Step aside Mo Dengthere is one The new pygmy hippopotamus in town.
Earlier this month, the Metro Richmond Zoo in Mosley, Virginia, welcomed a baby female pygmy. Hippo The calf whose name will be decided by the people.
The newborn, who currently weighs 15 pounds, is the third calf that hip couple Iris and Coron have conceived in the past four and a half years. According to the zoo, Iris gave birth through water on December 9. He was the second child born around her. Christmas.
Although standard-sized hippopotamuses usually give birth underwater, pygmy hippos can give birth in water or on land.
A full-grown pygmy hippopotamus can weigh between 400 and 600 pounds, while a large, fully grown hippo can weigh between 9,920 pounds and 3,000 pounds, depending on whether they are male or female.
The zoo opened its naming debate to the public on December 27 with a Poll Which includes four choices: Juniper, Poppy, Omi, and Hemi Ma.
Each name carries a significant meaning with Juniper serving as the time of year in which it was born. The poppy is suiting up with the moniker of its mother flower variety. Omi because it means “water” in Yoruba (a Niger-Congo language), and hemi-may is “a sweet and southern relation to Virginia ham.”
The name that receives the most votes will be given the name of the newborn. However, if the results show a tie between multiple names, voting will be held later.
According to an update posted on the zoo’s Facebook page, the poll received a total of 14,000 participants from around the world in the first 24 hours.
The final decision will be announced after polls close at 2pm on New Year’s Day.
“We are thrilled to see so many people join in the fun of naming our adorable baby pygmy hippo,” the zoo wrote on its social media page.
The excitement and global interest in Virginia’s newborn pygmy hippo came to a head when a two-month-old pygmy hippo named Mu Deng from Khao Khew Open Zoo in Thailand started an internet frenzy in September.
It wasn’t just that his name translated to “bouncy pork”, although it amused many, fans were also impressed by the baby animal’s lazy behavior and expressions of playful innocence as he waded into the water. was splashing with ponds and zoo workers. She became the subject of several political memes during the US presidential election. She even said which candidate she prefers.. In a display of great foresight, he chose President-elect Donald Trump.
Some Moo Deng-obsessors modeled the cake after a small hippo to sell to other hippo enthusiasts.. Bangkok’s Vietmon Cafe was the first of many to make moo deng delicious. However, a few consumers reportedly displayed moral dilemmas, refusing to chew on the edible hippo because it looked “too cute”.