CLEVELAND — Jameela, a new baby gorilla at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo, arrived in Northeast Ohio from the Fort Worth Zoo just a few weeks ago in a fostering effort -- and zoo officials provided another update Thursday to say she “continues to do really well.”
“She’s incredibly healthy. She’s very strong,” says animal curator Dr. Elena Less in a new video update shared by the Cleveland Zoo. “We are keeping her next to the gorilla group at all times. As you saw from our last update, we saw excellent maternal behavior from Fredrika as we expected, and she picked Jameela up right away. We did find that Kayembe was being a little bit rambunctious. He’s the older toddler brother, so that’s to be expected. So we are moving slowly and making sure that Fredrika has time to bond with Jameela and that we can work on Kayembe on reinforcing positive, calm behaviors around Jameela as well.”
You can watch the Cleveland Zoo's latest update in the video below:
Dr. Less says their team has continued focus on getting Jameela to be bonded with Fredrika.
“All of her bottles she’s receiving next to Fredrika and next to Kayembe,” Dr. Less continues. “So they’re still maintaining that contact with her every time we feed her. We’re working on her strength. She’s doing tummy time. She is receiving bottles through a mesh panel, so that she’s ready for when she goes back into the group.”
The team at the Cleveland Zoo is also having Jameela practice riding on their backs because that’s how Fredrika likes to carry her babies, according to Dr. Less.
“We’re working with Kayembe on gentle touches through a mesh barrier for her. We use positive-reinforcement training, so we’re reinforcing him for calm behavior around her. We are just getting everyone ready and bonded for the next time we put her in the group.”
Jameela’s arrival in Cleveland was announced late last month.
Zoo officials said her birth in early January made international headlines after life-threatening complications threatened the health of her mother, Sekani, requiring an emergency cesarean -- the first in Fort Worth Zoo’s history.
“Unfortunately, Sekani and other female gorillas at Fort Worth Zoo did not show maternal behaviors that would indicate a successful bond with Jameela,” according to the zoo’s previous announcement. “After attempts to introduce Jameela into the Fort Worth Zoo’s gorilla troop, it was collectively determined that her next best step is a move to the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo where every effort will be made to successfully integrate her into their troop.”
Zoo officials previously said the Gorilla Species Survival Plan (SSP) has been advising and supporting the Fort Worth team since Jameela was born “and ultimately determined that Cleveland Metroparks Zoo was the next best opportunity for Jameela to find a foster gorilla.”
Jameela's arrival comes as zoo officials say Cleveland’s troop had recent success in gorilla fostering after the eldest female quickly adopted Kayembe in 2021 after his birth mother “similarly didn’t display proper maternal care.”
The Cleveland Metroparks Zoo’s gorilla troop was also featured internationally last fall on Netflix’s “Baby Animal Cam” and “Baby Gorilla Cam.”