Brother gorillas leaving Columbia’s Riverbanks Zoo. When is last day to see them?
Brother gorillas born at Riverbanks Zoo in 2018 will be relocated to Dallas Zoo next month.
The reason? It’s time for them to move out of their parents house and meet some primates their own age. The move is part of Riverbanks Zoo’s ongoing wildlife conservation efforts.
Half-brothers Moyo and ZaKota were born to two different mothers, Kazi and Macy, at Riverbanks Zoo in 2018 — the first successful gorilla births in the zoo’s 50-year history. The brothers share father Cenzoo.
Now eight-year-olds, the gorillas are being moved to Dallas so they can be with other young male gorillas in a “bachelor group,” according to a release from the zoo.
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“What happens next for Moyo and ZaKota also reflects what occurs in the wild. As male gorillas mature, they leave the family group in which they were born and join bachelor troops with other males,” the zoo’s release explains.
The brother gorillas will join two other males in Dallas, “with space to grow socially and physically in a way that reflects natural gorilla behavior.”
The brothers’ parents, and an aunt Acacia, will remain at Riverbanks, anchoring the Columbia zoo’s own gorilla troop.
Preparing Moyo and ZaKota to leave Riverbanks has been an eight-year job, which has included teaching the gorillas to care for themselves and encouraging them to be independent of their parents.
Riverbanks could see more gorilla babies in the future.
“Kazi, Macy and Cenzoo have been excellent parents, and if the [species survival plan] recommends it, we would be excited to contribute again in the future,” said Ryan Jones, Riverbanks Zoo’s gorilla and small mammal supervisor.
“We are proud of the care and commitment that has gone into raising [Moyo and ZaKota] and of the foundation that will help them thrive and contribute to the future of their species,” Jones added.
Moyo and ZaKota are expected to make their trip to Dallas in mid-March. Zoos do not publicize the exact date that animals are transferred to or from their facilities for security reasons.
