A baby western lowland gorilla was born on Thursday at the Durrell Wildlife Trust in Jersey, the first for nine years. The baby’s mother is named Hlala Kahilli, and is keeping the baby close, so it’s not been possible to determine the newborn’s sex yet.
This baby is the first to be born at Durrell for nine years following the introduction of new dominant silverback Badongo, who incidentally also celebrates his thirteenth birthday today. Whilst this is Badongo’s first baby, Hlala Kahilli is an experienced mother and this is her fourth baby.
Mark Brayshaw Head of Animal Collection at Durrell said, “We are delighted with the great news and so far the mother and infact are doing well, but as with all births we need to be extra cautious during the first few days. At the moment the group including the new parents are all very relaxed and our keepers are remaining as hands off as possible as the group appears quite settled.”
Western lowland gorillas are classified as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.
Related articles
- Gorilla ‘kisses’ her newborn at Jersey zoo (telegraph.co.uk)
- UK News: Baby gorilla’s birthday cake and presents – VIDEO & GALLERY (walesonline.co.uk)
- Gorilla gives birth at Durrell (bbc.co.uk)
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