A Texas zoo recently helped add another member to the population of an endangered species. However, it wasn’t without complications that required emergency action to save a life. The Fort Worth Zoo welcomed its third gorilla baby in 115 years, but this one came into the world through the window, or by C-section, in other words.
The gorilla was born weeks early due to complications involving the mother. Sekani, a 33-year-old female gorilla, was due to give birth in mid February; however, on January 3rd, the veterinarians caring for her began to notice subtle signs that something wasn’t right with the mother. Vets figured out the mother was having blood pressure complications similar to ones in humans.
Sekani reportedly was sluggish and displaying the signs of a headache, leading vets to believe she was suffering from preeclampsia. Preeclampsia is a blood-pressure condition that occurs in pregnant females, both humans and primates and can result in a life-threatening stroke for the mother. Based on this, the zoo had to act quickly or risk losing Sekani and her unborn baby.
The zoo staff consulted with a local obstetrician and neonatalist before moving forward with the emergency c-section. On January 5, a team of doctors, some volunteers, performed the procedure, saving both the mother and female baby gorilla. Many of those involved were people doctors and not veterinarians.
Dr. Jamie Walker Erwin, a board-certified obstetrics and gynecology physician, was one of the doctors involved, and she said: “It is an honor and privilege to assist with care for this endangered species and to share my expertise with the veterinary staff at the Fort Worth Zoo.”
Dr. Robert Ursprung, a neonatalist, commented on how similar the gorilla experience is to human childbirth. He said, “It was incredible how similar this mother-infant pair was compared to what I see in the hospital for babies born under similar circumstances.” What happened next between mother and child differed from the human experience, however. According to zoo officials, Sekani has shown no interest in caring for her infant, leaving zoo employees tasked with bottle feeding and caring for the premature gorilla.
Zoo experts believe Sekani didn’t “experience the necessary hormonal cues that come during natural and full-term birth.” Fortunately, the zoo has a plan. They have a surrogate gorilla set to raise the young female. The Zoo said in a statement: “Zookeepers are hopeful Gracie will be an ideal surrogate mother, exhibiting maternal behaviors that will be necessary for the baby to thrive: holding and carrying of the infant, protection, cooperation with zookeepers during feeding time and teaching the little one necessary social skills she needs to be a gorilla.”
"*" indicates required fields
The worldwide gorilla population is small, so adding a new female in captivity is huge. Kudos to the Fort Worth Zoo and the volunteers involved for bringing this rare gorilla into the world safely. Hopefully, the surrogate mother can pick up where Sekani has left off, and the baby gorilla named Jameela will thrive in the Fort Worth Zoo.
Featured image screen grab from embedded video