This is the new name of America’s “Moo Deng”: Meet the baby pygmy hippo born in a zoo in Virginia

There was extra festive treat for workers at Metro Richmond Zoo this Christmas - Virginia’s largest zoological park welcomed a new arrival on 9th December. A baby pygmy hippopotamus was born at 4:50 p.m. to proud parents Iris and Corwin.

To celebrate the exciting news, Metro Richmond Zoo held an online poll to find a name for the baby pygmy hippo. Voting began on 27th December with the list whittled down to two names by New Year’s Eve: Poppy (a flower name, like her mum) and Hammie Mae (with reference to Virginia ham).

In the first round, a total of 52,794 votes were received, from 119 countries along with visitors to the zoo. Today, it was announced that Poppy was the most popular choice with 52.8% of the vote.

“Poppy is the perfect name for this playful, perky, and ever-increasing popular hippo. Her name is a flower just like her mother Iris,” Metro Richmond Zoo posted in a statement. “Princess Poppy is the people’s choice. Poppy won the overall vote, the USA vote, the Virginia vote, and the in-person vote. The popular vote may have been close, but the victory was decisive”.

How many pygmy hippos are there in the world?

Pygmy hippopotami (Choeropsis liberiensis) are rare and have been classified as an endangered species under criteria C1 on the IUCN Red List since 2015.

There are believed to be around 2,000-2,499 adult Pygmy hippopotami in the wild, primarily in West African countries Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea and Ivory Coast. The numbers have been steadily declining due to habitat loss, deforestation and hunting

There are believed to be around 350 pygmy hippopotami currently kept in captivity in 134 institutions worldwide.

Repopulation and conservation is difficult due to the lack of male pygmy hippos in captivity and a basic lack of awareness that numbers are dwindling in West Africa.