Zoo Announces Birth Of Baby Orangutan

PHILADELPHIA - The Philadelphia Zoo announced Friday morning that it has a new bouncing bundle of joy after eight months of waiting.

Tua, the zoo's 16-year-old Sumatran orangutan, gave birth at approximately 8 a.m.

It's the first offspring for both Tua and her mate, Sugi, 13, and the first orangutan born in PECO Primate Reserve, "continuing the zoo's orangutan breeding success which dates back to the 1920's when the Zoo was the first in the U.S. to successfully breed orangutans," according to a press release.

"Both mother and baby appear to be doing well," the zoo's statement reads. "Like newborn humans, baby orangutans are essentially helpless, relying on their mother for care. Tua has been in constant physical contact with her baby since birth, carrying and cleaning it. The first 48 hours of the baby's life are the most critical and mother and baby will be closely monitored by the Zoo's animal and veterinary staff. We do not know when Tua and her baby will make their debut."

Sumatran orangutans are critically endangered in the wild due to habitat destruction, and the Philadelphia Zoo – which is celebrating its 150th anniversary – said it supports wild orangutans through its Footprints Program by partnering with the Kinabatangan Forest Restoration Project to plant new habitat for orangutans in Borneo.

To make a donation to Footprints or to ADOPT an orangutan, log on to philadelphiazoo.org.