Move over, Moo Deng — a US zoo has named its adorable baby pygmy hippo
There’s a new hippo in town — and she’s ready to pop into the spotlight.
The Metro Richmond Zoo announced the name of its newborn baby pygmy hippo on the “Today Show” Monday after a heated worldwide online poll.
With more than 100,000 votes from all 50 states and 165 countries, most voters selected the name Poppy for the pygmy hippo.
They had to choose between finalists Poppy — a flower name in homage to the hippo’s mother, Iris — and Hammie Mae. The top four had also included Juniper and Omi.
Poppy was born on Dec. 9, weighing 15 pounds. Metro Richmond Zoo
Baby Poppy was born on Dec. 9 and weighed in at 15 pounds to mom Iris and dad Corwin. She is the couple’s third calf and marks the third calf of the endangered species to be born at the zoo in the last five years.
“This birth – like all of Iris’ births – plays an important role in helping protect this rare and elusive species. Unlike common hippos, pygmy hippos do not live in groups and are usually solitary or in pairs. For this reason, once Iris’ two previous calves grew up, they were moved to other zoological facilities to live with future mates and continue contributing to the conservation of their species,” the zoo wrote in a news release.
Metro Richmond Zoo Director Jim Andelin revealed that Iris’ other two daughters are named Violet and Petunia, continuing names in the flower family.
She is the third calf of the endangered species to be born at the zoo in the last five years. Metro Richmond Zoo
Poppy made her debut for the Metro Richmond Zoo goers on Friday, Jan. 3.
“We hope the people will learn more about this species as well as other species,” Andelin said.
The endangered species became a trending topic and meme worldwide, all thanks to Moo Deng, the newborn hippo at a zoo in Thailand who captured the hearts of people far and wide.
The famed pygmy hippo even received an upgraded zoo enclosure from Canadian cryptocurrency billionaire Vitalik Buterin, who donated more than $290,000 to Moo Deng’s zoo in Thailand so he could be her “adoptive father,” Viral Press reported.
“I very much look forward to seeing Moo Deng live long and prosper,” Buterin declared in a letter to the director of the Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Chonburi province, where the 5-month-old pygmy hippo resides.
