Black rhino calf is twice as nice for Sydney zoo

We talk quite a bit about endangered species, so it's a real treat when we get the opportunity to share news of a rare animal being born. And it's even better when the new arrival is part of a duo!

The Taronga Western Plains Zoo is found in Sydney, Australia. And this place loves rhinos. It is one of the only places to have successfully bred calves of these three endangered species: the white rhino, the greater one-horned rhino, and the black rhino. It already announced the arrival of Mesi, a black rhino calf, back in April.

And now Mesi has a new...uncle? (We'll explain...) Let's meet him!

No name yet, but plenty of fame

The as-yet-unnamed black rhino calf was born to a female called Bakhita. Bakhita herself was actually the first black rhino to be born in Taronga's breeding program in 2002. This birth adds further to that program. And he's really quite adorable...

A post shared by Taronga Zoo (@tarongazoo) on Nov 20, 2017 at 10:21pm PST

The calf was born late on October 31 (yep, Halloween!), though, thankfully there was nothing scary about this birth. Instead, he arrived happy and healthy...maybe a little too healthy!

“The new calf is one of the biggest black rhino calves born here at the zoo, with an estimated birth weight of 35 to 40 kilograms (78 to 88 lbs.)," said rhino keeper Scott Smith on the zoo's website. “He has already been seen galloping around his behind the scenes enclosure and venturing a considerable distance from Bakhita for short periods of time. He’s an active calf and is very inquisitive about his surroundings.”

Want to see him frolic around? Of course you do!

Three generations

The birth of any black rhino is cause for celebration. There are only around 4000 left in the wild, and conservation breeding programs like the one at Taronga are really important to their future.

The zoo now has three black rhinoceros generations living there. In fact, Mesi's mother, Kufara, is Bakhita's first daughter. If you're keeping track, that means the new Halloween calf is Mesi's uncle. Talk about being born with responsibilities!

But based on the video, we're sure he and his family are up to the task of bringing a brighter future to this endangered species. We'll leave you with a video of big niece Mesi doing her thing at the zoo earlier this year.

Way to go, Taronga!