Tiny creatures that love spicy food emerge from their nest at MI zoo. See the babies
An energetic, squirrel-like critter with a penchant for spicy food recently gave birth to two pups at a Michigan zoo.
Caper and Katherine are northern tree shrews, small mammals native to Southeast Asian forests who spend their days foraging for fruit and insects, according to Potter Park Zoo. In January, Katherine gave birth to her first litter of pups, who weighed in at just 12 and 13 grams apiece.
“Katherine has been an excellent first-time mom,” Animal Health Director Ronan Eustace said in a Feb. 19 news release from the Lansing zoo.
The babies spent their first month of life in their nest without budging, while their mother nurses them once every 48 hours, the zoo said. They’ll eventually grow to have the same long, fluffy tails, slender bodies, big eyes and gray-brown coloration as their parents. Tree shrews grow to about 5 to 9 inches long, with tails about as long as their bodies, according to the Smithsonian’s National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute.
“Now that the pups have emerged from the nest, we’re excited for visitors to observe them as they explore their environment,” Eustace said in the news release.
Tree shrews exist in their own taxonomic order, Scandentia, and that’s not their only unique attribute. According to a 2018 study, a genetic mutation lowers their sensitivity to capsaicin, making them the only animal besides humans that willingly eats spicy plants.
According to the Lincoln Park Zoo, northern tree shrews are most closely related to primates and have no relation to actual shrews other than a coincidental resemblance to them. The tree shrews are on display at the Potter Park Zoo’s Feline and Primate House.
“This is a fantastic opportunity for guests to see this energetic species in action,” Animal Care Supervisor Pat Fountain said in the news release. “We’re excited to share their journey with our community.”
This story was originally published February 20, 2025 at 8:35 AM with the headline "Tiny creatures that love spicy food emerge from their nest at MI zoo. See the babies."
