UAE | Environment
Al Ain Zoo gets five new white rhinos
Visitors to the Al Ain Zoo will soon be able to see five white rhinos which have recently arrived at the zoo.
- By Aftab Kazmi, Bureau Chief
- Published: 18:28 March 13, 2008
- Visitors to the Al Ain Zoo will soon be able to see five white rhinos which have recently arrived at the zoo.
- Image Credit: Gulf News
Al Ain: Visitors to the Al Ain Zoo will soon be able to see five white rhinos which have recently arrived at the zoo.
The rhinos were brought from South Africa three months ago and have been isolated for quarantine purposes, giving them time to acquaint themselves with their new surroundings in the mixed African exhibit.
Managing Director of Al Ain Zoo, Majid Al Mansouri, said: “The arrival of the five white rhinos demonstrates our commitment to conserving threatened species, as well as the integration of wildlife education for all our visitors by edifying them on different aspects of desert wildlife''.
White rhinos are the largest of the rhino species and are found in grasslands of eastern and southern Africa said a zoo spokesperson.
The average lifespan of the white rhinos in the wild is 35 to 40 years and they breed throughout the year but mostly in summer and autumn. A newborn rhino can weigh up to 40kg.
There are about 11,300 white rhinos in the wild today but their population has fast been declining due to poaching and habitat loss.
The rhinos will share their new home at the Al Ain Zoo with giraffes, zebras, Thomson's gazelles, fringe-eared Oryx, dama gazelles and wildebeests.
Visitors will be able to savour the beautiful wildlife and view the magnificent animals from a new green landscaped area and a shaded lookout tower.
Al Mansouri said that the panoramic mountain backdrop and the zoo's amazing landscape has been used to great advantage for the newly-arrived rhinos.
The new exhibit with rocky, sandy ridges, set at the foothills of Jabel Hafeet makes the new-four hectare rhino exhibit very representative of South Africa.
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