Cleveland Metroparks Zoo’s large male eastern black rhinoceros Jimma is now a resident of the Windy City.

Jimma arrived safely at the Brookfield Zoo in Chicago yesterday after a roughly six-hour trip by truck from Cleveland. An animal keeper from the Zoo accompanied him on the trip and will stay in Chicago for a day or two to help him acclimate.

The transfer to Brookfield was recommended by the Black Rhino Species Survival Plan of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. SSPs are cooperative breeding and management groups for endangered or threatened species including black rhinos, lowland gorillas, polar bears and African elephants.

The eastern black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis michaeli) is classified as “critically endangered” in the wild by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the primary organization for quantifying conservation assessment efforts. The IUCN estimates there are less than 1,000 of this rhino subspecies left in the wild, concentrated primarily in Kenya, South Africa and Tanzania.

Jimma came to Cleveland in 2005 from the Potter Park Zoo in Lansing, Michigan to meet the Zoo’s adult female rhino Inge. He sired two offspring during his time here, female Zuri in 2007, who now lives at the Oregon Zoo in Portland, and female Johari in 2010, who still lives in Cleveland. Jimma was born in 1990 at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park in California.

The Zoo currently has three female rhinos, Inge, who is estimated to be 18-20 years old, Kibibi, 8, and Johari, 21 months.

Northeast Ohio’s most-visited year-round attraction, Cleveland Metroparks Zoo is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily with hours extended to 7 p.m. on weekends and holidays from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Admission is $12.25 per person, $8.25 for kids ages 2 to 11 and free for children younger than 2 and Zoo members. Parking is free. Located at 3900 Wildlife Way, the Zoo is easily accessible from Interstates 71, 90 and 480.

To learn more, visit clemetzoo.com or call (216) 661-6500.