SIX FOOT BABY

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20101, 22 November 1939, Page 14

SIX FOOT BABY

GIRAFFE BORN AT ZOO SYDNEY, Nov. 19. A giraffe was born yesterday at the Taronga Park Zoo. It is the first giraffe to be born in Sydney and the second in Australia. The baby, which has been named "Taronga,” is six feet four inches in height. Its mother and father, born and bred in Tanganyika, Africa, are each nearly 18 feet tall. The baby will not be on exhibition for many days yet, for although it is in good condition, giraffes are delicate mammals to rear. In 1938, “Mighty High" was born in the Perth Zoo. It was the first giraffe born in captivity in Australia. Two days later it died. Its mother, “Mighty,” and its father, “High,” were inconsolable for some months. • The Taronga Park authorities are taking no chances. Every precaution is being taken to guard its health. The mother and the father of "Tarango” arrived in Sydney in November, 1935, from Africa, where they were captured by tire famous German zoologist and huntsman, Christopher Schultz. “Taronga" will doubtless be overwhelmed with parental affection, but it will be mute affection. Giraffes are voiceless.