Female Gorilla at Mogo Zoo. Photos: Elise Searson.
A month after his arrival from the UK, Western Lowland Gorilla – Kisane is settling in at Mogo Zoo with high hopes he and two female gorillas can add to shrinking numbers of their species.
The idea of baby gorillas on the South Coast is something for everyone to get excited about and based on the first introduction, the chance of this happening in the next two years is looking good.
Althea Guinsberg who works closely with the gorillas says the intro with Kisane and the first female has been “positive so far.”
Female gorilla at Mogo Zoo.
“We are currently doing intros with our new male Kisane who came from the Howlett Zoo in the UK and G Anne one of our females.
“We’re up to day four with some positive signs but we have a little while to still go,” Althena says.
Pairing isn’t always successful making the outcome unpredictable and the process enduring.
“It’s been positive in that they are tolerant of each other in their space but they are still wary of one another, we are hopeful of getting the two together but we still have to introduce the pair to our other females which is very exciting,” Althena explains.
Lazing around
Found in the wilds of the Congo basin in Africa, the Western Lowland Gorilla population has suffered a decline of over 60 per cent in the last 20-25 years, due to rampant poaching, habitat loss, and disease. They’re classified as a critically endangered species on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List.
“Hello there…”
As a proud member of the global zoological parks fraternity, Mogo Zoo has been playing an active role in conserving these icons of nature. As the gorilla breeding program gets underway, the team at Mogo (and the rest of us) eagerly awaits an addition to the animal wonders they safeguard. Fingers crossed!
Western Lowland Gorillas have suffered a decline of over 60 per cent in the last 20-25 years.
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