Australia Zoo has a cute new addition to its animal family, with the birth of a two-metre-tall, 60-kilo baby giraffe.
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After a 15-month pregnancy, "outgoing" giraffe Rosie gave birth to the long-awaited, lanky addition to the Sunshine Coast zoo's giraffe herd last week.
The new calf, born on August 14, will grow to nearly 6 metres and 2000kg.
Australia Zoo’s head of African animals, Manu Ludden said mum and calf are doing well.
“As expected, Rosie gave birth to a very healthy female calf who shortly afterwards started walking and feeding from mum which is exactly what we want to see,” he said.
“Rosie is a beautiful mum and this is her third calf she’s had here at Australia Zoo, so she’s relaxed and knows exactly what to do.
He said Rosie and her new baby are now bonding and spending “some important one-on-one time together”.
Over the next few weeks the pair will be slowly introduced into the rest of the herd where visitors should be able to see them.
Bindi Irwin said she was thrilled to have another giraffe addition to the Australia Zoo family.
“She is too cute for words,” said Irwin. “This gorgeous girl is certainly going to melt a lot of hearts with her big brown eyes.”
This birth is significant to giraffe populations as the species is considered vulnerable in the wild. Threats to these beautiful animals throughout African countries include poaching and habitat destruction.
Giraffe facts
- Giraffe give birth standing up, so the fall for a new calf can be up to two metres.
- Giraffe calves stand within one hour of birth.
- A giraffe’s spots are as unique as a human’s fingerprint.
- Despite looking a little uncoordinated, they can run at speeds of 55km/hour.
- They can reach weights of over 1900kg and heights of over 5.7m.
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