A fund-raising campaign by the Animal Adventure Park to name April the giraffe's calf was launched after its birth.
Ten days after the launch, suggestions topping the contest have been determined. Here are the top name choices for April's calf: Unity, Patchew, Apollo, Patch, Peter, Harpur, Geoffrey, Noah and Ollie.
Proceeding to the second stage of the contest, people can now start voting on any of the top names. The winning calf name will be revealed by the Animal Adventure Park after five days.
The funds that will be generated by the poll will be used to improve the park's conditions and the rest will be allotted to giraffe conservation efforts and charity -- the Giraffe Conservation Foundation and Ava's Little Heroes, a charity campaign for children with epilepsy.
April, a 15-year-old giraffe, became an instant celebrity after the park set up a live stream video to give the public a chance to the giraffe go through labor and give birth. However, April did not give birth right away and kept fans anxiously waiting for about two months.
April gave birth on April 15 to a male calf, which weighed around 129 pounds (58.5 kilograms) and stands 5 feet 9 inches tall (1.75 meters). Female giraffe's gestation period could last up 15 months, or in April's case, a little over 15 months.
Unlike humans, female giraffes give birth in a standing position, which means a newborn calf endures falling from about five feet. Another fun fact about giraffes is that aside from their incredibly long legs that are taller than an average human, they have a 21-inch tongue that they use to browse for food on treetops, National Geographic suggested.
Giraffe population has been declining over the years and they are now listed as "vulnerable" to extinction primarily because of illegal hunting, habitat loss and changes through expanding agriculture and mining, increasing human-wildlife conflict, and civil unrest. Estimate by Giraffe Conservation Organization suggests there is less than 100,000 giraffes left in the world.
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