The results are in: Potter Park's 'spunky' baby black rhino now has his name

LANSING — It's official: Potter Park Zoo's baby rhino has its new name. 

Amy Morris-Hall, executive director of the Potter Park Zoological Society, said the zoo received hundreds of name suggestions and narrowed it down to six. The public voted which of those six was the best.

The winner? Jaali, pronounced like jolly.

Jaali means "powerful" in Swahili. 

Voters chose between Jaali, Reggie, Azizi, Enzi, Bash and Mosi. Three names — Jaali, Reggie, Azizi — spent the most time at the top of the board. 

At $5 a vote, the zoo brought in more than $10,000. The money raised will go to the zoo's animal health program. 

“We really enjoyed watching our supporters get excited about naming this calf,” said Amy Morris-Hall, Potter Park Zoological Society executive director. “And the funding we received for our animal health program will be very helpful to the work we do.”

Doppsee, the zoo's 12-year-old black rhino, delivered Jaali on Christmas Eve morning. He is her first calf. 

Zoo officials called Jaali "spunky" and said he's been seen play-sparring with Doppsee many times. 

His birth made national news because black rhinos are critically endangered. About 5,000 black rhinos live in the wild and 54 live in zoos in the U.S., zoo officials said. Potter Park is the only Michigan zoo with a black rhino. 

The mother-son pair will not be visible to the public until the spring. 

Contact reporter Kara Berg at 517-377-1113 or kberg@lsj.com. Follow her on Twitter @karaberg95.