One and a half years ago, Jane, a 13-year-old Southern White Rhinoceros, came to the Allwetter Zoo in Münster, Germany from the Scottish Blair Drummond Safari Park and was introduced to the zoo’s bull Rhino, Harry.  The two Rhinos got along well and after a 16 month gestation, Jane delivered her first calf, a male, on May 23.






Photo Credits: Allwetter Zoo

Jane was showing signs of labor early in the morning on that day, so the staff closed the Rhino house to visitors.  To give Jane privacy, the staff watched Jane throughout the day on security cameras that were installed for this exact purpose.  The actual birth process only took about ten minutes.  Jane encouraged her newborn to stand, and he soon was nursing. 

The calf sleeps a lot, but seems to enjoy rustling in the thick bed of straw in the Rhino stall.  Jane is an excellent mother, and follows her new baby like a hawk. 

Southern White Rhinos are the most abundant of all Rhino species, but they are still threatened by poaching for their horns, which are used in traditional medicine.

See more photos of the Rhino calf below the fold.