She's a Lulu -- and a mighty tall one, too

SEATTLE -- The Woodland Park Zoo on Thursday announced the name of its baby giraffe as Lulu.

Lulu means "pearl" in the Swahili language, the zoo said.

Lulu, born June 20,  is the offspring of 9-year-old mom Tufani and 4-year-old dad Dave; she is the first baby for both parents, the zoo said. Her birth marked the second viable birth of a giraffe at the zoo since 2013 and the third in 20 years.

According to Lead Zookeeper Katie Ahl, Lulu is doing great.

“She is now 7 feet tall and weighs 209 pounds," Ahl said. "That’s a weight gain of 60 pounds and height gain of over one foot in just one month, and that’s right on target! She is a fun addition to our herd and is doing well with all of our giraffe.”



The zoo said that Al Buckingham was allowed choose four possible names for the baby giraffe after making "a generous donation" at the zoo’s Jungle Party fundraiser, which raised over $1.5 million to support the zoo’s animal care program and other things.

Buckingham said he was happy that the zoo chose Lulu, calling it his "favorite choice."