FILE - In this April 12, 2017, file photo, Zookeeper Jenna Wingate discusses a Nile hippopotamus named Fiona born prematurely on Jan. 24, during an interview next to the pool of the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden's Hippo Cove exhibit in Cincinnati. The zoo scheduled a Wednesday, May 31, event for news media to photograph the female hippo navigating the 9-foot-deep pool in the exhibit, a step toward Fiona eventually appearing in the exhibit during the zoo's public operating hours. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)
May 30, 2017 - 10:03 PM
CINCINNATI - The Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden has decided its popular baby hippo is ready for her close-up.
Fiona (fee-OHN'uh) is making her news media debut Wednesday evening with cameras rolling as she navigates the 9-foot-deep Hippo Cove pool. The zoo emphasizes she isn't ready for public display yet, but the media-only event is a step toward that.
Fiona was born Jan. 24, weighing just 29 pounds (13 kilograms). She overcame health scares and now weighs more than 100 pounds (45 kilograms).
Video updates such as Fiona taking a bottle, splashing in a pool or learning to run have drawn tens of millions of online views. Thousands have bought TeamFiona T-shirts, and thousands more have eaten Fiona-themed bakery treats.
A brewery plans to soon introduce a beer dedicated to her.
News from © The Associated Press, 2017