Columbus Zoo Welcomes First Baby Giraffe in Close to 20 Years (and Caught It All on Camera)

Zuri and her new calf are living in an enclosure with another female giraffe who will give birth to her own baby soon

Published on October 30, 2018 01:49 PM

Just in time for trick-or-treating, a new giraffe calf has arrived at Ohio’s Columbus Zoo and Aquarium.

The baby giraffe, who arrived around 4 a.m., is the first giraffe calf born at the zoo in close to 20 years.

Eight-year-old Zuri is the proud mom to the new arrival. According to the zoo’s Facebook, the calf, whose sex is still unknown, is already up on its feet and nursing from mom, who carried the calf for 15 months.

All of this adorable action and the birth itself was captured on the live camera the zoo has situated in Zuri’s behind-the-scenes enclosure.

Fans of precious baby animals can keep track of the new giraffe calf through the zoo and National Geographic‘s giraffe birth cam.

Giraffes are around 6-ft.-tall and weigh about 100 to 150 lbs. when they are born. The zoo doesn’t know the specifics of Zuri’s calf yet, since they are allowing the mom to bond and nurture her baby solo, before stepping in for a check-up. The facility is monitoring the pair through cameras in the enclosure to make sure there are no emergencies. Both Zuri and her baby appear to be happy and healthy.

giraffe-1 — Courtesy NatGeoWILD and Columbus Zoo and Aquarium

The mother-child duo aren’t completely alone: They are sharing an enclosure with Cami, another female giraffe who is expecting a calf in the near future.

“I am extremely proud of our dedicated animal care team members, who — due to the incredible bonds they share with the animals — have been able to provide top quality care around the clock to both Cami and Zuri throughout their pregnancies, with additional support from our wonderful volunteers,” Columbus Zoo and Aquarium President/CEO Tom Stalf said in a statement. “We certainly have a lot to celebrate with the arrival of this calf, and we also look forward to welcoming [Cami’s] calf soon as these births mark an important achievement in helping to protect the future of giraffes.”