AUSTRALIA'S first Greater One-horned Rhino has made his public debut at Taronga Western Plains Zoo (TWPZ).
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Rajah was born to mother Amala in the early hours of Sunday, October 25, and on Friday morning the 170-kilogram bundle of joy made his first public appearance.
He is the first of his species to be born in Australia, and keepers have spent the past four months training and bonding with him.
"It has been unbelievable, he's so brave and so adventurous," zoo keeper Andrew Clow said.
"He comes straight out and comes straight up to new people, he's not very scared of anything ever.
"Each step of the training that we've done with him, he has done it way ahead of what thought he'd do. It's all about building up...trust between him and us."
It's a relationship that will come in handy once Rajah is fully grown, when he is expected to weigh more than 2000 kilograms. At that stage, he will become an active member of the global insurance population for his species.
He may even follow in his father Dora's footsteps, and have semen sent to zoos around the world to help in breeding more Greater One-horned Rhinos.
"He is incredibly important - I don't think the significance of his birth can be underestimated," TWPZ general manager Matthew Fuller said.
"He is part of an insurance population. The other significant part is by being here and being visited by a quarter-of-a-million people every year he acts as an ambassador for his species."
Mr Clow said "all rhino are in such a critical state that every single new addition we have is just a gift".
His growth and development will continued to be monitored by keepers at TWPZ, who have also successfully bred both White Rhinos and Black Rhinos in recent years.
"In terms of rhino conservation we are absolutely performers at a global level," Mr Fuller said.
"There are very few organisations that have bred more than one rhino species. Our experience is being called upon around the world to contribute to other programs."