SAY HELLO TO ZURI!

The first southern white rhino calf ever born at Zoo Atlanta has a name! Rhino Naming Madness concluded on April 10, 2024, with the name Zuri rising to the top after four rounds of public voting following the launch of a Sweet Sixteen Bracket on March 20.

Zuri, a name of Swahili origin which can mean “beautiful,” was one of more than 4,000 online submissions entered between March 7 and March 10, when the public was invited to suggest names to compete with nine monikers provided by the Zoo’s Rhino Care Team. Zoo Atlanta’s naming committee selected seven names from the pool of public submissions to form the Sweet Sixteen.

A special Christmas Eve holiday delivery born on December 24, 2023, the 3-month-old calf, who now weighs more than 330 pounds, has recently begun making more frequent appearances with her mother, Kiazi, in the Zoo’s Delta Air Lines Rhino Habitat. Zuri has not yet met her first-time father Mumbles.

The largest of the five rhino species, southern white rhinos are not actually white in color, despite their name. The name is believed to have originated with the Afrikaans word wyd, meaning “wide” – a reference to the shape of white rhinos’ upper lips.

The species is currently classified as Near Threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). While poaching for their horns is a serious issue for all rhinos and has already resulted in the extinctions and near-extinctions of some rhino species, southern white rhinos are especially vulnerable because they often travel in herds in the wild, a behavior that makes it easier for poachers to locate them. Powdered rhino horn is believed by some cultures to possess medicinal properties, although rhino horns are made of keratin – the same substance found in human hair and fingernails – and have no known medicinal value.

Learn more or plan a visit at zooatlanta.org.

MEDIA CONTACT:

Rachel Davis
Director of Communications
rdavis@zooatlanta.org
404.624.2812

Gavin Johnson
Public Relations and Communications Specialist
404.624.5980
gjohnson@zooatlanta.org

About Zoo Atlanta
A proud accredited member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), the gold standard for animal care and welfare, Zoo Atlanta has a mission to save wildlife and their habitats through conservation, research, education, and engaging experiences. The Zoo is home to hundreds of animals representing more than 200 species from around the world, many of them endangered or critically endangered. Highlights include giant pandas in the only U.S. zoo currently housing the species; one of North America’s largest zoological populations of great apes; and a global center of excellence for the care and study of reptiles and amphibians. Recent transformations include the African Savanna, featuring new and expanded habitats for African elephants, giraffes, zebras, ostriches, warthogs, meerkats, and rhinos; Savanna Hall, a state-of-the-art special event destination in the restored historic former home of the Atlanta Cyclorama; and the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation Plaza. For more information, visit zooatlanta.org.