The San Diego Zoo Safari Park announced it named a six-week-old male southern white rhino calf Neville at the Nikita Kahn Rhino Rescue Center.
Neville was born on Aug. 6, and Safari Park officials describe the calf as energetic and confident. He is experiencing many firsts, including meeting other rhinos and gaining enough stamina and bulk to explore the 2-acre main habitat at the Nikita Kahn Rhino Rescue Center.
A San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance supporter named chose the name in honor of a South African Doctor who made a positive impact on their life, and the lives of many others, park officials announced Tuesday. Neville, and all rhinos, will take the spotlight on Sept. 22 in honor of World Rhino Day to bring increased awareness of rhinos and the importance of conservation efforts.
The rhino calf was born at approximately 110 pounds and is nursing well and gaining 3 to 5 pounds a week. Wild Life experts at the Safari park said he currently weighs 250 pounds, but when he is full-grown at around 3 years of age, he could weigh between 4,000 and 5,000 pounds. He may even stand 6 feet tall at the shoulder.
Neville was recently introduced to two adult female rhinos, Victoria and Wallis.
“Under the watchful eyes [of his mother] Livia, the calf often interacts with the two adults—sometimes engaging in playful behavior, including head-butting, or just curiously watching their activities,” the Safari Park wrote in a news release.
According to San Diego Zoo Safari park officials, Neville’s birth represents an essential step in the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance’s Northern White Rhino initiative, which is dedicated to saving the northern white rhino through innovative reproductive technologies. There are only two northern white rhinos that remain on Earth, and they reside at a wildlife conservancy in Kenya.
Neville can be seen running at top speed around the habitat, frequently stopping to splash around and roll in mud wallows.
Visit the San Diego Zoo Safari Park to learn more about World Rhino Day.
