Two Rare Rhinos, Persian Onager are Latest Births at The Wilds

Births at The Wilds @VisitTheWilds are always cause for celebration, but this fall the reward is triple-fold as a southern white rhino, a greater one-horned rhino – who required hand-rearing to thrive – and a Persian onager are garnering the attention of visitors and staff at the 10,000-acre conservation center.

The yet-to-be-named female greater one-horned rhino was born on September 22, 2023—just in time for World Rhino Day. She took immediately to the bottle and already weighs more than 150 pounds. The hand-rearing of a rhino calf is a first for The Wilds’ Animal Management team, who acted quickly when they noticed Anna, a first-time mother born at the Bronx Zoo in 2013, was unable to care for her newborn and both required medical interventions. Anna came to The Wilds in 2021.

“I applaud the successful efforts of our Animal Management team who made the difficult, but correct, decision to hand-rear this calf for her own wellbeing and for the wellbeing of her mother,” said Dr. Joe Smith, vice president of The Wilds. “A 150-pound bottle-fed calf is an impressive success story and a noteworthy benchmark in our unprecedented breeding program for species that face so many threats in their native rangelands.”

Dan Beetem, The Wilds Director of Animal Management, said that as the calf grows stronger, the team is working on a plan to integrate her with the herd so that despite the special attention she is receiving her human caregivers, she will have the opportunity to live and develop as a rhino. Calves usually weigh more than 100 pounds at birth and gain a few pounds every day. An adult greater one-horned rhino can reach 4,000 to 6,000 pounds.

“The good news is, we have several young female rhinos with whom she can interact and learn how to be a rhino,” Beetem said. She will continue to be bottle fed for several months. Mother-raised rhinos will typically nurse for almost a year and a half. We expect that she will be ready to start working on reintroduction to the herd once those animals are back in the barns for the winter.”

The calf is the 10th greater one-horned rhino born at The Wilds. Her father is 22-year-old Suru, who was born at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park in 2000. He came to The Wilds from Miami Zoo in 2021 per a breeding recommendation through the Species Survival Plan® (SSP), a program coordinated by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) to maximize the genetic diversity and increase the population sustainability of threatened and endangered species in professional care. This is his fourth calf.

Each greater one-horned rhino birth is a significant achievement for a species that nearly went extinct during the 20th century. The Wilds is home to six greater one-horned rhinos and is one of only 19 AZA-accredited facilities in North America to care for this species.

The Wilds is also home to 17 southern white rhinos and has had a total of 30 white rhino births since 2004, with the most recent being a female born on September 23. The calf was born in the pasture to 10-year-old Anan, who was born at The Wilds in 2009. This is her fifth calf. The father is 25-year-old Kengele, who was born at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. He came to The Wilds in 2012. This is his ninth calf.

The Wilds is the only facility outside of Africa with white rhinos born four and five generations removed from their wild-born ancestors. White rhino calves are born after a gestation of 16 months and they can grow to be 5,000 pounds and 6 feet tall at their shoulder.

“Our successful rhino breeding programs are a valuable insurance policy for these animals that face grave dangers in their native ranges,” Smith said.

In addition to challenges such as habitat degradation, poachers sell rhino horns for ornamental or traditional medicinal purposes even though there are no scientifically proven health benefits for their use. The horns are made of keratin — the same substance that makes up fingernails and hair.

As part of its continued commitment to protecting these species, The Wilds has teamed up with the Center for Conservation and Research of Endangered Wildlife (CREW) at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden and other partner research facilities to form the American Institute of Rhinoceros Science (AIRS), a model for saving species with science ex situ. The AIRS operations are located at The Wilds, and the initiative was made possible by a National Leadership Grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). This collaboration strives to save rhinos through science by researching their physical condition, dietary needs, reproduction, and behavioral and environmental factors – all in an effort to maximize their wellbeing in professional care.

Rhinos were not the only significant births at The Wilds this fall, however. For the first time since 2017, a Persian onager was born. New mother Jemma is 8 years old, and the father is 15-year-old Mandrake, who was born at The Wilds in 2007.