Lowland Gorillas in Europe 2015

Thanks for explaining. I read the article in French, which isn't good enough to understand everything.

Why is Nyuki's background poor? Because of his prolific paternal grandparents Stefi and Achilla I guess, because his mother Marta isn't genetically represented that much, apart from Minnie at Givskud (three surviving offspring) and Emmie at Howletts (no offspring).

 

I didn't mean genetically. I meant socially. He was handraised and then lived exclusively with the other male 'Mike' into full adulthood, until this changeover, so no experience of females or young. He has certainly integrated well but he may still not be interested in mating. On the other hand, several males with similar background have shown this isn't always the case.

 

Sweet! Looks as if it's possible to get a foreign Silverback to accept other males children.
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Slightly off-topic: Willard, weren't you looking for actual information about Fasanolandia for your charts?
Here is an article about Riu, the lone gorilla. Dated yesterday March 10, 2015.
http://www.corriere.it/cronache/15_...ia-94e80406-c761-11e4-ace1-14c9e44d41cb.shtml

My Italian is a bit rusty, but I think the gist is: He came from Africa and via a circus together with his friend Pedro, who died in 2008. Ever since he is alone in a small exposition, spending his days watching tv.
The government wants him to move so he can have company and/or breed (for that his enclosure in Italy is too small), but the owners don't want to let him go, although he's genetically valuable. They rather offered to extract his sperm.

 

Gorilla female Shaila (born 2006 Bauwi X Shatilla) moved from Arnhem to Heidelberg yesterday.

 

If they are over a certain 'safe' age' certainly. But can be more dangerous if they were younger. In this case they were advised to wait and not do it until the juvenile female's 5th birthday.

 

Thanks a lot for this! My Italian is more than a bit rusty and I haven't read the article yet. But it seems the zoo is not an EAZA/EEP member. Shame on the owners for refusing to let him go. If this happened in the mid-20th century I woulldn't be surprised, but in 2015? Really sad.

 

1. Sperm collection is feasible but AI is still relatively unsuccessful in Gorillas so not a lot of point.

2. These older isolated males get very set in their ways. Moving him to be with females could be risky and he might not be interested anyway. But maybe worth a try given he is wildcaught and not genetically represented in the population at all. Neither is the old male 'Nico' at Longleat UK, but they did try to breed him some years ago with females at Bristol- but he was too aggressive with any female except his own (non-breeding) companion 'Samba'(now dead). So he stays alone on his island.

 

The zoo has never agreed to let the animal go. And the management of the zoo is too bad to send other animals to them. Now this male is 42 years old, came from a circus, chances are low that he would ever breed. Last time I have seen hem he was not completely alone, the small island was separated with a low electric fence of 150cm high and an old chimp was his neighbour. This is one of the animals that could better stay where he is, waiting for a soft death.

 

Barcelona - Makena gave birth to a female baby on 19th March

 

Berlin. Female 'Fatou' has celebrated her 58th 'birthday' Presumably as a wildcaught animal this represents the date of her arrival, although three listings I have, including the official studbook, all give her date of arrival as 11th May 1959. They claim she is the second oldest zoo Gorilla(this would be after Columbus 'Colo')

 

Rotterdam birth.

Male baby born Rotterdam on April 18th. Named 'Thabo' Parents; Bokito x Tamani.

Bokito now has five daughters, two sons and one 'adopted' son (Nasibu, born in Frankfurt). His eldest female offspring are already eleven and ten years old now so more than ready for breeding. Why have they not been sent to join other groups yet? Is it because Rotterdam intend to keep them and form a second group with young unrelated male 'Nasibu' perhaps? Or maybe they are already living in two groups?

 

The gorillas all live in one group and I can`t imagine that they want a second group. Indoor quarters are cramped as they are and there is just one outdoor enclosure. I am pretty sure that Nasibu is neutered and the intention is to keep him in Bokito`s group permanently. I have no idea why the two daughters are still there.

 

I was told that Nasibu secretly mates with one of Bokito's females, but the two of them get along well with each other. AFAIK Nasibu has not been castrated but I might be wrong.

 

He doesn't appear on the list of 'castrati'. But he is from a very well represented line. I would not think he would be selected deliberately as a future breeding male for that reason.

 

That is what I thought also. I saw their set-up some years ago before the Bokito incident-from videos etc it looks as if the indoors is pretty much unchanged since then.

 

Lisbon birth.

Baby(male) born to Anguka x Nasibu at Lisbon on 27/28th April. Important it survives as Nasibu, a genetically important male, has no other offspring at Lisbon, the previous one having died. Photos show Anguka already carrying it on her back, not very typical for a newborn though different females have different habits and its not necessarily poor mothering.

N.B. Nasibu, rather than the group male 'Efata,' may have fathered the two young males born at his previous home Kolmarden, Sweden, but DNA tests have never, afaik, been carried out to prove their paternity.

 

Lisbon & Kolmarden

Just recently I learned that both ULCA (*1981, Lisbon) and EFATA (*1982, Kolmarden) died already in November 2014. So the group in Sweden is without a silverback now.

 

Neither of these deaths were mentioned or appear yet in the unnofficial studbooks like GorillasGalor/Jim Davis, or Gorillasland lists. Maybe too recent, but I am not surprised to hear about 'Ulca'. Zoochat member Bele took a photo of a very emaciated/sick-looking female there last year- presumably that was 'Ulca'. Lisbon effectively seem to have only one breeding female(Anguka) as the other one has not(afaik) bred with Nasibu.

Interesting that after Nasibu left Kolmarden, female Naomi did not(again afaik) have any more young, though it may have been deliberate.... Again, she seems the only potential breeding female in this very small group.

 

the DNA tests showed that Efata had sired both offspring

 

Well thanks- been trying to find that out a long time. In which case Nasibu's Lisbon offspring is/are even more relevant.