A baby rhino was born May 12 in a sanctuary in Indonesia, and the female calf is adorable.
The healthy 20-kilogram Sumatran rhino calf is the newest member of one of the most critically endangered species in the world. Only an estimated 100 remain on the planet.
The calf’s mom is from Sumatra, Indonesia, and her dad is originally from the Cincinnati Zoo. He had been brought to Sumatra’s Way Kambas National Park sanctuary in 2007.
.@RhinosIRF announced critically-endangered Sumatran rhino population has increased by one! https://t.co/gYVol0CR7I pic.twitter.com/7bNsdh7UKR
— Cincinnati Zoo (@CincinnatiZoo) May 12, 2016
“We haven’t stopped smiling since the moment we were sure she was alive and healthy,” said Susie Ellis of the International Rhino Foundation. “While one birth does not save the species, it’s one more Sumatran rhino on Earth.”
Sumatran rhinos are the smallest of the world’s rhinos, and they’re the only species covered in long hair. They face destruction of tropical forest habitat and poachers who kill the rhinos for their horns, which are actually the same material as fingernails and hair. The horns are trafficked as ornaments or ground into powder and falsely advertised as medicines in China, Vietnam and other parts of Asia. All species of rhinos are at risk.
The International Rhino Foundation established the rhino sanctuary where the calf was born in 1997. The calf’s mother, Ratu, made history in 2012 when she gave birth to her first calf, a male named Andatu. Prior to the latest birth, sanctuary staff conducted regular ultrasound exams, using methods developed in Ohio by the Cincinnati Zoo’s Center for Reproduction in Endangered Wildlife.
Learn more about rhinos and how you can help wildlife.
This article draws on reports from the Associated Press.
