Voters pick name for Indianapolis Zoo’s baby elephant

Voters pick name for Indianapolis Zoo’s baby elephant

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The Indianapolis Zoo announced the name of its elephant calf on Monday: Jabari.

The baby boy was born to first-time mother Zahara in early September.

The zoo in October described Jabari’s birth was historic, the first elephant born through artificial insemination to a mother who was also born through the same process.

Zookeepers say Jabari clocked in at around 262 pounds at birth.

The three names were in the running for the calf: Jabari, meaning “fearless” or “brave”; Maji, meaning “water”; and Zambezi, meaning “Great River.” The zoo says all of the names were of African descent, as is the baby’s mother Zahara, and all of the other elephants in the herd.

The story is an update of an Oct. 8 article from News 8’s Michael Springer.