Only a few weeks ago, officials at Brights Zoo in Limestone, Tennessee, announced the birth of a spotless giraffe calf on July 31. That captive-born giraffe was later given the name Kipekee (key pahy KAHY), which means “unique” in Swahili, after a public vote. Kipekee is a reticulated giraffe, Giraffa reticulata, a species that is native to Somalia, southern Ethiopia, and northern Kenya.
Unlike captive-born Kipekee, this newly documented giraffe calf was born in the wild in central Namibia. It was photographed near the Mount Etjo Safari Lodge on a private game reserve by wildlife photographer and field guide writer, Eckart Demasius, according to the Giraffe Conservation Foundation (GCF), who originally contacted me with this news.