'Wonderful Mother's Day surprise' - baby giraffe born at Flamingo Land near Malton

Zoo keepers at Flamingo Land had an extra special reason to celebrate Mother’s Day this year with the arrival of a 6ftt bundle of legs and neck.

In the early hours of Sunday morning, nine-year-old Rothschild’s giraffe Savannah gave birth to her second calf, the first born at the zoo for six years.

The father, four-year-old Albert, only arrived at Flamingo Land in September 2023 as part of the EAZA Ex-Situ Programme (EEP).

This is his first offspring and keepers confirmed this week that the calf is a male.

Head Keeper Sam DeBelle said: “This was a fantastic surprise for the giraffe team on Sunday morning.

"We knew Savannah was pregnant, we just did not know when she was due.

"To find a calf on Mother’s day, just makes it extra special.

"The zoo now has eight Rothschild’s giraffes, however there could be more to come.”

Park Executive Ross Snipp said: “In total we have five females, all of whom we believe could be pregnant, we are certainly expecting more calves this year.

"With less than 1,400 reported in the wild, every birth is a significant milestone.

"This year we hope to celebrate several of these milestones and continue to contribute to this important breeding programme”.

Keepers have named him Kijana, meaning ‘young man’ in Swahili.

After spending the first few days bonding with his mother, Kijana is now out and about with the rest of the herd and guests to Flamingo Land will be able to see him throughout the Easter Holidays.