Name of April the Giraffe's new calf revealed: Tajiri
HARPURSVILLE, New York -- April the Giraffe's new calf now has a name: Tajiri.
The announcement was made Monday morning on Good Morning America by Animal Adventure Park owner Jordan Patch.
After a naming contest was held, ten names were narrowed down as the finalists, and the choice was Tajiri, a word in Swahili that means hope, Patch said.
It was chosen to carry forward the message of hope for conservation and preservation of giraffes in the wild.
He'll be called 'Taj' for short.
Animal Adventure Park's live stream of the recently-very-pregnant April the giraffe captivated hundreds of millions.
Viewers continued to watch as the new mom introduced her son to the world.
But all good things must come to an end, and the giraffe cam went dark on Friday, April 21, at 4:30 p.m. EST.
The giraffe cam made Animal Adventure Park the second most live-viewed channel in YouTube's history, with more than 232 million live views since February. More than 1.2 million viewers were watching when April gave birth Saturday.
The calf weighed 129 pounds (58.5 kilograms) and stood 5-foot-9 at birth, and he is nursing well and has had his first vet checkup.
The zoo team said April has recovered "perfectly" and is eating "everything in sight."
The 15-year-old giraffe delivered her calf in an enclosed pen at the zoo in Harpursville, about 130 miles northwest of New York City. The mama giraffe tenderly licked her calf, which began to slowly pick its head up from the floor of the pen. About 45 minutes after it was born, the calf stood on its wobbly legs for the first time while mom helped keep her baby steady.
April had the baby with Oliver, a 5-year-old giraffe, according to Animal Adventure. This is Oliver's first calf, but April knows the drill - this is her fourth.
The privately owned zoo began live-streaming from April's enclosure in February.
April was pregnant for 16 months, just over the normal gestation time for a giraffe. She will raise her calf naturally, and weaning could take between 6 to 10 months, maybe longer. Oliver, however, will not assist in raising the calf. Male giraffes, according to Animal Adventure Park, "only really care about two things - fighting and the unmentionable."
April has her own website and even an apparel line. A GoFundMe fundraiser page that initially set a goal of $50,000 sat at more than $125,000 on Saturday morning. The money will be used for the care of the animals.
Because of fears of inbreeding, the calf will be relocated to another facility once the weaning process is over.
Animal Adventure is planning a contest to name the calf!
More video from Animal Adventure:
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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