There’s a new little face heading to Adelaide Zoo soon – Obi the Pygmy Hippopotamus!
The ten-month-old male calf won’t be transferred to Adelaide Zoo until May, but Zoos Victoria Keepers have already begun the process of making sure that he will be relaxed when he travels across to South Australia inside a hippo-sized pet pack.
Obi was born on May 25, 2015, so he is now eating solid food and no longer depends on feeding from his mother Petre.
He has grown from the 6kg he weighed shortly after his birth to approximately 100kg now, so the time has come for him to move on, as calves do in the wild.
Zoos Victoria Senior Keeper James Uren said that the first step in getting Obi ready for the trip was to place the travelling crate in the night yard next to the night dens.
“After Obi saw that this new object was nothing to worry about, the Keepers began to get him interested in exploring the crate by placing some food inside it,” James said.
“Once he saw Keepers putting food into the crate, he started going to snack.
“Now Keepers are starting to move the door panel slightly across the door opening while Obi concentrates on the food, moving it away if he wants to back out.
“The plan is for Obi to be so relaxed in the crate that when the time comes for the drive across to Adelaide they will be able to put the door panel in place without upsetting him.
“We know Obi has a lot of fans, so we expect they will want to come and see him before he moves to Adelaide Zoo.”
Obi will go on display to the public in June, but Adelaide Zoo keepers have asked for patience while he adjusts to his new habitat.
Zoos SA Herbivore Team Leader Heather Guy said when Obi arrives he will go into quarantine for a period of 30 days while he settles into his new life.
“Obi will be the only Pygmy Hippo at Adelaide Zoo. Sexual maturity in Pygmy Hippos is attained between 4 -5 years of age,” Zoos SA Herbivore Team Leader Heather Guy said.
“Pygmy Hippos are endangered in the wild, due to both loss of habitat and poaching, which makes the regional and international breeding programs for the species critically important for the future.”
The male calf is the offspring of Petre, who at 23, said goodbye to Adelaide Zoo to be a part of a Pygmy Hippopotamus breeding program at Taronga Zoo. After breeding successfully at Taronga Zoo, Petre then journeyed to Melbourne Zoo in December 2012 to breed with a different male.
After giving birth to Obi in May 2015, we are now eagerly awaiting the ten-month-old’s arrival at Adelaide Zoo. For those who remember Janice, the Pygmy Hippopotamus who lived at Adelaide Zoo for 33 years, this will be her grandson!
Obi is the first of his endangered species to be born at Melbourne Zoo since 1981.
