Birthday Party for the Baby Gorillas

There was a big party at the zoo. Bomassa and Apollo both turn one year old this month, so the zoo had a big bash, complete with a lovely cake and streamers decorating the tree. The keepers came out and set everything up. And then the gorillas came out and had their party. You may have read about all this over at Bomassa's Twitter.

A huge crowd was on hand to watch the gorillas get their treats. 

Look at the lovely cake, made with ice and vegetables!  Nkosi the silverback came out last. Tell us in the comment section why you think that was!

Bomassa's having a go at the carrots. They're  a little hard to get at because they have been frozen in ice for a few days. It took a long time for zoo personnel to get ready for this party. 

The top of the cake featured a gigantic ONE carved of watermelon. Apollo worked at that for awhile and got a few licks here and there. 

Music was presented by Healing Force. It was not clear whether it would bother the gorillas, but they took no notice, while the crowd enjoyed it immensely.

Happy Birthday Bomassa!

And Good Job, Jamani

Today, August 4th, marks  the first birthday for Bomassa Gorilla, first gorilla born at the North Carolina Zoo since 1989. Jamani has done a terrific job with her son this entire year. Here they are, both enjoying their birthday cake at a celebration held yesterday.

Tomorrow look for more photos of the party right here. Follow Twitter for an alert.

Read all about Bomassa's ups and downs throughout the year. Here's a link to each post we've written about him here at his blog, the only blog chronicling an entire year of development of two baby gorillas.

Gorilla Mothers

Gorillas can be affectionate
For all the trouble Jamani and Olympia have had, they get along pretty darn well, often resting right next to each other, nursing and holding their babies.  Some days, it is cold enough that you can imagine they are simply trying to keep warm. But even when it is warm out, the moms often  hang out fur touching fur.

Jamani holds her head while Olympia, cradling Apollo, looks on

I rarely see Acacia joining in. Customarily, male Nkosi  is off on his own in one area of the Forest Glade, and Acacia, who does not yet have a baby of her own, not yet anyway, is off in another direction passing the time by herself.

Get alerts  for the next blog entry by following Twitter.