BANGKOK (The Nation/Asia News Network): Mae Mali became the oldest hippopotamus in Thailand on Friday (Sept 8), and Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Chonburi’s Si Racha district held an event to celebrate her 58th birthday.
As a birthday gift to Mae Mali, the zoo prepared a hippo-sized cake filled with her favourite vegetables and fruits, including watermelon, carrot, banana, sweet potato, and dragon fruit.
Zoo director Tawin Rattanawongsawat led tourists and fans of Mae Mali to wish her happy birthday by the pond near her habitat.
Tawin said the celebration will last until Sunday at the hippopotamus zone, where visitors can write their wishes to Mae Mali and witness an exhibition on the life story of Thailand’s oldest hippo.
Those who share the same birthday as Mae Mali (Sept 8) will also receive a special souvenir from the zoo when they present their ID cards, he added.
Thailand received Mae Mali from Tilburg Zoo in the Netherlands when she was one year old on June 8, 1967. She was cared for at Dusit Zoo in Bangkok before it was closed on Sept 30, 2018, to make way for royal projects.
Mae Mali was transferred to Khao Kheow Open Zoo on Dec 18, 2018.
The two-tonne hippo has mothered a total of 14 babies who are now living in zoos throughout Thailand. Mae Mali would be 75-85 in human-equivalent years.
