This is What’s Trending Today.
A few days ago, we told you about a young giant panda named Bao Bao.
She spent the first three years of her life at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. But this week, she left the United States for her new home in China.
Under an agreement between the two countries, panda cubs must be sent to China before they reach the age of 4.
Now, many people are following another animal in New York State.
A zoo called the Animal Adventure Park has a pregnant giraffe named April. The zoo is in Harpursville, a small community just north of the state’s border with Pennsylvania.
Doctors expect April, the giraffe, to give birth to a calf any day now. This will be her fourth calf.
Workers have set up a camera, called a “giraffe cam,” to watch April.
According to the zoo, since the camera has been in place, millions of people have tuned in to the live video on YouTube.
The Animal Adventure Park shared some interesting facts about giraffes.
The average calf is about 2 meters tall at birth, and weighs about 70 kilograms.
A giraffe’s pregnancy usually lasts about 15 months.
Viewers from around the world are watching the live video feed to see if April had the baby yet.
One person wrote on Twitter: “all I want is for this giraffe to give birth already."
Another wrote about waking up early on Thursday to see if she missed the birth or not.
But some people were worried when they looked at the park’s YouTube channel and saw a message that it had been taken down because of a violation.
Park officials said YouTube was hearing from people who do not like seeing animals in captivity. They said the video showed “nudity or sexual content.”
But after a short delay, the live video was operating normally.
Jordan Patch is the zoo’s owner. He went on Facebook Live to explain what happened.
Patch said the protests “pulled an educational tool away from tens of millions of viewers.” He added that people should work to protect the natural habitat for animals instead of criticizing his zoo for its camera.
And that’s What’s Trending Today.
I’m Dan Friedell.
Dan Friedell wrote this story for Learning English. George Grow was the editor.
Will you watch the giraffe camera? Let us know in the comments section.
______________________________________________________________
Words in This Story
tune-in – v. to watch a television show or listen to a radio broadcast
calf – n. the young of some large animals (such as the elephant or whale)
habitat – n. the place or sort of place where a plant or animal naturally or normally lives or grows
nudity – adj. wearing no clothing
