Critically endangered Sumatran orangutan at Sacramento Zoo gives birth
By Jonathan Ayestas
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SACRAMENTO, California (KCRA) — A Sumatran orangutan gave birth to a healthy infant, the first orangutan birth at the Sacramento Zoo since 1981, the zoo said Monday.
The male baby was born on May 1, the Sacramento Zoo said. Both Indah, a 19-year-old orangutan, and her infant are doing well.
According to the zoo, giving birth was planned years in advance, as the Sumatran orangutan is a critically endangered species. There are only 79 orangutans of that species in human care across the United States, and the population of wild orangutans continues to decline.
There are 238 Association of Zoos and Aquarium facilities in the country. Of those, 57 facilities care for orangutans and of those 57 facilities, 24 of them house Sumatran orangutans.
“Every birth is a monumental success for the species,” the zoo said, which houses three adult Sumatran orangutans.
Indah came to the Sacramento Zoo in 2017 with the intention of mating with Makan, the zoo’s male orangutan, as part of what is called a species survival plan.
Zookeepers and a team of veterinarians from the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine have also been helping the mother and child since the birth, the zoo said. The animal specialists noticed Indah was having difficulty nursing, so the team intervened to help the infant receive extra care while keeping the baby in constant view of his mother.
The team will provide the baby with 24-hour care while they plan on how to reunite the baby with his mother, the zoo said.
“Our decision to take the infant from Indah to offer care and feeding was done at a critical time for the infant based on intense staff observations and interaction with Indah and the infant in the early critical days, with an absolute focus on the health of the mother and infant,” said Matt McKim, the director of animal care with the Sacramento Zoo, in a press release.
The baby and mother will not be available for public view for the time being, the zoo said. A name for the baby was not released as of Monday.
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