Disney announced early Tuesday afternoon the name of their newest baby white rhino: Ranger.
The baby’s name was announced in a 44-second video featuring Ranger “telling” viewers about himself as he is filmed running around, wallowing in mud and popping bubbles with his horn. The video was posted on the Disney Parks official YouTube and the Disney Parks Blog.
Scott Terrell, Director of Animal & Science Operations at Walt Disney Parks & Resorts, wrote the blog post announcing Ranger’s name. He said in his post that many park-goers were anxious for news on the baby, especially since his mother’s, Kendi’s, pregnancy was featured in the Disney+ original series, “Magic of Disney’s Animal Kingdom” last fall.
Terrell said the animal keeper team wanted the baby rhino’s name “to honor the wildlife rangers who protect rhinos around the world.”
The Animal Kingdom’s rhino breeding program is a part of the Disney Conservation Fund, which helps nonprofit organizations protect habitats and species all over the world, according to their website.
The World Wildlife Fund lists white rhinos with “Near Threatened” status on the endangered species list.
Ranger, born last October at Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park, is the first of three baby rhinos expected to be born at the park, according to a Disney Parks Blog post from last October. The blog states that two other rhinos, Jao and Lola, are due sometime in fall or winter of 2021.
We reached out to Disney for comment, but did not hear back before publication. We will update this article if we do.
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This article appears in Jan 6-12, 2021.