Giraffes are curious creatures. Incredibly cute, these herbivores have fascinating mating rituals. What begins with the male following his lady around nudging her rear end till she agrees to copulate; ends in the birth of beautiful babies after a 15-month gestation period.
You probably remember April the Giraffe who went viral in 2017 with her pregnancy and birth videos amassing over 232 million views. Well, she’s become a mommy again and the birth of her latest calf was live-streamed. People around the world tuned in to witness the miracle!
It all began when the zookeepers realised April was in labour. They then announced their intent to live-stream on Facebook and the little calf arrive approximately two hours later.
“Success! With an average 15-month gestation, we are thankful to have a healthy calf on the ground, nursing and bonding with mom. With wild giraffe numbers plummeting annually, every calf born counts,” said park owner, Jordan Patch.
Take a look at the video-
In case you’ve never witnessed a giraffe in labour before, you could be a bit perturbed. They usually give birth standing up!
Most calves generally experience a 2-metre fall as they plonk to the ground during the birth. However, most giraffe babies manage to get on their feet baby as early as an hour after birth. April’s 5th baby was born on March 16 and the calf who is a boy isn’t named yet.
He’s currently at the Animal Adventure Park in Harpursville, New York with his mommy (April). Zoo officials are soon to have a naming contest for newborn.
Can’t get enough of the adorable little fella? Take a look at some pictures the zookeepers posted for April’s fans.
Giraffe Welcome 2019March 16th 12:43 pmWelcome to the world little one! Early this morning, April’s behavior…
Posted by Animal Adventure Park on Saturday, March 16, 2019
According to the Guardian, over 3 lakh viewers witnessed the birth video making April’s baby the world’s most famous giraffe.
Can you think of a name befitting this star calf? Perhaps Taimur, given his global fame!