LONDON, July 23 (DPA/EP) –

A “very special” baby orangutan, whose birth could start a new generation of an endangered species, has been put on display by its proud mother in the UK.

The five-week-old baby, yet to be named, is the Blackpool City Zoo’s first Bornean baby orangutan in more than 20 years and has stepped up conservation efforts.

On Saturday his mother, 13-year-old Orange, thrilled visitors to the Lancashire attraction by holding him up to the window with arms outstretched and head bowed.

The orangutan was born as part of the European Endangered Species Program (EEP) and was described by keepers as “very special” when they announced his birth in June.

Zoo chief Darren Webster said: “The arrival of this very special baby is incredible news, not only for us here at Blackpool Zoo, but for this species.”

“The Bornean orangutan was classified as endangered in July 2016 by the International Union for Conservation of Nature,” he explained, adding that “this means that the species is now facing a very high risk of extinction in the wild.”

“This makes a breeding program like EEP so important, and we hope this is the start of a new generation of beautiful Bornean orangutans at Blackpool Zoo.”

Blackpool Zoo has been the center of several major conservation projects recently.

In May, he welcomed three new lionesses to accompany his only lion, Khari, in a £1.5 million (€1.7 million) new habitat for big cats, where a male tiger also joined tigress Alyona earlier this month.

In 2019, he featured male Emmett Asian elephants in his female parade in hopes of spawning a “multi-generational herd”.