MIAMI — Zoo Miami is welcoming the newest little member of its family.
Circe. a 21-year-old endangered black rhinoceros gave birth to her fourth baby, a male calf on February 24th.
Mom and calf are being kept out of the exhibit and sheltered from external stresses for the time being, so they can properly bond.
Don't worry, they're doing great. The calf has been nursing regularly and is growing fast in preparation for his public debut, according to the zoo.
Zoo Miami has had an impressive 13 successful black rhino births under human care making it one of the nation’s most successful zoos in maintaining and reproducing this highly endangered species. From numbers reaching well over 100,000 animals in Sub-Saharan Africa at the beginning of the 20th century, black rhinos now number less than 5,000 in the wild. They have been poached for their horn which is believed by some cultures to possess medicinal qualities and by others it is used for dagger handles as a symbol of status. It is actually nothing more than a keratin-based material similar to fingernails and hair and has never been proven to have any medicinal qualities at all.
These large herbivores can weigh up to 3,000 pounds and can be found in isolated pockets of savannah woodland in Eastern and Southern Africa where they lead a normally solitary life.
Mother and calf are being slowly introduced to the public this week by spending short amounts of time on exhibit during the morning with the amount of time being extended daily as the calf becomes more secure in its new environment.
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