Pippa and her new calf.
Photo: City of Tshwane
Pretoria’s Rietvlei Nature Reserve welcomes new rhino calf
There are concerns that the cold weather in Pretoria may threaten the rhino calf’s survival who was born at Rietvlei Nature Reserve.
Pippa and her new calf.
Photo: City of Tshwane
The Rietvlei Nature Reserve in Pretoria has a new family member! A rhino calf was born this week.
The calf is estimated to be about two days old. It was spotted with its mother, Pippa on Friday morning.
RHINO CALF BORN IN RIETVLEI NATURE RESERVE
The calf’s gender cannot yet be determined as conservation officials do not want to disturb the two, giving them sufficient time to bond.
City of Tshwane MMC for Environment and Agriculture Management, Katlego Mathebe said the calf will only be named once its gender has been determined.
Pippa the parent is said to have also been born at Rietvlei Nature Reserve 8 years ago and the new member is her second calf.
Mathebe said while they are excited by this new addition to Rietvlei Nature Reserve, they are concerned that the current cold snap may be a threat to the calf’s survival.
“We therefore urge the public not to harass Pippa and the newborn and to give the new mother space to protect her young.
“Conservation officials are further warning that Pippa has already displayed significantly aggressive behaviour when discovered this morning. We urge the public to stay as far away from the two as possible.”
Katlego Mathebe
HIPPO KNOCKED OUT IN PRETORIA
Last week Saturday, an accident near the Rietvlei Nature Reserve in Pretoria claimed the life of a hippo.
Department of Environment and Agriculture MMC Katlego Mathebe confirmed the accident.
Mathebe said during the course of the night of 2-3 April 2022, a hippo was run over by a vehicle near the Rietvlei Nature Reserve.
“Nature Conservation officials were activated to respond to the scene and will remove the carcass from the roadside today,” Mathebe said.
Ray’s Assist, a local tow company said the accident happened around 2:00 on Sunday morning. It said the occupants of the vehicle sustained moderate injuries.
This is not the first accident in Pretoria involving a hippo. In 2017 an ambulance driver was critically injured after their ambulance crashed into a hippo.
ALSO READ: Hippo killed in accident near Rietvlei Nature Reserve in Pretoria
