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Endangered pygmy hippopotamus born at a Virginia zoo and you can help name her

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Endangered pygmy hippopotamus born at a Virginia zoo and you can help name her


Move over, Moo Deng.

A Virginia zoo got a hippopotamus for Christmas because only a hippopotamus would do.

A female pygmy hippopotamus calf was born at the Metro Richmond Zoo in early December, marking the third calf of the endangered species to be born at the zoo in the last five years, officials said.

The mother hippo Iris gave birth to the yet-to-be-named calf on Dec. 9 and the zoo is currently holding a contest to name the new calf.

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A whopping 14,000 people flocked to vote on a potential moniker, and the options have been narrowed down to Poppy, Juniper, Hammie Mae, and Omi.

An unnamed baby pygmy hippopotamus was born at the Metro Richmond Zoo on Dec. 9. AP

The baby girl is the river horse’s third calf shared with her current mate, Corwin.

Iris keeps to a schedule. The new hippo is the second she has given birth to in December, according to the zoo. All three of her offspring have been female as well.

“Most people don’t get a hippopotamus for Christmas at all, so we feel lucky to have received two over the years,” zoo officials said in a news release Tuesday — in a nod to the famous holiday tune.

The pint-sized pygmy weighed in at 15 pounds. AP

The new baby had a neonatal exam and weighed in at 15 pounds, a mere fraction of the 600 pounds officials say fully grown pygmy hippos can boast.

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Hippos are usually a naturally polygamous species, but it’s been slim pickings for the pygmies over the last few decades.

When the hippo was declared endangered in 2015, there were only about 2,500 mature ones left, and even then officials were pulling that from a 1993 population estimate, according to the Zoological Society of London.

Iris the hippopotamus has given birth to three female calves over the last five years. AP

“This birth – like all of Iris’ births – plays an important role in helping protect this rare and elusive species. Unlike common hippos, pygmy hippos do not live in groups and are usually solitary or in pairs. For this reason, once Iris’ two previous calves grew up, they were moved to other zoological facilities to live with future mates and continue contributing to the conservation of their species,” the zoo wrote in the news release.

Earlier this year, another baby pygmy hippo took the internet by storm. Moo Deng, a newborn at a zoo in Thailand with a penchant for trying to bite people, captured the hearts of people far and wide and became one of the most prolific memes of the year.

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Vehicle crashes into Virginia Beach seafood restaurant

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Vehicle crashes into Virginia Beach seafood restaurant


The government has a bridge to sell you.

North Carolina State Auditor Dave Boliek said the taxpayers have been paying for it since 1995 to the tune of about $61 million. To this day, construction has not begun between Aydlett and Corolla. https://www.wavy.com/news/north-carolina/61-million-spent-on-troubled-mid-currituck-bridge-project/



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Virginia Lottery Powerball, Pick 3 Night results for June 22, 2026

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Virginia Lottery Powerball, Pick 3 Night results for June 22, 2026


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The Virginia Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.

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Here’s a look at June 22, 2026, results for each game:

Powerball

Powerball drawings are held Monday, Wednesday and Saturday at 11 p.m.

17-19-21-45-48, Powerball: 13, Power Play: 2

Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.

Wednesday, June 24, 2026

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Pick 3

DAY drawing at 1:59 p.m. NIGHT drawing at 11 p.m. each day.

Night: 9-2-3, FB: 6

Day: 7-4-1, FB: 8

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Pick 4

DAY drawing at 1:59 p.m. NIGHT drawing at 11 p.m. each day.

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Night: 5-0-6-5, FB: 4

Day: 5-3-1-3, FB: 3

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Pick 5

DAY drawing at 1:59 p.m. NIGHT drawing at 11 p.m. each day.

Night: 9-2-4-9-3, FB: 0

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Day: 8-3-0-0-9, FB: 0

Check Pick 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Cash Pop

Drawing times: Coffee Break 9 a.m.; Lunch Break 12 p.m.; Rush Hour 5 p.m.; Prime Time 9 p.m.; After Hours 11:59 p.m.

Coffee Break: 07

After Hours: 05

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Prime Time: 11

Rush Hour: 05

Lunch Break: 06

Check Cash Pop payouts and previous drawings here.

Cash 5

Drawing every day at 11 p.m.

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04-15-36-38-44

Check Cash 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Millionaire for Life

Drawing everyday at 11:15 p.m.

07-08-20-24-42, Bonus: 05

Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.

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Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Center for Community Journalism (CCJ) editor. You can send feedback using this form.



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Virginia General Assembly approves budget days before potential partial government shutdown – WTOP News

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Virginia General Assembly approves budget days before potential partial government shutdown – WTOP News


Virginia lawmakers approved a two-year spending plan Monday, ending months of negotiations as the deadline to avoid a partial government shutdown approached.

Virginia lawmakers approved a two-year spending plan Monday, ending months of negotiations as the deadline to avoid a partial government shutdown approached.

The Senate approved the plan with a 23-16 vote, and the House of Delegates passed it 71-22. Now it heads to Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s desk.

The votes end a saga that included name-calling and finger-pointing, as senators hoped to end a sales tax exemption for data centers. The House and Spanberger expressed concerns about the potential consequence of taking that step, hoping to keep existing agreements in tact.

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The compromise, detailed late last week, keeps the sales tax exemption in place but calls for a new data center electricity consumption tax. The $0.011 fee per kilowatt-hour of electricity used is expected to generate $600 million in revenue each of the next two years.

“This conference report took longer than most, but the senate conferees and I spent a lot of time trying to find the right balance between compromising with the House and the governor and having something that made the data centers pay their fair share,” Sen. Louise Lucas said. “This budget achieves that right balance, and the Senate and House and the governor’s office all had input into this final project.”

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