CINCINNATI — The Cincinnati Zoo announced the birth of a baby boy gorilla on Monday.
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12-year-old gorilla Gladys had the baby on Sept. 20 at approximately 8:32 a.m.
The zoo said this is Gladys’ first baby and the 51st gorilla born there.
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Zoo Volunteer Observers (ZVOs) began a 24/7 baby birth watch four weeks prior, according to the zoo.
“The ZVOs reported signs of labor throughout the early hours on Saturday morning, and she was in active labor when I arrived at 5:30 a.m.” Cincinnati Zoo’s head gorilla keeper, Ashley Ashcraft, said. “A few hours later, keepers had the honor of quietly observing her birth! She has been very attentive to the baby and is doing all the right things. We are so proud of her.”
The zoo said Gladys’ maternal instincts kicked right in and she knew exactly what to do.
She came to the Cincinnati Zoo in 2013 because she needed human surrogates and a potential surrogate mother.
The baby’s father, 23-year-old silverback gorilla Mbeli, is also a first-time parent, according to the zoo.
Gladys and her baby will be behind the scenes for the time being.
The keeper team is looking for name suggestions from the public, which can be submitted on the Zoo’s social media pages.
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