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Lincoln Park Zoo Welcomes Birth of Endangered Gorilla

By Chuck Sudo in News on Nov 21, 2011 7:40PM

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Image courtesy Lincoln Park Zoo
Lincoln Park Zoo is celebrating a momentous birth. An western lowland gorilla named Bana gave birth to a baby girl last Wednesday.

The birth is significant because western lowland gorillas are an endangered species. Scientists have had a hard time counting how many are still in existence, and the birth of the still-unnamed baby is the first such birth at Lincoln Park Zoo since 2005.

The zoo's Regenstein Center for African Apes has been closed to the public since Bana gave birth to give the 15-year-old gorilla and her 22-year-old silverback sire, Kwan, time to adjust to being parents, and so Zoo officials can monitor Bana and the newborn. Kwan is said to be protectively close to both mother and baby.

The Regenstein Center will re-open to the public at 10 a.m. with its new star attraction.