UPDATE: May 18, 4:37 p.m.
The Philadelphia Zoo has officially announced the names of the three male Ankole-Watusi cattle that now live at the zoo's African Plains exhibit.
They are named:
— Gaaju (which means dark chocolate brown).
— Kutekaana (which means calm).
— Yamaani (which means energetic).
Zoo fans were invited to pick between name options for each of the three cattle.
Original story follows.
PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Philadelphia Zoo is now the home of three new members of a breed known as the “cattle of kings” for the first time in its 163-year history, and the public will get the opportunity to name them from a selection of six possibilities.
Three male Ankole-Watusi (Ankole) cattle have arrived at the zoo, located in Fairmount Park. People can see them in the African Plains exhibit.
Related Jawncast: The Philadelphia Zoo brought in three African Ankole cattle, weighing in at about 1,600 pounds each!
The zoo says that Ankole cattle are known for crescent-shaped horns that can span as much as 8 feet wide and can weigh up to 15 pounds each. The animals themselves can weigh between 1,200 and 1,600 pounds.
Madi Cyrus of Wilmington was watching the animals reaching up to eat leaves off a tree when she visited the zoo on Wednesday.
“They seem to use their tongues like giraffes to get the leaves off of trees,“ she said.
“I like how the white and brown one has stripes on its horns."
"They just arrived at the zoo just a few days ago, and we are learning very quickly that they love to eat," said Dani Hogan with the Philadelphia Zoo.
"We knew that these cattle were big eaters, and we knew that they had a reputation of eating just about everything in their path."
Hogan said that for now, zookeepers were alright with how the Ankole cattle were munching on whatever they could find.
"It’s totally safe for them and totally healthy for them," Hogan added, "but we may have to do some replantings if necessary.
From now until May 16, Philadelphia Zoo is inviting the public to pick names for the Ankole by clicking here.
They can choose among these options suggested by zookeepers. According to the zoo, the names follow the traditions of Uganda’s Banyankole people who began the Ankole breed.
For one of the Ankole:
— Ngabu, meaning speckled white and brown cattle
— Yamaani, meaning energetic
For the second Ankole:
— Gaaju, meaning eans dark brown cattle
— Kuburanganiza, meaning curious
For the third Ankole:
— Kutekaana, meaning calm
— Mbaale, meaning reddish-brown cattle
Click here for the opportunity to help name the Ankole cattle. The winning names will be announced Monday.
Related
According to the Livestock Conservancy, the Ankole-Watusi breed of cattle stemmed from the Sanga cattle breeds, a mix of longhorns from Egypt and India going back more than 2,000 years. The Philadelphia Zoo said the Egyptian version dated as far back as 4,000 years ago.
The cattle spread through Eastern Africa, and the Ugandan version became known as the Ankole, while Burundi and Rwanda’s version became known as the Watusi.
Those strains began to merge in the 1900s when cattle were exported to Europe and the Americas, according to the Livestock Conservancy.
The Philadelphia Zoo said that Ankole cattle are domesticated, so they are not a threatened species. They were thought to be sacred and valuable, "as an owner’s wealth was counted in livestock," according to the zoo.
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