Fossil Rim - Press Release

What’s Gnu? Wildebeest babies! Largest Herd of Wildebeests in the United States

What: Fossil Rim confirmed the birth of 10 wildebeest calves over the last week. Wildebeest herds in the wild will give birth to 80% of their calves (sometimes up to half a million) over a 2-3 week period as a survival mechanism. At Fossil Rim, most likely due to ample food availability and lack of predators, the calves are born over a period of a few months. Including the new calves the wildebeest herd at Fossil Rim numbers 50, with more births expected over the next few weeks. This is the largest herd of wildebeest in the U.S. The calves can be viewed by the public on the Scenic Wildlife Drive at Fossil Rim. Media tours can be scheduled.

FACTS:
• Native region is Southern Kenya and Angola to northern South Africa
• Gestation period is 240-255 days and calves nurse for 4-9 months
• Calves can stand and run within 7 minutes of birth
• Migrations in the wild can number one million animals.
• Thomson’s gazelles and plains zebra often travel with the wildebeest

PHOTO OP: Available by appointment

INTERVIEW OP: Kelley Snodgrass, Animal Care Director

BACKGROUND: Fossil Rim Wildlife Center is a 1,650 acre not-for-profit
501(c)3 facility that specializes in captive breeding
programs for endangered and threatened species of animals. It is one of the few private facilities that meet the strict standards set for accreditation by the American Zoo and Aquarium Association and is an important player in global efforts to save endangered species. The Center cooperates in international species survival plans (SSPs) for 14 endangered or threatened species protected by global species survival plan. Fossil Rim’s research in species propagation is advancing the science of wildlife conservation dramatically and fine-tuning a model of what wildlife preserves will look like in the future. For more information, call 254-897-2960 or visit www.fossilrim.org.