Tiny Deer Born At Queens Zoo In Flushing Meadows-Corona Park

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A member of the world's smallest deer species was born this has been born at the Queens Zoo at Flushing Meadows-Corona Park.

The Wildlife Conservation Society reported the endangered southern pudu had been born at the zoo. The young doe weighed just one pound at birth, and could weigh in at a just 20 pounds as an adult, the society said.

Currently, the fawn is nursing, but she will soon transition to a diet of fresh leaves, grains, kale, carrots and hay, the society reported.

The small deer have what the society called "extraordinary characteristics." They will bark when they sense danger and climb fallen trees, and are excellent jumpers and sprinters despite being only 12 to 14 inches tall.

They also run in a zigzag pattern to escape predators, the society said.

The deer species -- Pudu puda -- is native to Chile and Argentina and considered vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The society is working in South America to deal with habitat loss.

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