Tag: animals

An endangered white female rhino calf was born last month at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park, and Disney had shared a sneak peek of the newborn.

A female baby white rhino was born last month to mother Lola. This birth marks the third white rhino born at the theme park in 13 months. It’s also the 13th white rhino to be born at Walt Disney World Resort.

Lola’s successful delivery was on the heels of two other births within the past 13 months. In all three births, the calves cozied up to mom right away and began nursing. Take a closer look below:

Sadly, rhinos in the wild are hunted for their horns, and their populations continue to dwindle. Because of this, rhino births are increasingly important to maintain healthy populations. We are also helping to protect white and black rhinos in the wild through the Disney Conservation Fund, supporting projects focused on habitat monitoring and restoration. 

Rhinoceros are the world’s second largest land mammal. After a gestation period of 16 to 18 months, white rhinos typically weigh in around 140 pounds at birth. Lola and her new bundle of joy will spend the next several months bonding backstage before joining the rest of the herd on the park’s Harambe Wildlife Reserve. In the meantime, guests can keep an eye out for the first born of these three calves, Ranger, named in honor of the rangers who protect rhinos in the wild, while experiencing Kilimanjaro Safaris.

Lola’s calf joins a happy contingent of baby births this year, including Humphrey the Masai giraffe, Greta the hippo, and Ada the western lowland gorilla, just to name a few. All told, Disney’s Animal Kingdom has welcomed everything from the tiniest insects and snails to mammoth-hoofed creatures like the white rhino. 

An endangered white male rhino calf was born earlier this week at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park, and Disney had shared a sneak peek of the newborn.

The yet to be named beautiful baby boy white rhino was born to mom Kendi. He is curious, loves his afternoon naps and has started sparring with his mom.

The video below features endearing moments as mother Kendi bonds with her playful new baby:

Kendi was paired with dad Dugan through one of the Species Survival Plans, which are overseen by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums to ensure the responsible breeding of endangered species. White rhinos are an endangered species with a near-threatened status. 

Typically, a rhino calf can weigh up to 140 pounds at birth, and as expected, this baby was nursing, standing and walking around right by mom within the first hour of being born. The two will spend the next several weeks bonding backstage before joining the rest of the herd.

As the second largest-land animal on Earth, the rhinoceros is a massive sight to behold – from their horns to their hoofs and thick armored skin – all of it.

Rhinos in the wild are found in bush country and open grassy flatlands in Africa and Southeast Asia. They are among the most endangered animals in the world due largely in part to poaching. Disney is proud to support rhino conservation efforts around the world, including those of Sumatran rhinos, which are found only in Indonesia and are critically endangered. To date, the Disney Conservation Fund has provided more than $2 million to support rhino conservation efforts around the world.

This is the first of several rhino births on the horizon. Two other rhinos at the park are also expecting; Jao is due fall 2021, and Lola will likely give birth in fall/winter 2021. 

Meet Aella! She is a two-month-old Masai giraffe calf was born at more than five-feet tall back on June 29.  She is now a foot taller and finally making her debut on the Kilimanjaro Safaris savanna at Animal Kingdom!

Aella (pronounced “eye-la”), has spent the past couple of months bonding and nursing with her mom Lily in a backstage habitat. Disney Parks said guests aboard Kilimanjaro Safaris at Disney’s Animal Kingdom should be able to easily spot her as she is the youngest and smallest giraffe in the herd.

Named after an Amazon warrior, Aella is known to be a brave and bold young giraffe with a curious and independent spirit. She’s adventurous enough to explore on her own, sometimes leaving mom a few paces behind.

Aella’s birth marks a first for her parents – mom Lily and dad George. The pair was chosen to breed through the Species Survival Plan (SSP), which is overseen by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums and ensures responsible breeding of threatened and endangered species. Breeding this pair is important to the long-term survival of the species because it adds more genetic diversity to the giraffe population, which helps ensure future generations.

Aella will nurse for about a year, and then, as a herbivore, she will move to the lush vegetation available throughout the savanna. When full grown, she will use her 18-inch tongue to strip leaves off thorny branches from the tops and sides of trees to consume up to 75 pounds of food a day. That’s a tall order!

The Masai giraffe is a vulnerable species found primarily in Kenya and Tanzania. There are believed to be roughly 32,000 Masai giraffes left in the wild, and their population continues to decline because of poaching and habitat loss.

The Disney Conservation Fund supports conservation efforts in Africa to protect wildlife habitats, including those of giraffes. Earlier this year, several Disney animal care experts went to Uganda to help relocate a herd of giraffes across the Nile River to establish a newer, safer habitat away from oil-drilling fields. Another team went to Kenya to support a giraffe and zebra population census.