Zoo Gorilla Gives Birth In Seattle Baby And Mother Doing Fine; Diversity Of Gene Pool Enhanced

Jumoke and Congo, Western lowland gorillas at the Woodland Park Zoo, have given birth to their first baby.

The 5-1/2-pound female was born Monday, making it the seventh successful gorilla birth at the Seattle zoo.

Jumoke and her child were doing fine Tuesday, zoo officials said.

It’s the first offspring between 10-year-old Jumoke and 36-year-old Congo.

Congo and his other mate, Amanda, had a baby in November, but it died five days later.

Monday’s birth is significant because Congo was caught in the wild, zoo officials said. The infusion of Congo’s genes will enhance the diversity of the captive gorilla gene pool.

Under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, wild gorillas no longer can be caught for captivity.

Congo was born in Cameroon around 1959. On breeding loan from the Honolulu Zoo, Congo came to Woodland Park from the Phoenix Zoo in 1992.

Jumoke, a member of Woodland Park’s original gorilla troop, was born at the zoo to parents Pete and Binti.