Yesterday (April 20, 2009), Argo, an Eastern Black Rhinoceros Ueno Zoo! This is the first successful breeding at Ueno Zoo. The baby's sex is currently unknown.

The mother, Argo, is a female born on October 30, 1995, at the Yokohama Municipal Kanazawa Zoo. Under an agreement (breeding loan) between Kanazawa Zoo and Ueno Zoo, she has been on loan to Ueno Zoo since March 8, 1999, for breeding purposes. And now, Argo has finally given birth! Congratulations!

Her father is Maro. She was born on February 17, 2000, at Hitachi City Kamine Zoo. She came to Ueno Zoo on June 18, 2001.

The gestation period is said to be 450 to 550 days, so working backward, mating must have occurred... mid-October 2007 to late January 2008? Here is a video of Eastern Eastern Black Rhinoceros mating, filmed on December 28, 2007 ↓

Video from Tokyo Zoo Net BB
"Mating of Eastern Black Rhinoceros (Photo taken on December 28, 2007)

Eastern Black Rhinoceros is a subspecies of Black Rhinoceros. It inhabits East Africa, mainly Tanzania, but its numbers have drastically decreased due to poaching and other factors. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List classifies it as "critically endangered."

As of the end of December 2008, 20 individuals (11 males and 9 females) were being kept in eight facilities in Japan.

The release date is yet to be determined, but we will let you know as soon as it is decided!

- News from Tokyo Zoo Net: Male zookeeper Maro has arrived.
"Black Rhinoceros arrives” (July 2001)

(April 21, 2009)