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Two rare young Rothschild's giraffes, Balaji and Adhil, are making their public debut at Singapore Zoo today (Sep. 30).

The duo, adopted by the Kuok Singapore Limited Group, came from India’s Mysuru Zoo as part of an animal exchange.

As a part of the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA) ex-situ programme (EEP) for the species, Singapore Zoo will help sustain the population of this species under human care for conservational and educational purposes.

Born in 2020, the pair of young calves are both slightly over a year of age.

Balaji, means “strength” in Hindi, was named after an Indian prince while Adhil was named after a star in the constellation Andromeda. It is also the name of the shipping line that was engaged in the pair’s sea voyage from India to Singapore.

How they made their way to Singapore

Coming all the way from India, the two young male giraffes spent a total of nine days journeying on land and by sea (inclusive of one day of holding prior to boarding the vessel).

Considerations and preparations were made to minimise the risks and ensure the sea journey was as smooth as possible for the ungulates, in addition to adhering to the travel advisories issued due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

One of the challenges faced in transporting the two juvenile giraffes was the lack of suitable air freights due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

At the same time, transporting the giraffes was a race against time as there was a small window period before the fast-growing giraffes would outgrow all forms of transport.

As such, the team opted for surface transport to transfer the two calves.

On their voyage, the pair was accompanied by two experienced animal caretakers from Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS) who ensure the giraffes are "comfortable and calm" throughout the journey.

These caretakers from Singapore travelled to India around a month before the date of departure to establish familiarity with the two young giraffes, and to take part in crate training to condition the animals to their new mobile homes.

Finding a suitable crate to cater to the tall and towering animals, who were growing rapidly, was yet another challenge of the transportation process.

After consultation with Auckland Zoo in New Zealand and Monarto Zoo in Australia, crates were custom designed with adjustable tops to allow the lanky animals to stretch to their full heights for most of the journey, while allowing the crates to ‘duck’ when clearing road infrastructures.

Road recces and a dry-run simulation involving mock-ups of crates were also conducted, in order to map out the best possible route to Mandai once the giraffes had arrived at Jurong port.

Balaji and Adhil – rare Rothschild's giraffes

After arriving Singapore on May. 26, Balaji and Adhil served a three-month-long quarantine and, at the same time, got acclimatised to their new home in Singapore Zoo.

According to WRS, both young giraffes have settled well into their new habitat and are feasting on a daily diet of hay, herbivore pellets, and leaves of starfruit, jackfruit and acacia trees.

They are living with resident giraffes, Marco and Jubilee.

WRS adds that the current giraffe exhibit has ample space for the four, and water troughs and salt lick blocks were added in preparation of the newcomers.

Fewer than 2,000 individuals left in the wild

Balaji and Adhil belong to the endangered subspecies of giraffes – Rothschild's giraffes – with fewer than 2,000 of its kind left in the wild.

The Rothschild's giraffes are considered to be near threatened, according to The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.

The conservation status of Rothschild's giraffes has improved in recent years. Previously, this giraffe subspecies was listed as "Endangered".

There are nine giraffe subspecies in total.

You can catch a glimpse of the giraffes here:

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Top image courtesy of WRS