Budapest - The world's first baby rhino conceived through artificial insemination made her public debut at Budapest Zoo on Thursday and also received her new name, Layla. The rhino was christened Layla after the public was allowed to choose between a list of names.
Layla, who weighed 58 kilos when she was born at the end of January, has blossomed to 138-kilos on a diet of 20 litres of milk per day, zoo officials said.
The birth was the culmination of years of work by an international team of Hungarians, Germans and Austrians.
Layla has had to be hand-reared after her mother, Lulu, refused to nurse her.
Lulu was one of many rhinos involved in artificial insemination attempts but the only one to give birth
Budapest Zoo's other rhino, Easyboy, became the sperm donor after romantic sparks failed to ignite between the couple.
Easyboy and Lulu came to the zoo in 1983 as children, and growing up together caused them to develop a platonic relationship more akin to brother and sister, zoo spokesman Zoltan Hanga said.
Lulu was inseminated again in February, but it is not yet known if she is pregnant again.
