BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — Melbourne's Brevard Zoo just got a new resident; a 6-foot, 152-pound giraffe calf.
After a 15-month gestation period, mother Johari gave birth to the unnamed giraffe on Sunday.
The newborn is not expected to make its public debut for several weeks, because it still needs time to bond with its mother.
Although this is Brevard Zoo's eighth giraffe birth, the mammals are not faring as well in the wild due to habitat loss and civil unrest, zoo workers said. According to the Giraffe Conservation Foundation, their numbers have declined by more than 40 percent since 1998.
WFTV
