Tallinn Zoo rhino Kibibi takes up painting to stave off winter blues
Everyone knows that the winter months in Estonia can be long and tough. However, this year, Kibibi, a rhinoceros living at Tallinn Zoo, has found a new creative hobby to help relieve the boredom.
Kibibi the black rhinoceros is no stranger to the Estonian winter, having arrived at Tallinn Zoo from Germany as a three-year-old back in 2013.
However, this winter as the nights grew darker and boredom began to set in, Kibibi was offered the chance to take up painting to help keep her mind active and creative juices flowing.
It took just three training sessions for the clever rhino, whose name means "girl" in Swahili, to get the hang of touching the canvas with her prehensile upper lip, which she usually uses to help her feed on trees and shrubs. No wonder she was rewarded with a treat.
By the fourth session, Kibibi was introduced to some paint, and, despite some initial confusion, soon mastered the trick of spreading it on the canvas.
It remains unclear whether Kibibi intends to follow in the footsteps of other black rhinos, who have produced artworks in the past to draw attention to their species' dwindling numbers in the wild.
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Editor: Michael Cole
