Woodland Park Zoo Gorilla Is Expecting Her First Child

SEATTLE, WA — Uzumma, a 12-year-old western lowland gorilla at the Woodland Park Zoo, is pregnant with her very first child, zoo officials have confirmed. The father-to-be is 18-year-old Kwame, flown here from the Smithsonian's National Zoo last year as part of a species breeding program. Uzumma is the first pregnant gorilla at Woodland Park Zoo since the birth of Yola in 2015.

"We took Uzumma off birth control pills in the spring and let nature run its course," said Martin Ramirez, mammal curator at the zoo.

Under the Gorilla Species Survival Plan, accredited zoos across the country coordinate to keep a self-sustaining population afloat. Woodland Park Zoo participates in a total of 111 such survival plans among various species.

The zoo's gorilla keepers have trained Uzumma to participate in ultrasounds so they can carefully track the pregnancy's progress. They will also monitor the gorilla's behavioral changes over the next few months. Veterinarians will perform regular checkups, a nutritionist will create a special diet and the gorilla will take supplements to maintain a healthy weight. The zoo expects the new gorilla will be born by mid-January, 2020.

You can donate money to help keep Woodland Park Zoo's animal care operations going as part of Wednesday's All for Animals Giving Day event.