UK zoo names rare white rhino after Queen Elizabeth II to mark record reign

The special name honours the monarch’s 70th anniversary on the British throne

By AFP

Published: Sat 12 Mar 2022, 6:53 PM

Last updated: Sat 12 Mar 2022, 6:59 PM

Over her record-breaking reign, Queen Elizabeth II has had many things named after her. Joining the list is a rare white rhino newly born in a British wildlife park.

“Queenie” the rhino was born in the Cotswold Wildlife Park and Gardens in southern England, and named in honour of the monarch’s 70th anniversary on the throne.

“All the rhinos here are named after very special people and I think everyone agrees that 2022 will always be special because of Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee,” park chief Reggie Heyworth said.

“I thought it might be a bit presumptuous to call our new baby ‘Elizabeth’, so I have christened her ‘Queenie’ instead,” he said in a statement released Saturday.

Numbers of white rhinos have recovered somewhat in their native southern Africa after coming under protection, but births in captivity remain rare, the wildlife park said.

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The park is also home to critically endangered Bactrian camels including one named after the queen’s great-grandson Prince Louis, son of William and Kate. It was born on the same day as the young prince in April 2018.

Louis the camel has become a father for the first time, the park said. His calves have yet to be named.

Queenie joins a chicken dish, a cake, ships, trains and a host of buildings around the world named in honour of the monarch.

Queen Elizabeth, 95, has been suffering from ill-health including a mild bout of Covid, and was forced to cancel an appearance at a Commonwealth Day service in Westminster Abbey taking place on Monday.