On March 1, Amirah the giraffe gave birth to a female calf at the Sacramento Zoo. Photo courtesy of Sacramento Zoo

SACRAMENTO, CA (MPG) - The Sacramento Zoo is thrilled to announce that Amirah the giraffe gave birth to a female calf on Saturday, March 1, at 2:56 p.m.

Amirah's calf is healthy and nursing well from mom. The pair will be given bonding time but may be visible at their habitat’s side yard periodically beginning in the next few weeks.

The official debut date will be dependent on the health and welfare of mom and calf. Keep an eye out on Sacramento Zoo social media pages for when this new addition to our herd will be visible. 

Sacramento Zoo is now home to five female Masai giraffes, Shani, Amirah, Glory, Cheyenne and the new calf. This is the 22nd calf born at the Sacramento Zoo going back to 1954 when giraffes were first housed in Sacramento.

Senior Manager of Animal Care, Melissa McCartney, said “Our entire team is thrilled by how well Amirah and her new baby are doing. We are thankful this was a textbook labor and delivery, with a strong and healthy calf on her feet within two hours of her birth and nursing shortly thereafter. Mom and calf are bonding behind the scenes and the entire herd is enjoying looking on and greeting the newest member of our zoo family.”

The Masai giraffe is the largest giraffe subspecies and is found in southern Kenya and Tanzania. Gestation is 14 to 15 months. When a calf is born, it can be as tall as six feet and weigh as much as 150 pounds. Within minutes, the calf is able to stand on its own.  

Sacramento Zoo is one of 34 institutions managing 136 Masai giraffes in the Association of Zoos and Aquariums population. The zoo partners with and supports the Wild Nature Institute, a field research organization that is currently studying Masai giraffe demographics and the African Savanna ecosystem with photo recognition software.

The zoo’s partnership with Wild Nature Institute is critical to giraffe research and conservation efforts.  

Wild giraffes are experiencing a silent extinction as their populations continue to plummet due to poaching and habitat loss. It has been estimated that the mammals' numbers have fallen by more than 50 percent over the last 30 years.

In 2018, the International Union for Conservation of Nature moved giraffes from "Vulnerable" to "Endangered" on its Red List of Threatened Species.