Santa came to Pairi Daiza earlier than expected...
A baby Southern White Rhinoceros is born: Madiba welcomes her third calf!
At 3.20pm on the 10th of December, 18-year-old Madiba, a female Southern White Rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum simum), gave birth to a beautiful baby in the heart of the Land of Origins. This is Madiba's third calf, after Zimba in 2019 and Willy in 2023. For the time being, both remain safely and cozily in their inside territory, not far from Joby, the 24-year-old father. It's an early Christmas present of the kind we love to receive at Pairi Daiza, full of love and tenderness!
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“The newborn is in perfect health, with a weight of 60.5 kg, and started suckling colostrum straight away. The mother is taking excellent care of the baby,” says Francesco Zinno, Pairi Daiza vet.
Take a look at the raw video footage below.
Video footageA new ambassador for a species that is still endangered in the wild
In the wild, the Southern White Rhino remains under serious threat from poaching, fuelled by the illegal trade in horns, and from the gradual loss of its habitat. Once on the brink of extinction, this subspecies is now estimated to number around 18,000 individuals, thanks to conservation efforts around the world. This calf born at Pairi Daiza has become a new ambassador for its species, raising public awareness of the need to protect rhinos in their natural habitat.
Even more endangered, the Northern White Rhino is on the brink of extinction, with only two females left alive today, Najin and Fatu, who are no longer able to reproduce naturally. The BioRescue consortium, led by Thomas Hildebrandt (Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research), has therefore developed highly specialised reproductive techniques, including oocyte retrieval, in vitro fertilisation and embryo transfer, in order to preserve the genetic heritage of this subspecies.
The Pairi Daiza Foundation has played a key role in this process by collaborating in the development of these techniques on Southern White Rhinoceroses, notably through successful ovocyte collections resulting in viable embryos. In 2023, the Foundation took part in a crucial mission in Kenya, during which, for the first time, an in vitro embryo from a Pairi Daiza rhinoceros was implanted in a Southern White Rhinoceros carrier female. This led to a historic scientific breakthrough: the first documented successful embryo transfer in rhinos. Although the surrogate mother unfortunately subsequently died of a natural infection, analyses revealed that she had indeed been pregnant with a healthy male embryo.
Today, the BioRescue team has 38 Northern White Rhino embryos, three of which have already been implanted in carrier females, so far without success. Thanks to the ongoing work of the BioRescue consortium, it remains entirely possible that in the next few years, perhaps as early as 2026, a Northern White Rhinoceros will be born for the first time in several decades. The Pairi Daiza Foundation is committed to continuing its support for this revolutionary initiative.
Gender and first name to be revealed soon
Tomorrow, the baby’s gender will be announced on Pairi Daiza’s YouTube channel. People will also be invited to choose the first name by voting on Pairi Daiza’s official Facebook page. A playful way to involve animal lovers in this joyful event.
Visitors will be able to discover the newborn in 2026; for now, it’s still a bit too cold for that little snout to make its first outdoor appearance.
Claire Gilissen