Your Toronto Zoo is thrilled to announce our “big but little” white rhino calf, affectionately known as #TZTankPuppy, officially has a name: Kifaru (Kee-FAHR-oo). The name means both “tank” and “rhino” in Swahili, so it was the perfect fit for this rambunctious baby!
Kifaru will be making his first outdoor public appearance to Toronto Zoo guests later this spring, once the weather is consistently warmer. In the meantime, Zoo guests can purchase a limited edition Baby Rhino Wild Encounter, as a way to meet him in his indoor home over the next couple of months. While the Wildlife Care team is always protective of new baby animals at your Zoo while they bond with their mothers, the team feels he is ready to meet a small number of guests and are equally excited that a portion of the proceeds are being used to help conservation efforts for white rhinos in the wild.
While there are very few Wild Encounter spots left to meet Kifaru in person before he heads to his outdoor habitat later this spring, he and his mother, Sabi, can be seen virtually on zoolife - the world's first online zoo. Guests will be able to view these white rhinos over the next 30 days (from 1:00pm - 6:00pm) with a free trial. It’s a great way to watch Kifaru grow while also contributing to species conservation, since 80% of proceeds from zoolife subscriptions directly fund wildlife care and conservation efforts here at your Toronto Zoo. Watch Kifaru, beginning today, at torontozoo.com/livecams
There are fewer than 16,000 white rhinos left in the wild, with numbers currently declining due to habitat loss and the continued increase in poaching for their horns for the illegal wildlife trade. To support white rhino conservation efforts, please consider donating to the Wilding Rhino Conservation Fund. Through this fund, the Toronto Zoo Wildlife Conservancy is proud to be partnering with the International Rhino Foundation, furthering your Toronto Zoo's conservation impact worldwide: www.wildlifeconservancy.ca/baby