Greenville Zoo Adjusts Due Date for Pregnant Giraffe

Instead of a Christmas or New Year’s baby, it appears Autumn the giraffe is much more likely to have a Valentine’s baby.

While Autumn bred with Miles back on September 1, 2019, there was also a second breeding on November 7, 2019.

Historically, Autumn has conceived during the first breeding after a previous birth, so keepers used past experience to determine the original window of birth. Since we are nearing the end of that window, the Greenville Zoo now believes conception occurred on November 7.

As a result, the new window of birth is between January 6 and March 6. Autumn’s gestation periods have ranged from 455 days to 472 days, with an average of 461 days. Based on this new timeframe, day 461 would be February 11.

Watch Autumn on the live Giraffe Cam and visit the Greenville Zoo website for additional info.