In addition to sucking mother’s milk, Gaia also sucks solid food, especially vegetables, which fall from mother Kijiva’s mouth while eating. Photo by Tereza Mrhálková, Prague Zoo
On Saturday, October 12, six months will pass since the birth of the gorilla Gaia at the Prague Zoo. The daughter of the female Kijivu and goddaughter of the famous primatologist Jane Goodall is thriving and growing literally before the eyes of visitors. She is tasting solid food, exploring the indoor and outdoor areas of the Dja Reserve and increasingly playing with his nine-month-old sister, Mobi. In addition, the first born quickly catches up – this is probably due to Gaia’s more benevolent upbringing and Mobi herself, who sets an example for her.
“For the first time in the history of the Prague Zoo, we have the opportunity to watch two baby gorillas at the same time, which brings us and the visitors a whole range of remarkable stimuli. For example, the younger Gaia is extremely mature for her age. It is thanks to her mother Kijiva, who has already raised four offspring. Thanks to this, she approaches upbringing with experience and calmness, and Gaie thus gives more freedom than first-born Duni to her daughter Mobi, whom Duni, on the other hand, holds quite briefly,” says chief primate breeder Martin Vojáček.
Kijiva’s mother-of-five’s upbringing is relatively benevolent. Visitors can increasingly see little Gaia during exploratory tours of the pavilion. The white spot on the bottom, which is clearly visible in the picture, is a typical sign of baby gorillas. Photo by Oliver Le Que, Prague Zoo
However, freer supervision of the cub’s behavior is not the only reason why Gaia is almost as mature as Mobi, who is three and a half months older. “Gaia has a pattern in Mobi. While Mobi has had to figure out how the world around her works – how to stand up, that the ropes swing, that she can swing on them, and so on – Gaia takes it all away from Mobi. The development of Gaia’s motor skills is therefore very fast,” explains Vojáček.
However, not everything can compete with Gaia Mobi. “Gaia already swallows solid food just like Mobi, but she has to wait for harder bites. Gaia has few teeth yet, about eight to ten. You simply cannot speed up some things,” adds Vojáček.
Visitors can find a family of lowland gorillas in the Dja Reserve pavilion in the upper part of the Prague Zoo. The best time to observe them is when they are feeding around 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.