The Tampa Zoo in Lowery Park, Florida, has announced the birth of a female southern white rhino, a species that is in danger of extinction.
The zoo explained that the little one was born last week to a twenty-year-old female called Alaki, to join the rhino family in the zoo, and to be the eighth rhino to be born in Tampa, as part of a plan to help the endangered species reproduce.
The female baby has not yet been named, but the mother and her baby appear to be in good health.
“The little rhino looks strong and in good health,” the zoo said in a statement posted on its Facebook page.
The Alaki mated with Ungava, the only adult male at the Tampa Zoo, and zoo officials said the baby would join the herd of rhinos in the coming weeks.
Visitors to the park will be able to view the little one during an exhibition to be opened soon.
The zoo says that the number of white rhinos fell sharply in the early 20th century to between 50 and 200 animals, but conservation efforts led to an increase in its numbers to 20,400 in Africa.
The white rhino is still classified as a semi-threatened animal due to the loss of its original habitat and because of the poaching to extract its horns and sell them.
Source: “Associated Press”