Dublin Zoo launch probe over images of boy in rhino area

Dublin Zoo has launched an inquiry after a young boy was photographed inside a rhino enclosure.

The photo emerged on social media over the weekend with the youngster standing on the wrong side of a fence and a man holding his hand from the viewing side.

Dublin Zoo investigating after child is spotted inside rhino enclosure: https://t.co/H8GMy1POi8 pic.twitter.com/HR5XIq0nVo

— NewstalkFM (@NewstalkFM) August 1, 2016

A spokeswoman for the zoo said the incident was being reviewed internally.

It is understood the health and safety measures around the African Savanna enclosure for the zoo’s southern white rhinos are being examined.

One of the photos of the incident on Saturday afternoon was taken by architect Ciaran Ferrie, who posted it to Twitter and said: “Just a child inside the rhino enclosure at @dublinzoo.”

The youngster is less than a metre from the fence and can be seen standing on large boulders which act as an additional barricade about a metre above the ground.

The adult can be seen taking photos of him while passers-by take pictures of the two of them.

Dublin Zoo is expected to reveal a further response to the latest incident in the coming days.