Gorilla keeps close eye on baby

A BUNDLE of joy born at Dublin Zoo to western lowland gorilla Lena cannot be identified as a boy or girl as its proud mother is keeping the baby close to her chest at all times.

More importantly though, keepers believe the baby is healthy as it is feeding well and moving its head around.

Lena, who was born in 1984, is an experienced mother and this is her fifth baby.

And according to the Ciaran McMahon, team leader responsible for the gorillas, she has a very close relationship with the baby’s father Harry, the dominant silverback of the group.

“Lena is a great mother and so far she hasn’t let go of her newborn. She will continue to cradle the baby in her arms non-stop for the next two to three months.

“When she does eventually let the toddler out of her arms to explore, the youngster won’t go far because Lena will not allow the baby go more than an arm’s length away.

“The youngster is doing very well, within minutes the baby was feeding from mum Lena, which is a very good sign. We can tell that the infant is strong because there are a lot of head movements.”

The baby gorilla, yet to be named, will join two brothers Alfie (born 2003) and Evindi (born 2006) and Mayani, a female gorilla who moved to Dublin Zoo from Stuttgart Zoo in 2005.

“We are over the moon with the birth of the baby gorilla. The new arrival is a great success for Dublin Zoo as part of the European breeding programme for these critically endangered primates,” Mr McMahon said.

“We are one of a few zoos to have a gorilla family living together and we can see that the bonds between the group are very strong.”

Mr McMahon said that it is an exciting time for the gorillas as they will soon be moving to their new state-of-the-art-home, the Gorilla Rainforest. The habitat, which will be ready in September, will be a naturalistic habitat of 12,000 square metres and dense vegetation which will provide the troop of gorillas with a stimulating environment.

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. The numbers of these primates living in the wild is expected to fall by over 80% between 1980 and 2046 with commercial hunting and a highly contagious virus called Ebola being the two main threats facing their survival.