Anyone tuning into the live stream camera in April’s enclosure at the Animal Adventure Park in Harpursville, NY, today would have been one of almost 100,000 people with the same idea. There has been much excitement since it was discovered that the 15-year-old reticulated giraffe is pregnant again and the animal park decided to go public.

When April finally gives birth, this will be her fourth calf to be born at the New York zoo and apparently on Thursday the movement of the calf in her belly was clearly visible on the live cam. Officials from the Animal Adventure Park said in a post on Facebook Thursday that the whole world is "waiting on edge" for the famous delivery, saying all the while April is smirking, with a "mouthful of cud." The post told viewers to watch closely for the strong kicks from within her belly.

The video, which is live streaming on YouTube, shows April pacing around within her barn and raising her tail and there is "significant movement" in the giraffe's belly, apparently both sure signs of her delivery coming soon. On the video, her mate Oliver can also be seen, impatiently waiting in a nearby pen like the typical expectant father.

April the Giraffe’s baby is an important birth

In 2016, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) classed giraffes as vulnerable, on the Red List of Threatened Species. Giraffes are the tallest mammals in the world and are usually to be found in the dry savanna regions of Africa, south of the Sahara desert. There are said to be less than 100,000 left in the wild, with their main predators being lions, crocodiles and, regrettably, humans.

April’s pregnancy is running late

According to the animal park, female giraffes usually have a pregnancy of 15 months, which officials say means April is currently about a month late giving birth.

Rather astoundingly, her calf is expected to weigh approximately 150 pounds at birth and will be around 6 feet tall. On top of that bit of information, when the baby is actually born, it reportedly gets to drop around 5 feet to the ground. This should give a good idea of the scale of all things giraffe-related.

Accordingly to a report by KCBD, zoo officials will only formally announce the fact that April has gone into labor when the calf’s hooves become visible.

Reportedly this is because by nature, giraffes hide all signs of labor, so as not to alert any predators, and that, of course, includes the human kind.

According to WNAX, the live stream went down briefly last month after animal rights campaigners reported the video as containing "sexually explicit content." Jordan Patch, a spokesman for the zoo, said in a video on Facebook that those same animal rights activists could do better getting behind conservation, instead of sitting at a keyboard or waving protest signs.

Second giraffe baby in recent days

When April’s baby finally does appear, this will reportedly be the second baby giraffe to be born in the U.S. in recent days. Apparently, there was a surprise birth at Denver Zoo in Colorado, when Dobby, a male calf suddenly appeared on Tuesday.

According to the zoo, Dobby’s mother, Kipele, was on birth control, so she shouldn’t have managed to get pregnant.

When April finally gives birth, the Animal Adventure Park will reportedly be holding an online competition to name her calf. For those with the stamina to patiently watch, the live cam is included below.
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