It's a girl!
This week, the Werribee Open Range Zoo family has gotten a little bigger. A southern white rhino calf has been born safe and healthy. The 60-kilogram baby girl will be named this week through an online voting competition.
After 16 months of well-monitored pregnancy, Kipenzi, the mother rhino, gave birth to her first baby in the early hours of March 21.
Werribee Zoo welcomes baby rhino
- The southern white rhino calf was born early on Tuesday morning
- She is the first of her species to be born at the zoo in almost 10 years
- The Werribee Zoo has taken over to give the calf extra care during the first few days of her life
Stay up to date with what’s happening in and around Melbourne here.
The Werribee Zoo is excited to welcome the new baby, which is the first of the species to be born at the zoo in almost a decade years. The rhino’s father, Kifaru, was matched up with Kipenzi in 2019 as part of the Australasian rhino regional breeding and conservation program.
Southern white rhinoceroses are one of the largest and heaviest land animals and are currently in the “near threatened” category of species. Populations have been on the decline and there are estimated to be less than 16 000 white rhinos left in the world today, with only around 10 000 of those in the wild.
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“The arrival of this precious calf is an important achievement in the fight to save the species from extinction,” said Dr Mark Pilgrim, director at Werribee Open Range Zoo. “And we are excited that visitors will be able to view the pair once we have navigated these typically high-risk early days following the birth.”
The Werribee Open Range Zoo is currently undergoing a major expansion project and has announced today that they have just completed the first stage. The $88 million project sees the zoo create a new full-sized elephant enclosure and a pedestrian walking trail.
The baby rhino is being well looked after by a team of specialized keepers, but she is not yet big enough to meet with the public.
For updates on the newborn calf (and more baby rhino pictures), follow the Werribee Zoo’s social media.
