Richard Vogel / AP
A male, Eastern bongo calf is gently pushed off a matt of fresh grass in his enclosure on the day of his debut at the Los Angeles Zoo on Thursday, Feb. 23, 2107.
Thursday, Feb. 23, 2017 | 11:57 a.m.
LOS ANGELES — A rare baby bongo has made its debut at the Los Angeles Zoo.
The unnamed male Eastern bongo was born at the zoo on Jan. 20.
It spent time bonding with its mother behind the scenes before being introduced to the public Thursday.
At birth, the chestnut red calf with white stripes stood just under 2 feet tall. It weighed 55 pounds and had ears 6 inches long.
Its parents are 5-year-old first-time mother Rizzo and 7-year-old father Asa.
It was the first bongo birth in more than 20 years at the Los Angeles Zoo.
The zoo says logging and poaching in the wild has caused the species' numbers to dwindle to fewer than 100 members.
The species is found in Kenya.
