A NEW baby giraffe born at a North Yorkshire theme park has made its first public appearance.

The female Rothschild giraffe was born to parents George, 10, and Lizzy, eight, on January 17, following a 15-month gestation period and taking the resort’s giraffe family to six.

Giraffes are considered a vulnerable species, and there are an estimated 1,600 Rothschild sub-species remaining in the wild which are threatened by habitat loss and poaching, and the giraffes at Flamingo Land are part of a global conservation programme to to help the species breed in captivity.

Ross Snipp, zoo manager, said the arrival was “a very special day for the entire Flamingo Land team”.

He said: “We were proud to enjoy the safe arrival of our giraffe calf and we are very much looking forward to seeing her grow and develop.

“Weather permitting, we hope that our new baby will be available for our visitors to see during the forthcoming February half term school holidays.

"Our giraffe family can be seen in the ‘Lost Kingdom’ section of our park and our viewing platform allows visitors to see them almost ‘eye-to-eye’, as well as from the ground level walkways.”

Visitors to the resort will be able to speak with the zookeepers at noon each day, with talks included in the admission price.

A competition will be launched in the next few days to help Flamingo Land select a name for the new baby giraffe.