For Immediate Release
April TBC, 2008 |
For More Information:
Katie Gray
Supervisor, Public Relations
(416) 392-5941 |
TORONTO ZOO'S GORILLAS TO WELCOME NEW MEMBER
April TBC, 2008, Toronto, Ontario: How do you introduce a new adult female gorilla to an existing gorilla family? Very carefully, says Toronto Zoo Curator of Mammals, Maria Franke. Ten year old Ngozi (the name means "blessing") arrived in Toronto on March 4th, 2008 from the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle as part of the Western Lowland Gorilla Species Survival Plan (SSP). The goal is for her to breed with Charles, the silverback male of the Zoo's gorilla group. Now nearing the end of a 60 day quarantine period, Ngozi, whose area is equipped with lots of enrichment, including a television set and a VCR, is in constant contact with ZooKeepers and is being shown videos of the Toronto Zoo's gorillas to help prepare her for meeting them.
Introducing the newcomer could be a slow process, notes Maria Franke. Ngozi will get to know her new family through mesh doors, making touching, smelling and gorilla small talk possible. "Although it's been done successfully in other zoos, this is the first time we have introduced an adult gorilla to our existing gorillas. We intend to let the gorillas dictate the pace of the introduction process, which could take as long as six months." The Toronto Zoo currently has seven gorillas, of which four, Charles, Samantha, Josephine and Subira are adults, and three Johari (female, born 2001), Shalia (female, born 2002), and Sadiki (male, born 2005) are youngsters.
A critically endangered species, Western Lowland Gorillas are found in the rainforests of Angola, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon. An adult male can weigh 200kg, with adult females weighing around 100kg. Females mature at approximately 8 years but typically don't breed until 10 years of age. The average gestation period is 265 days with a single young being born.
Any offspring of Ngozi and Charles would be genetically valuable to the North American captive gorilla population. Currently, apart from his Toronto Zoo babies, Charles only has two offspring living in other zoos. New births would help secure a genetically healthy population.
"We're very excited to be welcoming this new member', comments Maria. "She represents the new generation of gorillas in North America. Any babies she has will be a tremendous addition to the Lowland Gorilla Species Survival Plan."
