KEY POINTS:
Too tall to travel by plane, Orly the giraffe checks out the view from a crate that has been specially designed for his two-day sea voyage from Lyttelton to Auckland.
The 2-year-old and his stablemate Flynn left Orana Wildlife Park in Canterbury on Tuesday and are due to arrive at Onehunga wharf today. Their 36-hour transfer to the privately owned Keystone Wildlife Reserve north of Auckland will be completed by truck.
Keeper Rachael Mason, one of three staff accompanying the unusual cargo on the Pacifica Shipping vessel, said the giraffes had found their sea legs.
"They are taking everything in their stride," she laughed.
The creatures' placid nature on land had not changed on the water, Ms Mason said. They had not suffered from sea sickness in the calm conditions.
The 4m-tall animals had trained for four months to ensure that they would feel at home in their custom-made travelling crates.
The move came about because Orana Wildlife Park had too many male giraffes, but park spokesman Nathan Hawke said he had no doubt the pair would soon settle in at their new home.
