Critically Endangered Black Rhino Calf Is Born In Chester Zoo

Starting off the day with a piece of incredibly happy news! A critically endangered black baby rhino was born in Chester Zoo, and we could not be any happier about it. There are only less than 1,000 of them left globally, so any new addition to the black rhino family should be celebrated everywhere. On top of that, the rare birth and the baby's first steps were all caught on camera!

Take a look at the footage below!

via PA

Evening Standard reports that "[t]he eastern black rhino is listed by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as critically endangered," and that the low number of rhinos is "blamed in part by experts on the surge in demand of rhino horn stemming from the Asian medicine market." All of that makes this new tiny rhino addition even more worthy of celebrating. As Andrew McKenzie, team manager of rhinos at the zoo, said: "These rhinos have been pushed to the very edge of existence and every single addition to the European endangered species breeding programme is celebrated globally."
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via @chesterzoo

"The birth of a critically endangered eastern black rhino is always very special," McKenzie explained. "And to be able to watch on camera as a calf is born is an incredible privilege – with rhino numbers so, so low it, sadly, isn't something that's captured very often. Seeing the little one then get to her feet with a gentle nudge from mum; take her first tentative steps and suckle for the first time is then the icing on the cake." Watching the footage really does make you feel privileged to be able to get a glimpse of something so special.
For another special event in the animal world, read about TWO new marsupial gliders joining the glider family in Australia.
via PA
via PA