AFTER A two-week wait, Dublin Zoo was finally able yesterday to reveal the sex of its newborn baby gorilla. It’s a boy.
The youngster’s mother had previously held him so tightly that keepers were unable to determine his gender.
However, mother gorilla Lena has recently begun to relax her grip just enough for the staff to make a judgment. “A little boy, it’s fantastic for the population of western lowland gorillas. Mum is healthy, baby is healthy so it’s a very special day for Dublin Zoo,” said Ciarán McMahon, the team leader responsible for the gorillas.
A spokeswoman for the zoo said that since they announced the birth of the baby gorilla the public interest had been phenomenal.
“Visitors have flocked to the zoo to see him,” she said.
The baby gorilla does not yet have a name and Dublin Zoo is asking members of the public to submit their suggestions via Facebook or at the Learning and Discovery Centre in the zoo.
According to McMahon, the number of western lowland gorillas in the wild today ranges somewhere between 95,000 and 150,000.
“That’s a very small amount when you think about it. Human encroachment, deforestation and the bushmeat trade are taking these animals away on a daily basis. They are a critically endangered animal,” he said.
Zookeepers at Dublin Zoo say the newborn has integrated successfully into the group so far. “Those initial couple of days are very, very important for mum and baby but also for the rest of the group,” said McMahon.