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Blank Park Zoo's newest addition is a ton of fun. Literally.Ajani Joe — known as AJ — is a 4-year-old, 2,300-pound eastern black rhinoceros who comes to Des Moines from the Cincinnati Zoo, where he was popular for his spunky personality and love of mud puddles.Video above: Baby rhino AJ plays in mud while living at Cincinnati ZooVisitors to Blank Park Zoo can now see AJ in the Rhino Savanna on the park's northeast side.Zoo officials say AJ's move is part of the Association of Zoos & Aquariums’ Species Survival Plan.“The arrival of Ajani Joe is the next major step at Blank Park Zoo in our efforts to help increase the population of this critically endangered species,” Blank Park Zoo President and CEO Anne Shimerdla said. “Eastern black rhinos were nearly wiped out by poaching, with their population dropping by over 90% between 1970 and the early 1990s. Thanks to conservation efforts, population numbers have been on the rise.”Ajani Joe was born at the Cincinnati Zoo on Aug. 21, 2020, to mother Seyia and father Faru.The zoo held a baby shower for him that fall, where nearly 300 people purchased gifts for the new addition for a chance to choose his name, according to ����vlog sister station WLWT. The winner, Martha Wolf, chose the name Ajani Joe.“My father’s name is Joe and I wanted to honor him but also to choose a name that was of African origin, since that’s the black rhino’s native land,” Wolf said. “Ajani means ‘he who wins the struggle.' My dad has been a rock recently as my mom’s primary caretaker, and I hope the little rhino will be strong like him!”Eastern black rhinos are native to Eastern and Central Africa and have two large horns made of keratin that they use for defense, intimidation, and feeding. An adult can weigh anywhere between 1,760 and 3,080 pounds, and newborns (calves) weigh between 73 – 121 pounds.The species is critically endangered due to poaching and habitat loss. Only an estimated 5,000 black rhinos remain in the world, and approximately 60 are managed by the SSP in 25 AZA Accredited North American Zoos.WATCH: Supercut of rhino calf AJ playing around at Cincinnati ZooRAW VIDEO: Rhino calf AJ bonds with mother at Cincinnati ZooWatch Tumani the rhino play in the snow at Blank Park ZooWATCH: Study by Cincinnati Zoo scientists dispels myth about medical value of rhino horns