Tennessee zoo welcomes 'one of a kind' spotless giraffe - and needs help choosing the rare baby's name

A leopard might not be able to change its spots, as the old saying goes, but it turns out giraffes can.

Bright’s Zoo in Limestone, Tennessee has welcomed what could be the world's rarest giraffe, born without the iconic spots that define the rest of her species. Zoo director David Bright told NationalWorld in a statement the young female calf, born on 31 July, was "a beautiful solid brown".

Giraffe experts have told the zoo they believe she could be the only solid-coloured reticulated giraffe anywhere on the planet, he said. The calf already stands six feet tall, and is thriving under the care of her attentive mother, and the zoo’s expert staff.

The zoo crew have created a shortlist of four potential names for her, and on Tuesday (22 August) have opened voting to the public on their Facebook page.

The potential names are Kipekee - meaning 'unique' in Swahili; Firyali, meaning 'extraordinary'; Shakiri, meaning 'she is most beautiful'; and Jamella - or, 'one of great beauty'. Voting will be open until 4 September, which is Labour day in the US, when staff will tally up the votes.

The special giraffe’s birth was remarkable for many reasons, Bright's Zoo said, but most importantly, it would help bring attention to the serious challenges the rest of her species face in the wild.

“The international coverage of our patternless baby giraffe has created a much-needed spotlight on giraffe conservation," Tony Bright, founder of Bright’s Zoo, said. "Wild populations are silently slipping into extinction, with 40% of the wild giraffe population lost in just the last 3 decades."

Bright’s Zoo says it is actively joining the fight to save giraffes by contributing to the genetic diversity and survival of the species through its very successful breeding program in Tennessee, with the unusual solid-coloured calf the second born at the zoo last month.

The Zoological Association of America-accredited zoo is also encouraging others to join it in donating money to Save Giraffes Now, an organisation working in Africa to preserve the gentle giants in their native habitat.