If you haven’t been keeping up with all the adorable baby animal news at Zoo Atlanta, you might not know: but we’ve got an adorable new addition to the family!
On December 24th (Christmas Eve baby!), 2023, for the first time EVER, a southern white rhino calf was born at Zoo Atlanta.
What’s Zoo Atlanta’s new baby rhino’s name?
Of course, naming the new baby was a huge deal, and Zoo Atlanta made it into a community effort. On March 7th, they asked for submissions from the community to compete with the nine monikers provided by Zoo Atlanta. From over 4,000 name submissions, the rhino care team selected 7. With their own 9 options and the 7 community options, they then began a March Madness-themed naming event.
As the voting continued, the community followed along with the sweet-sixteen-style naming bracket until just two names remained. Our community finally settled on Zuri, a name of Swahili origin which can mean “beautiful.”
Zuri was one of the over 4,000 community submissions. Many people on social media were fighting for the name “Noodles,” but “Zuri” reigned supreme!
Zoo Atlanta says, “the 3-month-old calf, who now weighs more than 330 pounds, has recently begun making more frequent appearances with her mother, Kiazi, in the Zoo’s Delta Air Lines Rhino Habitat. Zuri has not yet met her first-time father Mumbles.”
Southern White Rhinos
Southern White Rhinos are the largest of the different rhino breeds, and are, contrary to their name, not actually white.
According to Zoo Atlanta, “The species is currently classified as Near Threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). While poaching for their horns is a serious issue for all rhinos and has already resulted in the extinctions and near-extinctions of some rhino species, southern white rhinos are especially vulnerable because they often travel in herds in the wild, a behavior that makes it easier for poachers to locate them. ”
We are so happy to welcome baby Zuri into Zoo Atlanta! We love her already!