Thursday, August 05, 2010

Who's The Daddy?

You may remember my previous posts about the gorillas at London Zoo. First, in December 2008, silverback Bobby died of a heart attack. Last November, Yeboah arrived from France, a popular young male who hadn't yet developed his silver back. Then in March, he too died suddenly, apparently of diabetic shock. He hadn't been known to be diabetic.

When the keepers found out that the youngest female, Mjukuu, was pregnant by Yeboah, they realised they'd have to find a new male quickly. The girls need a male to keep them a cohesive group, or the other females might kill the baby. The new male must arrive in time to be hoodwinked into believing that the baby might be his, or he might kill the baby.

They've settled on this handsome boy, 11-year-old Kesho from Dublin Zoo.


They're hoping he will arrive by the end of the month, and will be introduced to the girls soon enough to try and mate with Mjukuu and then accept her baby as his. Luckily, gorillas aren't known as accomplished in counting! Mjukuu is due to deliver in October.
Her baby will be the first at the zoo for 20 years.
Can't wait!!!
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8 comments:

  1. judith8:04 pm

    'gorillas are'nt known as accomplished in counting.' That did make me smile. Thanks Val.x

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  2. JoJo9:00 pm

    *shudders* Rest assured, if I ever make it to the Point Defiance Zoo in Tacoma, I'll be skipping the monkey/ape exhibit. lol

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  3. Music Wench11:54 pm

    Hope you get photos of the baby to share. :-)

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  4. jazzy6:59 am

    Let's hope the male Irish gorilla is easy to trick.
    Mjukuu: Ummm there's something you need to know.
    Irish gorilla guy: Duh! Are you sure I'm the father?
    Mjukuu: You DARE to ask??

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  5. Anonymous7:23 am

    Wow, that's a mighty big fella there. Hope it works out...or in this case, in.

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  6. ann1:35 pm

    ... let's pray their devious little plan works

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  7. Unknown6:01 pm

    Good news for Mjukuu. Her baby will be the star of the zoo.

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  8. bobbybegood18:07 pm

    Thanks for posting, Val. I am NOT a big fan of primates - well, except for Vincent, but I have grown to love the Silverbacks. They are AWESOME! They are the champs among the lower primates. Cheers!!

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