A three-month-old black rhinoceros cub made its public debut in the Chimelong Safari Park in Qingyuan of south China's Guangdong Province on Friday.

The little creature named Zu Er was born on April 3. It weighed 48 kilograms at birth and has grown to 124 kilograms after three months.

The keeper has gradually added different food to its diet, including plants such as Chinese banyans, council trees and mulberry leaves.

"Its diet is still mainly made of its mother's milk, and occasionally, it chews some tree leaves. We check its weight every week. Currently, the calf is growing well. We specially made it a mud pool in its residence to facilitate its mud baths. Especially when it rains, the cub would be excited, following her mother to run about, and it loves to roll in the mud pool," said Yang Handong, the keeper.

According to the keeper, the rhino calf's skin tends to chap when there is insufficient moisture, so the mud in the pond serves as its skincare product.

Normally, a black rhino may grow to 800 to 1,400 kilograms in five years, and they can run at a speed of 45 kilometers per hour. Their life span can reach 45 years.

Due to poaching and diminished natural habitats, the population of black rhinos has fallen sharply since the second half of the 20th century.

The black rhino is listed as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List. 

(Cover image via screenshot.)

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