A fresh wave of excitement swept through Thiruvananthapuram city zoo as a newborn hippopotamus calf made its debut late Saturday night. The baby was delivered by 13-year-old Vimala, who has since been relocated to a secure enclosure along with her calf after other female hippos exhibited aggressive behaviour toward them.

The father, Gokul, a male hippo who succumbed to liver disease last year, mated with Vimala before his untimely death—making this calf a bittersweet yet joyful addition.

This marks the second consecutive year the zoo has seen a successful hippo birth. Last April, a female calf named Bubbly was born to hippo Bindu. The zoo now has four adult females and two young calves, but no breeding male. Authorities are hopeful the newest arrival is a male, which would help continue the zoo’s breeding programme.

Hippos are semi-aquatic by nature, and calves take to water instinctively after birth. They can nurse underwater and hold their breath for several minutes. In the wild and in captivity, expectant mothers typically move away from the herd to give birth in calm, shallow waters, returning only after the calf is strong enough.

Zoo staff are closely monitoring Vimala and her calf during these critical early days, and visitors are eagerly awaiting their first glimpse of the baby.