A man was filmed swimming in the enclosure that houses rhinos at Auckland Zoo. Video / Instagram
The man who jumped into Auckland Zoo’s rhino enclosure made a silly and dangerous decision and is lucky to be alive, a zoologist says.
Mark Vette said the man put himself in real danger from the rhinos.
“People just don’t realise they’re very fast, they’ve got poor vision, they’ve gotgood smell, they’re two-and-a-half tonnes, they’ve got a big point on their head and they can kill you.
“It’s a bit like getting in with a two-and-a-half-tonne bus with a big point on its front potentially running at you.”
The man who took a swim in Auckland Zoo's rhino enclosure is lucky to be alive, zoologist Mark Vette says. Image / Jemma Louise
Video emerged online today of the zoo visitor, who had breached the barriers at Auckland Zoo’s African enclosure, bathing in the water alongside a rhinoceros and her calf.
Vette said the man not only put himself at risk.
“He put the animal at risk too, of being shot, or somehow restrained, or it getting out.”
The rhinos were understandably startled by the intruder and moved quickly to the far end of the enclosure, where zookeepers were able to hold them safely while the incident was resolved.
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