Baby Gorilla Born At Detroit Zoo For First Time Ever

ROYAL OAK, MI — A baby gorilla was born at the Detroit Zoo for the first time in the zoo's 96-year history, according to park officials.

First-time mom Bandia, 26, gave birth in the early morning hours on Thursday, according to park officials.

Park officials said Bandia had a very smooth pregnancy, which is important for a first-time mom. The father is 36-year-old Mshindi and park officials said all are doing very well.

"Throughout her eight-and-a-half-month pregnancy, she continued to participate in routine ultrasounds using positive reinforcement training methods, which allowed our team to check on the baby along the way and ensure everything was going well," Detroit Zoological Society Associate Curator of Mammals Tami Brightrall said.

The zoo's animal care staff took months to prepare the troop, even carrying a stuffed gorilla around the habitat to show other gorillas how to carry the baby, park officials said.

The staff also taught the gorillas how to gently touch the stuffed animal, pick it up off the ground and bring it to a member of the team over at the mesh barrier, park officials said.

The healthy newborn, who doesn't have a name yet as the gender has not yet been determined, joins four other gorillas at the zoo. Along with Bandia and Mshindi, there is also 20-year-old Tulivu and 11-year-old Nayembi.

Park officials said the other gorillas are keeping their distance but seem very curious about the new addition to the troop.

The public won't be able to see the newborn and the other gorillas immediately. The Great Apes building and the gorilla’s outdoor habitat are temporarily closed to guests in order to provide a calm and quiet place for Bandia to bond with her newborn.

"The time we open the habitat for guests to see the gorillas, including the baby, all depends on Bandia’s behavior and needs, especially as a first-time mom," Detroit Zoological Society mammal supervisor Melissa Thueme said. "We want to keep things calm and quiet for Bandia, the baby and the rest of the troop to provide them time to settle in, and the area will reopen once the animal care team determines mom and baby have had enough time to bond and become comfortable in their habitat."

The outdoor chimpanzee habitat at the zoo will remain open.