World News for Students of English

31-07-2023 15:00

Two tiny and adorable baby pygmy marmosets were born at Sydney’s Symbio Wildlife Park.

They weighed just 15 grammes at birth (and were the size of human thumbs) but giving birth to them was, from the mother’s perspective, comparable to a human giving birth to a ten-year-old child.

Their proud parents Gomez and IT were introduced to each other the previous year, when IT, the female, arrived at the zoo. Years of bachelorhood ended for Gomez and the two started a family. Apart from their baby monkeys being very cute, their birth is necessary for the ongoing survival of the endangered species.

They are members of the world’s smallest monkey species, with adults weighing in at around the same weight as an average apple, just 100 grammes. They are facing extinction due to deforestation and illegal pet trade.

Difficult words: tiny (very small), adorable (lovable, cute, sweet), comparable (similar), bachelorhood (living as a bachelor – unmarried/single man), endangered species (an animal kind which may die out soon), extinction (dying out), due to (because of), deforestation (destroying forests).

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