It’s only early January, but last year’s baby hippopotamus mania is still strong. Thailand’s feisty Moo Deng became a social media sensation in 2024 and took the world by storm with her. Antics such as biting the knee and flipping the hose.. Now, pygmy hippopotamus enthusiasts in the United States don’t need to visit Thailand or cross the pond to Scotland to visit haggis to see newborn pachyderm babies.
December 9, 2024, Metro Richmond Zoo, Moseley, VA I personally adopted a female pygmy hippopotamus baby weighing 15 pounds. It’s still too early to tell whether this newborn baby will become as big a ham as Mu Deng.
After over 116,000 votes from 165 countries, this new bundle of joy was born. The names were announced live on this morning’s TODAY show.. Poppy is the winner Voting rate 52.8%.
Poppy was born to parents Iris and Cowan. 7 months pregnant. The baby girl is Iris and Corwin’s third calf in four and a half years. This birth was also Iris’ first time giving birth in water. The common hippo usually gives birth in water, but its smaller relative, the pygmy hippopotamus, can be born on land or in water.
poppy has arrived Dec. 9 at 4:50 p.m. Several zookeepers and several zoo visitors were also present.. Zoo officials said the baby’s natural instincts kicked in and it immediately started moving around in the water.
Poppies scattering in her habitat. Credit: Metro Richmond Zoo.
Poppies weighed 15 pounds at birth, but fully grown pygmy hippos can reach up to 600 pounds. According to , they are approximately one-tenth smaller than a standard-sized hippo. World Wildlife Fund. Despite their stocky build, these large mammals can move fairly quickly. they can run around Average speed: 19 mphcomparable to lizards and humans.
December 30th is Iris and Poppy Returned to the indoor pool area And for the first time, it was exposed to the public eye. It was the baby’s first time in water since she was born in the same pool three weeks ago.
“On the first day, we lowered the water level so the baby could get used to its new environment. We gradually raised the water level each day.” The zoo wrote in a statement:. “Just like human babies, our little hippo spends her days nursing, sleeping and pooping, but there is one clear difference: she loves to swim. ”
Throughout this winter, Poppy and Iris will remain in the indoor pool area during the day and will be open to the public. In the evening, they return to their rooms filled with hay to rest. The zoo plans to move them to an outdoor habitat once the weather warms and the poppies have grown a bit more.
[ Related: Humans likely wiped out Cyprus’ tiny hippos and elephants in record time. ]
Pygmy hippos can also be seen in several other zoos, including: Tampa Zoo, Florida and franklin park zoo Located in Boston, Massachusetts. In the wild, they live primarily in the forests and swamps of West Africa, mainly Liberia. they are designated as an endangered speciesDue to habitat loss due to logging, logging, and other human activities, there are only an estimated 2,500 left in the wild.
“This birth, like previous births of Iris, plays an important role in the conservation of this rare and elusive species,” the zoo said.
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