Woodland Park Zoo has a new baby boy gorilla
It has yet to be named, but Seattle's Woodland Park Zoo is abuzz with excitement over its new baby gorilla resident.
“The average weight for a gorilla at birth is 4 pounds, and we’re pleased to report our new boy weighs 4.4 pounds," said Dr. Yousuf Jafarey, Associate Veterinarian at Woodland Park Zoo. "His vital signs are good, and he is healthy and physically normal."
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The mother, Akenji, was pregnant for about nine months before giving birth on June 28. According to the zoo, an animal care team intervened shortly after the birth because "Akenji did not show appropriate maternal behaviors despite the months-long maternal skills training the gorilla care team provided." For now, humans will take care of the baby with bottle feeding. The team has placed the baby in Akenji's presence for periods of time with the hope that she will eventually bond with it.
“Although we have been encouraging maternal behaviors, Akenji still hasn’t shown any promising signs of interest to bond with her baby," said Interim Animal Care Manager Rachel Vass. "Because she demonstrated capable maternal behaviors throughout her training program, we’re disappointed and a little surprised those instincts haven’t kicked in. As we continue to hand-rear her baby for the short term, the positive news is that he remains healthy, he has a great appetite and strong grip, and he is getting bigger every day.”
This is the 16th baby gorilla born at the zoo. A zoo official noted that their gorilla team has plenty of experience uniting moms with infants, or bringing in other gorillas "to step in as moms."
In fact, a similar situation happened in 2015 when baby girl Yola was born to mother Nadiri. The zoo's team stepped in to help that baby get started, too. It took a few months, but the zoo reported that Yola was eventually reunited with her mom and gorilla family. The same thing happened with Nadiri's second daughter Zuna in 2021; however, this time the two were able to bond within a couple weeks.
This is Akenji's first pregnancy and experience with her own baby. It's the third baby for father Kwame, who had a son in 2020 and a daughter in 2021. Both live at the zoo and are often seen playing with their dad.
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