ATLANTA — Zoo Atlanta announced Thursday the new baby gorilla born last week is a boy.
Lulu, a western lowland gorilla, gave birth to her new baby boy on July 24, 2019. Her baby is the 24th gorilla to be born within Zoo Atlanta.
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Western lowland gorillas have been a critically endangered species for over 25 years.
Combined threats of poaching, illegal hunting, habitat loss and emerging diseases, like Ebola, have reduced their numbers by 60 percent. All of these factors have made it difficult for them to thrive in the wild.
The gorillas have experienced declines of as much as 90 percent in some parts of western Africa.
Despite their declining numbers in the wild, caretakers all over the world have a plan of action to help rehabilitate them. The plan is called, Gorilla Species Survival Plan (SSP), and seeks to maintain a self-sustaining, genetically diverse gorilla population for future generations. Zoo Atlanta is one of the key partners in this plan, and is doing all they can to help the species.
The baby does not have a name yet, but Zoo Atlanta as well as 11Alive will be keeping everyone updated on the naming process.
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