Brownsville, Texas (August 8, 2023) – Gladys Porter Zoo team of workers are delighted to announce that Dodie, the Zoo’s 46-year-old Sumatran orangutan, gave start to a wholesome child woman on July 19 at 3:00 a.m. Each mother and child are doing neatly. At the moment, they may be able to be noticed in combination on show off between 9:00 and 10:30 am. Their time outside shall be step by step larger because the new child adapts to outside temperatures.
That is Dodie’s fourth child. She is an skilled and attentive mom so she simply transitioned into her new maternal tasks. The daddy is Mango, a 31-year-old Sumatran orangutan who got here to us on a breeding mortgage from the Rolling Hills Zoo in Salina, Kansas. Dodie could also be the mummy of Kade, a youngster feminine, who at this time is living right here with Dodie, Mango and the brand new child.
For now, as Dodie and her offspring are setting up a robust bond, Kade has briefly been limited from complete get entry to to the newborn. Within the coming days, team of workers will step by step permit Kade to get totally familiar, giving her a guarded alternative to step into her necessary new function as giant sister.
“Kade, like many youngsters, confirmed a little of jealousy when Dodie first gave start,” mentioned Walter DuPree, the Zoo’s Curator of Mammals. “So, we have been a bit of thinking about giving her complete get entry to to her mom and the baby. We didn’t see aggression, however have been thinking about mischief. Kade now appears to be adjusting to the coming of her little sister, and it shouldn’t be lengthy ahead of Dodie, Kade, and the newborn shall be a circle of relatives unit.”
Within the wild, feminine teens will lend a hand their moms maintain younger. Within the procedure, they be informed necessary maternal abilities which might be of significant get advantages after they later have to lift their very own small children. Orangutans are one of the most maximum devoted moms within the animal kingdom. Within the wild, younger orangutans will stick with their moms for as much as seven years, as they be informed the abilities they want to live on on their very own. This contains the place to search out meals, find out how to construct nests, and find out how to carry younger.
The Gladys Porter Zoo has had an extended historical past with orangutans. In its 52-year historical past, there were 25 a hit orangutan births. The Zoo was once the primary on report to accomplish a cesarean segment on an excellent ape. The ancient process was once finished on a feminine orangutan in 1970 by way of a neighborhood obstetrician and the past due Don Farst, DVM, the Zoo’s earlier veterinarian, after which, director.
Sumatran orangutans are indexed as Significantly Endangered by way of the Global Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Crimson Listing of Threatened Species. Their biggest risk is habitat loss due large-scale conversion of woodland to palm oil plantations, industrial logging, and farming.
