Cincinnati Zoo celebrates Amali the bonobo’s 1st birthday

CINCINNATI — The Cincinnati Zoo celebrated the first birthday of Amali the bonobo on Friday.

The female bonobo, who was born in July of 2020, celebrated her birthday alongside her troop through a special cake and treats, the zoo said.

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Amali was born during the pandemic to her to first-time parents, mother Kesi, and her 49-year-old father, Vernon.

“We usually celebrate Zoo Babies month in May, but we’re seeing a surprisingly-large second wave of births this year,” said Cincinnati Zoo director Thane Maynard. “We joke about COVID quarantine being the cause, but the animals didn’t actually spend any more time than usual together during lockdown. We did our best to keep their routines the same.”

Zoo officials said on their website that Amali was the 11th of the critically endangered species to be born at the zoo.

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