Thailand’s oldest hippopotamus named Mae Mali celebrated her 55th birthday amongst cheers from young and old as she chomped on an assortment of fruit and vegetables arranged in the shape of a cake.
Mae Mali, which means “Mother Jasmine” in Thai, moved to a compound at Khao Kheow Open Zoo in eastern Thailand two years ago from a zoo in Bangkok. She has already outlived a hippo’s typical life expectancy of around 40 to 50 years old.
Mae Mali gave birth to numerous calves, and her descendants now number 21 hippos residing in zoos across the Southeast Asian country.
