August 21, 2008
Mama gorilla mourns her dead baby
From MSNBC:
BERLIN - A gorilla at a zoo in the German city of Muenster is refusing to let go of her dead baby's body several days after it died of unknown causes. Allwetter Zoo spokeswoman Ilona Zuehlke says the 3-month-old male baby died on Saturday but its 11-year-old mother continues to carry its body around. Zuehlke says such behavior is not uncommon to gorillas. Zuehlke says the mother "is mourning and must say goodbye." The mother gorilla is named Gana.
Signs were posted near Gana's enclosure Wednesday to explain the situation to visitors. A staff member is also present to answer questions. The baby was named Claudio and was Gana's second baby. She had a female baby in 2007 that now lives at the Stuttgart Zoo.
More here.
Posted by Azra Raza at 06:04 AM | Permalink
Comments
Just like us or just like them...
Does it matters?
Posted by: Felix E F Laroccas MD | Aug 21, 2008 1:28:31 PM
Is any one else more than slightly uncomfortable with the notion of keeping our cousins like this in captivity for gawkers? It really is not that far from travelling freak shows where the rights of the "different or deformed" came AFTER those of the intrigued viewer. It's not something that has greatly bothered me in the past but now when I think about it... should this scene not be playing out on a remote jungle stage?
Posted by: MattInOz | Aug 21, 2008 8:10:20 PM
MattInOz,
No just you.
There's billions of humans. Unlike you, most of them can't hop in a jet and voyeur gorillas out in the jungle while sipping a latte.
Zoos are a good technology to have in case worst comes to worst and that's all we have left of wildlife.
Posted by: Joe Biden | Aug 23, 2008 3:55:18 PM
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