The deer boar species is native to Indonesia and there are fewer than 10,000 individuals worldwide.
Last month, a presumptive male was born at Zoo Miami, marking the first successful birth in the zoo's history
The baby deer boar is currently in isolation with its mother, Maggie, while it adjusts to the zoo's enclosure
“The possibility of the baby falling into the ditch if introduced too early causes keepers to be extra careful,” Magill said.
He continued: “Our challenge now is to ensure that the baby is secure enough to move safely through the showroom.”
“… We suspect that it will be a few weeks before mother and child have free access to the exhibition habitat.”
Magill said Maggie and her baby will likely remain in isolation for a few weeks before they can be introduced into the habitat.
He confirmed that mother and chicks were doing well and were already showing increased tolerance towards keepers and approaching them for special treats.
The zoo has not yet officially determined the baby's gender, but Magill said they are “reasonably confident that it is male.”
Harry, the little deer boar's father, is still on public display at the zoo
The Babirusa species is native to Indonesia and is endangered due to excessive hunting and poaching for its meat and habitat loss due to agricultural development.
The animal belongs to the pig family and has large tusks on its nose.
It is widely considered to be one of the most bizarre species of pig in the world, with over 20 different species of pig growing on the top of the male's head, strongly resembling antlers.
The animal also has upper tusks that grow through the top of its face and sometimes curl back into its head, and lower tusks that curve up and away from the head.
Wildlife researchers believe that male deer boars' curved tusks may protect their face and eyes from an opposing male's lower tusks during fights.
Although the tusks are absent in females, the male features “create an almost alien appearance that leads many to consider the deer boar the strangest pig in the world,” Zoo Miami said in a news release.
At birth, deer boars weigh less than 1.7 pounds, but when fully grown, adult males can weigh up to 220 pounds and have a typical life expectancy of seven to ten years in the wild, but can live up to 24 years in human care.
The deer boar is on the IUCN Red List due to over-hunting by humans for food, commercial logging and habitat degradation endangering its existence.