ATLANTA-
Three-year-old Cooper Lund’s rendition of “Happy Birthday” included lines about living in a zoo and looking like a monkey, but the birthday boy and girl weren’t insulted.
Kali and Kazi just romped about their African rain forest playground, chewing on fruit and swinging from vines. The twin western lowland gorillas’ first birthday was celebrated at Zoo Atlanta on Tuesday, a significant hallmark in their young lives.
About 20 percent of gorillas do not live through their first year, especially as a pair. Kali and Kazi are the only gorilla twins in the world born in captivity to be raised solely by their mother.
They are one of just seven sets of gorilla twins to be born in U.S. zoos in the last 50 years. Four of the sets died before their first birthday; the other three were raised by zookeepers.
“The fact that they’ve survived and are so healthy means they have a good chance of making it to be healthy adults,” said Tara Stoinski, manager of conservation partnerships for the zoo.
Most gorilla mothers do not raise twins because trying to keep up with and feed two babies is too difficult, Stoinski said. But zookeepers in Atlanta wanted to give Kali and Kazi’s mother, Kuchi, the chance to raise her twins, Stoinski said.
So far, Kuchi is doing just fine, she said.
Zoo Atlanta has 24 gorillas–the second largest population of the endangered species in the U.S., behind the Bronx Zoo in New York.
Most gorillas live between 40 and 50 years. Females reach maturity about age 8; males are considered mature at age 14.
The zoo also is home to two other baby gorillas–a 4-month-old named Gunther and an 11-month-old named Macy Baby.
The zoo threw a low-key party for Kali and Kazi, offering banana muffins to visitors and encouraging youngsters to sing repeated rounds of “Happy Birthday.”
Cooper, who was visiting the zoo with his sister, Hadley, and their nanny, brought a homemade birthday card for Kali and Kazi and sang to them a few times before leaving the party.
“I love them so much!” he squealed with delight as the twins rode on their mother’s back. “I want to give them a great big kiss.”
Zoo Atlanta is also home to the country’s newest panda cub, born Sept. 6. The baby girl will not be shown in public until late December or early January.
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