Woodland Park Zoo announced the passing of one of North America's oldest gorillas.
Pete, a western lowland gorilla, died at the age of 50. He was the great-grandfather of the zoo's youngest gorilla, Yola, who is almost 3-years-old.
Most western lowland gorillas live to about 32 in the wild. However, in zoos, these gorillas can live to up 40 or 50 years due to medicine, animal care, and regular feedings.
In the days leading up to his death, Pete started to slow down, signaling to zookeepers that he was not doing well.
“His appetite and activity level were low. He was under 24-hour close observation when he passed away in the presence of a gorilla keeper,” said Martin Ramirez, mammal curator at Woodland Park Zoo.
Pete had lived at Woodland Park Zoo since 1969. He was the cornerstone for the zoo's gorilla program, along with his lifelong companion Nina. Together they had four offspring which helped Woodland Park Zoo produce future generations of gorillas for conservation efforts.
Pete also had a fifth offspring with another female. In total, Pete had 19 grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.
In 2015, Pete's companion Nina passed away due to issues related to old age.
“Pete was an excellent companion, father and leader of his group. He was known by his keepers as the ‘gentleman of gorillas.’ Pete was an ageless soul who embodied kindness, courage, strength, patience and leadership,” said Ramirez. “This is a very difficult time for our zoo family but we are comforted by the fact his legacy lives on through his children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchild.”
With only about 100,000 western lowland gorillas left in the wild, the species is considered critically endangered.
Several other gorillas live at Woodland Park Zoo, including 22-year-old female Nadiri, 18-year-old male Kwame, 17-year-old female Akenji, 11-year-old female Uzumma, 2-year-old female Yola, 39-year-old male Vip and 33-year-old female Jumoke.
To visit the gorillas, winter zoo hours are 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. daily through April 30. For more information visit www.zoo.org.
