„Etosha and her calf are now having a rest in the inside enclosure. Although the birth passed off without any complication, both are still tired. However, we assume that if everything goes well and the weather is favourable, they will together set out for their first walk outside soon,“ described Jiri Hruby, rhino curator of the zoo.

The zoo has presently 20 rhinos in total. It is the biggest herd in Europe. „The birth of another calf is a great news for us. A few years ago, Etosha gave birth to the female Eliska, who was transported from our zoo to Africa last summer. Currently, we are working on similar projects with aim to get more rhinos from our herd back to Africa,“ said Premysl Rabas, a zoo director.

The Dvur Kralove Zoo has been breeding rhinos since 1970s and belongs among the world’s top rhino breeders. Nowadays, two rhino species are to be found here - black rhino and white rhino. During the last eight years, eight rhinos were transported from the zoo back to Africa, specifically to the reserves in Kenya and Tanzania. In September 2017 the Dvur Kralove Zoo organised the second „Burn Horns Save Rhinos“ event and burned its rhino horn stockpiles as a symbolic protest against the illegal trade in rhino horn.