By Dan Klepal
Enquirer staff writer

Emi, the Cincinnati Zoo's Sumatran rhino, examines her new calf after giving birth Friday at the zoo.
Provided

The newborn Sumatran rhino at the Cincinnati Zoo represents an important breeding success.

AVONDALE - After just 47 minutes of labor Friday afternoon, the most endangered mammal on the planet numbers one more.

Emi, the Cincinnati Zoo's Sumatran rhino, gave birth at 12:51 p.m. inside her indoor stall at the zoo.

Mother and daughter are doing fine, zoo officials said.

The birth is historic: There are fewer than 300 Sumatran rhinos in the world, and it's the first time a female has given birth twice in captivity, thanks to methods pioneered by scientists at the zoo's Center for Conservation and Research of Endangered Wildlife.

Emi gave birth to a calf named Andalas in fall 2001.

That event represented the first time a Sumatran rhino had given birth in captivity in 112 years and was the only time the feat was achieved based on scientific methods.

Dr. Terri Roth, who figured out how to get the beasts to mate safely in the zoo, said the calf will be weighed today, although it is about the same size as 72-pound newborn Andalas.

Roth said the community will be involved in naming the calf, but details haven't been completed.

Roth said Emi started pacing Thursday morning, but contractions didn't start until Friday, just past noon.

The signs of labor were unmistakable - screaming, pacing and spraying of urine.

"When she finally got down to business, she had no problems," Roth said.

Roth said rhinos probably spray urine just before giving birth in the wild to hide the calf's scent.

Zoo veterinarians left Emi alone for most of her labor, then jumped in to check the calf's heart and lungs just after the birth.

Emi almost immediately began licking the calf, which tried to stand for the first time about 15 minutes after its birth.

Emi and the baby will be on display in about three weeks.

Meanwhile, both can be seen through the zoo's "Rhino Cam," a Web-controllable video camera accessible 24 hours a day at www.cincinnatizoo.org.

There are only eight Sumatran rhinos in captivity. Five of them are in the United States - three in Cincinnati, Andalas at the Los Angeles Zoo and an older female at the Bronx Zoo.

"This is a historic birth and proof that the science of breeding Sumatran rhinos was not a one-time wonder," Roth said.

"This calf serves as a lifeline to a species clinging desperately to survival."

E-mail dklepal@enquirer.com