SEATTLE -- There's a baby on the way!
Woodland Park Zoo says Tufani (pronounced two-fawn-ee), an 8-year-old giraffe, is expecting her first baby. It's expected to arrive between mid-May and early July.
The father is 4-year-old Dave. This will be their first baby.
The zoo says the pair were brought together under a breeding recommendation by the Giraffe Species Survival Plan.
So how does one find out if a giraffe is pregnant? The zoo says it comes from fecal samples. But the zoo warns that animal pregnancies are not 100 percent certain until the baby is actually born.
The zoo says the baby bump is starting to form.
“If you know what you’re looking for, you can see it,” said zookeeper Katie Ahl in a statement. “She’s now in her third trimester so she’s really starting to show; and she’ll only get bigger from here.”
Giraffes give birth while standing. The infant will be about six-feet tall at birth and could be running around with mom within hours.
