Photo by FONZ Photo Club member Janice Sveda
Related Resources
Celebrate the birth—adopt a western lowland gorilla! Adopt a Gorilla or Golden Lion Tamarin.
Human Origins Program at the Smithsonian's Museum of Natural History.
June 10 Update From a Great Ape House Keeper
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| Photo by FONZ Photo Club member Janice Sveda |
As we mark Kibibi turning five months old, the gorilla keepers are left wondering where the time has gone! Kibibi is growing so quickly and each day seems to present us with a new surprise and more insight into her personality. She is inquisitive, bold, and determined and is certainly keeping Mandara busy these days.
While Kibibi still travels everywhere with her mother, Mandara has begun to offer her a tiny bit of freedom. Kibibi can often now be seen sitting on the ground playing next to Mandara or pulling herself up using her mom’s hair or the nearby enclosure mesh. Kibibi continues to explore her environment in an active way. She squirms and stretches to get her hands on anything she can reach. Now that she has several teeth she, like most babies, is putting everything in her mouth. This week alone she tried out some celery, ape chow, papaya, and chard along with some less palatable things like hay and old bamboo branches.
The biggest development of the past month is that Kibibi has had some one-on-one time with both her brother Kojo and sister Kigali. Keepers and visitors have witnessed Mandara allowing Kojo, who's seven, to scoop up Kibibi on several occasions and hold on to her while he sits next to Mandara. On one occasion Kibibi was tugging at the hair on Kojo’s arm trying to transfer herself from mom to brother, but Kojo pushed her away, evidently not a fan of her less-than-gentle maneuver!
Kigali, 15, still remains very interested in her younger sister, but takes a more passive approach to introductions. These meetings are usually fleeting (less than 30 seconds) and then Mandara will take the baby back again. Surely, this summer we will continue to see more exploration and independence from Kibibi.
