Whipsnade Zoo's woolly additions as adorable Yaks born

Female Tonks, born on Wednesday, September 20, was followed by male Cedric on Saturday, October 7, with both given names inspired by the Harry Potter books, a tradition with the Yak family at the Bedfordshire-based zoo.

"Tonks was born to first time mum Pandora and dad Draco, while Cedric was born to female Petunia a few weeks later," said zookeeper George Spooner.

"The two yaks are fast becoming the best of friends - just like we imagine their namesakes would have been had they met at Hogwarts - playing in the long grasses of their paddock, as their mothers look on and try to grab some rest.

"Like the book character, Tonks is quite bold and friendly, and we hope she will grow up to be a strong leader in the group, while Cedric is just as loveable and handsome as his namesake - the two-week-old already has our visitors completely captivated."

Hermione, Luna and Ginny make up the rest of Whipsnade's Yak herd, and they can often be spotted out and about in the winter months.

Yak baby Tonks and mum Pandora. (Image: Whipsnade Zoo)

"During the winter months when it’s beautifully misty at the conservation zoo, our big, hairy, loveable yaks can look a bit like dementors floating along in the distance," George added. 

"Dementors are the guards of the prison of Azkaban in the Harry Potter series – luckily, visitors have nothing to fear from our gentle Yaks this Halloween."

The zoo's Yaks also play an important role in the conservation of the species, with their numbers in the wild decreasing due poaching, loss of habitat, competition with traditional livestock and disease transmission.

Cedric was born earlier this month. (Image: Whipsnade Zoo)

Yaks were once widespread throughout South Asia, but have gone extinct in countries such as Bhutan.

"The domestic yak herd at our conservation zoo act as ambassadors for the wild yak, which are classed as Vulnerable by the IUCN Red List," George explained.

"Talking to visitors excited about the arrival of about Tonks or Cedric, provides us with a great opportunity to raise awareness about the plight facing wild Yaks in China and India, where numbers are sadly decreasing."

Tonks enjoying a rest at Whipsnade. (Image: Whipsnade Zoo)

The youngster are part of the Harry Potter-themed herd at the zoo. (Image: Whipsnade Zoo)