Baby Beluga Whale Georgia was born on May 10 about 1:25 a.m. three hours after intense labor by her 23-year-old mother, Maris at the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta, U.S. Everyone remained watchful for almost two weeks to wait for Maris to give birth.
Baby Beluga Whale Georgia weighs 126.5 pounds and measures 59 inches long according to its first health exam. Although her weight is a bit lower than those beluga born in the wild that weighs 176 pounds, volunteers at the site revealed that she is healthy and active.
Baby Beluga Whale Georgia is a female. Volunteers at the Georgia aquarium reported that both the mother and calf are healthy. As soon as the Baby Beluga Whale Georgia was born, the calf rose to the surface to catch its first breath, the USA Today reported.
"We couldn't be happier, as Mother's Day took on a new and special significance here at Georgia Aquarium!" the Georgia Aquarium blog stated on Monday.
According to Dr. Tonya Clauss, Director of Animal Health, the birth of Baby Beluga Whale Georgia has been successful through the cooperative effort of the whole team who has been watching over the pregnancy of Maris throughout her delivery making sure that she and her baby are safe.
Even after birth of Baby Beluga Whale Georgia, a team of professional care is assigned in monitoring Maris and her calf 24-hours a day to monitor their bonding nursing activities, the Soft Pedia reported.
According to AJC report, Eric Gaglione, director of zoological operations revealed that on Saturday night and Sunday morning, about 102 staffers and volunteers were there to monitor and make sure that Maris was safe.
There were also 17 divers and crews distributed at the surface, observation booth and at the underwater windows waiting for the birth of Baby Beluga Whale Georgia.
Gaglione added, there are more that they're planning for Baby Beluga Whale Georgia. At present, Baby Beluga Whale Georgia is feeding on 16-ounces supplementary bottles from Maris' breast milk every three to four hours.
