A healthy female Sumatran orangutan was born at the zoo Nov. 22 and thus far has been the only Sumatran born in the United States in 2014, according to a press release from the zoo.
The baby’s 19-year-old mother, Tara, was expected to give birth between mid-November and early December and was under video surveillance for several weeks.
Orangutans are pregnant for about 245 days, or just more than eight months.
The baby’s father is Tengku, a 28-year-old male orangutan, who has been in Fort Wayne since 1995. Tara has been with the Fort Wayne Zoo since 2013.
“We are thrilled with the outcome so far,” Mark Weldon, an animal curator at the zoo, said in the release. “Tara is doing everything she should to care for her baby.”
Tara’s labor lasted only a few hours, and she delivered the baby unassisted.
Immediately following the delivery, Tara cleaned the infant and placed it in her nest.
The baby Sumatran has not yet been named.
Zoo employees are excited yet cautious about the baby’s future.
As this is Tara’s first baby and she has never observed a female care for an infant, officials were initially concerned she may not know how to properly care for the new baby.
Prior to the arrival of the infant, zoo management had created a Birth Management Plan, which introduced her to a stuffed “baby” and taught her to bring it to zookeepers in the event that she was unable to nurse.
“So far, none of these measures has been needed,” Weldon said. “Tara is proving to be a good mother.”
Those interested in seeing the baby can monitor her health and status via social media throughout the coming months.
Visitors will get the chance to see the baby when the zoo officially opens for the new season April 25.
The baby’s arrival is significant to the population of endangered Sumatran orangutans.
She is the first to be born in the U.S. in 2014. There are currently two other Sumatran orangutans pregnant in other U.S. zoos.
Her parents’ breeding was recommended by the Orangutan Species ?Survival Plan, which seeks to ensure genetic diversity in populations of endangered ?animals.
Eight other orangutans have been born in the U.S. in 2014, however all are Bornean orangutans, which are a separate subspecies.
Originally from Sumatra, Indonesia, these orangutans are endangered due to illegal hunting and destruction of their homes and habitats to build palm oil plantations.
There are currently fewer than 7,000 Sumatran orangutans still in the wild.
Only 320 Sumatran orangutans are living in zoos worldwide. On average, there are 15 born per year in the world’s zoos.
Due to the drastic decline of the population, some animal experts say orangutans could become completely extinct in the wild in just a few decades if current circumstances continue.
Holly Hays
