April the Giraffe has finally given birth. 1.2 million people watched online as she delivered her fourth calf - a male- on Saturday (15 April) at Adventure Park's zoo in New York.

Anticipating the new arrival, the public have been keeping a close watch on the 15-year-old giraffe via a YouTube stream since late February.

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And just before 10am today, she delivered her baby in an enclosed pen at the zoo in Harpursville. The mother gently licked the calf to rouse her and after just 45 minutes, she was on her feet, albeit a bit wobbly.

"We have a baby! Everything went absolutely perfect. This is great!" said park owner Jordan Patch announcing the new arrival of the park's first calf.

While amateur zoologists and animal lovers have been eagerly anticipating the birth, the zoo found itself at the centre of controversy after "animal rights extremists" alleged that the livestream violated YouTube's "nudity and sexual content" policy, prompting the social media site to ban the livestream.

Patch criticised the decision claiming that preventing people watching the stream "pulled an educational tool away from tens of millions of individuals".

Fortunately, following a public outcry the video was re-instated and April quickly became an internet sensation with millions tuning in to capture her every move. Fans created a website dedicated to April and one admirer was even inspired to pen a song titled "I'm Going Crazy Waiting (For A Giraffe)" in honour of the mother-to-be.

And with the news that the new calf was born Twitter erupted with messages of congratulations. "We did it, internet! We had a giraffe baby together" tweeted one excited viewer. "Everybody sticking their neck out for this baby giraffe" quipped another.

The new born baby is already around 6 foot tall and is expected to weigh about 150lbs (68.04kg) The Guardian reports.

The public have been invited to send in their suggestions for names for the new baby.