SEATTLE - Woodland Park Zoo officials announced today that it plans to introduce its 3-week-old female gorilla to a different gorilla group at the zoo. The mother, 16-year-old Jumoke (juh-MOH-kee), experienced a trouble-free labor and delivery in the zoo’s gorilla unit. However, Jumoke’s apparent exhaustion and inability to care for her newborn prompted zoo veterinary staff to place the infant at the zoo’s animal health nursery for 24-hour care.

The newborn, which has not yet been named, marks the third offspring for Jumoke and the second between her and the father, 22-year-old Vip. A widely regarded world leader in the conservation of animals, the zoo has succeeded in contributing 10 births to the North American population of endangered western lowland gorillas.

The baby gorilla remains off public view at the nursery. Failed attempts to reintroduce the infant to Jumoke required staff to suspend further reintroduction efforts. Instead, staff is preparing 33-year-old Nina, an experienced mother in another zoo gorilla group, for mothering the infant. “Nina has successfully raised four of her own offspring, plus Jumoke’s firstborn,” explains zoo Senior Keeper Helen Shewman. “She’s an excellent mother and we have no doubt that she will readily accept this infant under her care."

Zoo staff hopes to begin introducing the baby to Nina within the next two weeks “because human caretakers can’t duplicate the social and physiological benefits of being raised in a gorilla group,” notes one of the baby’s caretakers, zoo Senior Veterinarian Technician/Conservation Coordinator Harmony Frazier. “Our goal is to curtail the handraising and socialize Jumoke’s infant with Nina and her group as soon as possible.” Introductions will be gradual and may take up to several weeks.

Preparations for the socialization involve an innovative feeding technique, which entails conditioning both Nina and the baby for bottle-feeding sessions. Nina is being trained to approach the off-view, meshed barrier every three hours and sit still while positioning the baby to accept the bottle. Meanwhile, staff shakes a rattle to draw the baby’s attention to the bottle, which is specially designed to squeeze through the meshed barrier. Additionally, to acclimate the baby to her own species, she spends three hours a day in the gorilla’s sleeping quarters and up to an hour a day interacting with her mother’s group through a meshed barrier.

Once Nina and the baby are successfully introduced to and are comfortable with each other, the baby will be on public view with her new group, weather permitting. Another approach to the baby’s care is hormone injections to Nina in order to stimulate lactating. Until Nina has a milk supply and the baby shows successful suckling behavior, staff will continue to provide round-the-clock care to ensure bottle-feedings every three hours.

Nina’s group consists of 33-year-old Pete, who sired all of Nina’s offspring; their daughter, 10-year-old Alafia (uh-LAW-fee-uh); Alafia’s first offspring born last October, Naku (NAW-koo), a female; and 5-year-old Nadiri, a female and Jumoke’s firstborn. Pete is the grandfather of the newborn gorilla.

The baby gorilla’s parents, Jumoke and Vip, live in a separate naturalistic habitat with Jumoke's 3-year-old daughter, Monifa (moh-NEE-fuh); 31-year-old Amanda; and Amanda’s 3-year-old daughter, Ngozi (en-GO-zee). Both juvenile gorillas are the offspring of Vip.

As a scientific and conservation center, Woodland Park Zoo participates in the American Zoo and Aquarium Association's (AZA) Species Survival Plan (SSP) for gorillas. Through participation, the zoo has helped diversify the gorilla gene pool in North American zoos æ 12 gorillas have been born at Woodland Park since 1975; 10 have survived. The zoo also works to educate the public about gorillas æ a critical first step towards gorilla conservation.

All gorillas are endangered. The estimated population of wild western lowland gorillas is about 110,000. The bushmeat trade, which is decimating African wildlife including gorillas and their young, is fueled by increased logging and is an imminent threat to the western lowland gorilla population, particularly in West and Central Africa. Another primary reason for their endangered status is habitat destruction due to agricultural expansion.

For more information about the zoo’s gorillas and its conservation efforts, check out Woodland Park Zoo’s Web site at www.zoo.org. Zoo summer hours are 9:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. daily. For general zoo info log on the zoo’s Web site or call 206-684-4800.