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By Aimee Braniff Cree
**EXCLUSIVE**
ADORABLE images of a near threatened species show a four week-old Southern White rhino calf stampeding while learning to use her land legs.
One image captured on Saturday February 11th shows the four week old calf, who is yet to be named, running through a hay bale that mum Astrid is snacking on, while another shot from the same encounter shows the calf in full flight with all four little legs off the ground.
A comedic shot shows the baby attempting to put on the breaks but instead her front feet splay out under her.
There are believed to be 15,942 Southern White Rhinos globally and they have been dubbed ‘near threatened’ as their population is currently increasing.
In the UK there are around 767 white rhinos in zoos, female white rhinos like this new addition can weigh up to 1,700 kg and are often six feet tall by thirteen feet long.
The new baby marks success for the zoos breeding programme as they try to protect this near threatened species.
These side-splitting shots were captured by Tom Jones (31) from Colchester on his Canon 6D MkII at Colchester Zoo where keepers had welcomed the bundle of joy on January 13th 2023.
“We became aware from the gathering of keepers around the paddock something special was about to happen. As the gate opened, the beautiful bouncy baby rhino came running out with mum just behind,” said Tom.
“Witnessing such a moment is always special, watching her charge around, smelling all the smells and investigating is just phenomenal.
“The first image I’ve shared has gone down very well and people comment on how adorable and cute she is.
“Watching a little one like this explore the world around them is always fascinating, seeing her get excited and skipping around is brilliant.
“I love the shots of her mid-running with all four feet off the ground they are always fun to catch.
“Getting that proud little rhino stance, head up tall is always nice, but even having her walk straight towards me was brilliant..
“Whilst we can’t communicate through speech, looking into an animal’s eyes and having them gaze back at you always feels special.”
ENDS
