The baby gorilla fever is real.
Following an emergency cesarean section, the Fort Worth Zoo now has a baby girl gorilla among their troop.
The baby gorilla has been named Jameela, which is Swahili for "beautiful," and was born four to six weeks early, the zoo said.
"We're only five weeks in and it's been around-the-clock care," Fort Worth Zoo official John Griffioen said. "For a lot of our staff here this is a once-in-lifetime experience and we will never forget this."
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The zoo announced Jameela in a post of a pink footprint on X, formerly known as Twitter.
This is the first girl to be born via a C-section that required life-saving care for the mother and premature infant gorilla in the zoo's 115-year history.
Photos: Gorilla born premature at Fort Worth Zoo
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The baby was delivered by one of the Zoo's female gorillas, Sekani, who was pregnant with her first offspring. After experiencing symptoms, she was diagnosed with preeclampsia and doctors confirmed she needed an emergency C-section for her and her baby to survive.
Sadly, attempts to reunite Sekani and Jameela have failed and the mother has shown "little interest" in her baby, according to the zoo.
"Zoo experts suspect Sekani never experienced the necessary hormonal cues that come during natural and full-term birth, therefore resulting in disinterest in the baby."
Instead, the zoo has shifted its efforts to train another gorilla, Gracie, to become Jameela's surrogate mother and teach her the social skills necessary to be a member of the band.
