A tiny orphaned antelope is being hand-reared by zoo keepers.
The Kirk’s dik-dik, which has been named Thanos, is so small he does not even register a weight on the antelope scales at Chester Zoo.
Zoo keepers stepped in to bottle feed him five times a day following the death of his mother shortly after his birth.
Assistant team manager Kim Wood said: “The youngster is beginning to find his feet now and is really starting to hold his own. He is doing ever so well and is getting stronger by the day.
“We’re hopeful that, in a few months’ time, we’ll be able to introduce him to some of the other members of our group of dik-diks.
“He may be tiny but he is certainly making a big impression on everyone at the zoo.”
Thanos, who was born on January 8, is 19cm tall and will only grow to a maximum of 40cm, as he’s part of one of the smallest species of antelope in the world.
The species takes its name from Sir John Kirk, a 19th century Scottish naturalist, as well as the sound it makes when fleeing from danger.
Kirk’s dik-diks are native to North East Africa and conservationists say they mark their territory with fluid from glands between their toes and just under their eyes, not dissimilar to tears.
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