For Immediate Release
Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium® Welcomes
Pygmy Hippo Calf
Omaha, NE (April 17, 2013) – A male pygmy hippopotamus calf, born on February 22, is
now on display at Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium’s Lied Jungle®.
The calf is currently on display with the dam, Chomel, a 13-year-old hippo from Lincoln
Park Zoo in Chicago, Illinois. The sire is Scooby, a 22-year-old from Gladys Porter Zoo
in Brownsville, Texas, who has been at Omaha’s Zoo and Aquarium since 1992. Pygmy
hippos can weigh between eight to 12 pounds at birth. Full grown, males can weigh up to
700 pounds and females up to 500 pounds. The pygmy hippo calf currently weighs 50
pounds.
Pygmy hippos are native to rainforests and swamplands in western Africa, primarily
Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea and Ivory Coast. They are considered solitary animals and
spend about six hours a day foraging for food. Their preferred diet consists of ferns and
broad-leaved plants, but are known to uproot other swamp plants and graze on forest
weeds.
Pygmy hippos are listed as Endangered on the International Union for Conservation of
Nature’s (IUCN) Red List. There are currently 27 individuals at 13 Association of Zoos
and Aquariums (AZA) institutions.
--30-Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium, located at Nebraska’s I-80, Exit 454, is
ranked the No. 1 zoo in the United States by TripAdvisor. Open daily from 9 a.m.–5 p.m.
through October 31. Admission prices are $15 for adults, $10 for children (ages 3-11) and
$14 for seniors (65 and over) through September 30. Dinosaurs Alive! The Lost Valley is
now open through October 13. Admission into the exhibition is $3 for members and $4
for non-members.