Adorable southern white rhino calf wins over Belgium zoo visitors, watch video

An adorable southern white rhino that was born in the Belgium zoo has become the latest attraction for visitors according to the Zoo officials. The baby rhino was conceived in efforts to protect the endangered species which is at the verge of extinction. 

New attraction at the Belgian zoo

Pairi Daiza Zoo officials in a statement said that an adorable male rhino was born in the early hours of December 2. The mother rhino, Madiba and the baby rhino are healthy. In the video released by the Zoo authorities on Twitter, one can see the baby rhino with his mother. 

There are only 18,000 southern white rhinos left in the world and the species is been poached at a rate of one in every eight hours. On the other hand, the number of northern white rhino fares in single digits. 

READ: White Rhino, Sana, Dies In French Zoo; Caretakers Believe She Was The Oldest Of Her Kind

Strong-willed Sana

Sana was born in 1964 in the Umfolozi National Park in South Africa. She was transported to Europe seven years later as a zoo attraction. According to her caretakers, Sana was always strong-willed with a fierce character. She uses to set all the rules but during her last stages, she had become understandably subdued and had even stopped rolling in the mud. Rhinoceros roll in the mud in order to keep their skin hydrated and to ward off infections.

As she was unable to do it herself, Sana's caretakers applied a coat of green clay on her skin once a week. 

READ: San Diego Zoo Announces Birth Of White Rhino

The square-lipped grazers, larger than their black cousins, are divided into southern and northern subspecies. The life expectancy of white rhinos in the wild is about 50 years. In March 2018, subspecies of the northern white Rhinos became functionally extinct when the last male, Sudan, died in Kenya. Sudan is survived by two females, neither of whom were unable to carry a calf. Sudan died at the age of 45 after a long battle with several age-related complications. His caretakers had decided to euthanize him.

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READ: Scientists Succeed In Creating Embryos Of Northern White Rhino