On Oct. 19, the Oregon Zoo welcomed a 2-year-old, 12-foot tall, Masai giraffe to its Africa Savanna habitat.

The new addition came to us from the zoo in Santa Barbara, California. The Masai giraffes are the largest giraffe species and can grow up to 18-feet tall. Their tongue can be up to 21 inches long. The new arrival’s name is Buttercup, and the keepers are holding him in the indoor giraffe space. They think it will be at least a month before Buttercup will adjust to his new environment. They will then introduce him to his new companions, Bakari and Desi. The public will be able to view Buttercup later this fall.

Another new arrival to the Oregon Zoo is a baby polar bear name Nora who comes from the zoo in Columbus, Ohio. At birth, she weighed a whopping one pound. She now weighs 150 pounds. When the cub was only a week old, the zoo keepers at the Columbus Zoo noticed that the mother began to leave her alone for long periods of time, and that is when they decided to rear her.

– Tom Boggess

Photos by Merari Calderon Ruiz