Watch as Gorilla Mom Sweetly Bonds With Her Baby at London Zoo
If you're a parent, you know that there's nothing as special as meeting and holding a child for the first time. It's true for animals too! CBS Newspath shared a video on Facebook of a mother gorilla bonding with her new baby, and it will warm your heart!
CBS shared the video on Saturday, January 20th. They explain in the caption that this Lowland Gorilla new mom - who is named Mjukuu - gave birth early Wednesday at the London Zoo after just 17 minutes (I'm jealous!) of labor. Watch as Mjukuu cuddles and bonds with her new baby...the look in both of their eyes is just pure love!
Watching this video was pretty amazing. The two look so much like a human mom holding her new baby. Mama was so gentle, and my favorite part was when they showed the baby staring into her eyes. The video gave me all the feels and made me remember the first moments I got to hold my babies (they're all teens now and there's no more holding going on!) @CBS Newspath commenter @Nikki Renee felt the same way, "Beautiful how they care for their babies, just like us. The relaxing music made you feel like you were there holding the baby too lol!", and I wholeheartedly agree with the comment, "She is going to be a wonderful mother!"
Related: Zoo's Baby Gorilla 'Demands' Dad Play with Her Just Like a Human Kid
Fun Facts About Baby Gorillas
I realized that as similar a baby gorilla seems to be to a human baby I didn't know much about them. I headed over to Animal Corner and found some fun facts to share about these precious babies.
I was surprised to learn that baby gorillas are called infants, just like human babies! And while they grow to be very large, they are born after 8-9 months and are very small and vulnerable, again just like humans. Most are born (in the wild anyways) during the night, high up in trees to protect them from predators. They weigh about four pounds when born, and it's very rare for gorillas to have twins - even more rare than it is for humans.
I also learned that sadly, baby gorillas have a high mortality rate...about 40% of infants do not make it to adulthood. CBS said in their caption, "the number of western lowland gorillas has declined by 60% in the last 25 years." I wonder if this has anything to do with it. And it didn't say in the article that I read, but I also wonder if infant gorillas born in captivity have a higher success rate of thriving.
Babies will spend the first six months of life in constant contact with mom and she will not put the baby down. I also learned that they develop much more quickly than human babies, and by six or 7 months they start climbing or walking on their own.
I love learning about baby animals and how they grow and learn from their moms. Gorillas are so similar to us humans that this story just fascinated me. I'm glad London Zoo shared it with all of us!
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