Jakarta –
These gorillas are considered male from birth by the zoo. But now it gives a surprise.
Quoted from BBCSaturday (22/7/2023), staff at the Ohio zoo were shocked when a gorilla they believed for four years to be a male gave birth.
The Columbus Zoo said Sully was found with her baby on Thursday. He has been a resident there since 2019.
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“The baby appears to be healthy and Sully is making a wonderful mother. Sully has always been in good health so there was no need to be examined, and this incident has caused chaos,” the staff said in a blog post.
The birth of the gorilla was very unexpected. However it is of interest to care teams and important for the conservation of endangered species.
The zoo keepers didn’t suspect anything until they saw the male nursing his young. “It’s hard to tell the sex of the younger gorilla,” they said.
At eight years old, Sully was old enough to reproduce but too young to show any obvious signs of sex.
“Until about eight years, males and females are about the same size. They don’t have any prominent sex organs. Silverback males don’t develop them until they are 12 years old or so,” he says.
Gorillas usually show no signs of pregnancy due to their large belly. And baby gorillas are much smaller than human babies.
“We are happy with his birth and this is also important for an endangered species,” said the zoo.
“As the 34th gorilla born here since 1956 when the Columbus Zoo became the first zoo in the world to host a baby gorilla. She is an important part of our work to preserve these extraordinary animals,” they added.
The zoo said it would carry out a DNA test to determine the paternity. Sully lives in a group led by Silverback Mac (39), which includes two young males Kamoli (10) and JJ (6).
Although confused with Sully’s gender, Columbus says with certainty the sex of the newcomer.
“It’s a girl! Our team confirmed it visually and with photographs which were also sent to primatologists at other reputable zoological facilities,” the zoo said.
Watch Video “Just Opened, Surabaya Night Zoo Immediately Invaded by Residents”
[Gambas:Video 20detik]
(msl/fem)
2023-07-22 12:31:38
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