Louisville Zoo Welcomes Baby Gorilla Foster Rejected by Mother [VIDEO]

Primates are my favorite animals to visit at the zoo. It is fascinating to watch how they behave with each other and pretty wild to see how similar they are to humans sometimes.

The Louisville Zoo has some really special animals living there, especially their Orangutans and Gorillas. In fact, one of their male gorillas, Jelani, has gone viral multiple times for his love of smart phones! He is one of the "Bachelors" in the Gorilla family at the Louisville Zoo.

"Our International superstar and YouTube sensation due to his fascination with cell phones. Jelani was born at Lincoln Park Zoo in 1997 and arrived at Louisville Zoo in 2002. He is the oldest gorilla in the bachelor group and can be identified by his long face. Jelani can often be seen looking through the exhibit glass at guests’ cellphone photos."

@gertiemusic How Amazing is Jelani❤️ #jelanithegorilla #louisvillezoo #kentucky ♬ Come Check This (Quickie Edit) - FETISH

The Louisville Zoo has also welcomed two new babies to the family. A Sumatran Tiger cub and a Giraffe calf. The first babies of each animal born AT the facility in years. They must really be having some serious baby fever over there because they have now taken in a baby Gorilla who has had a pretty sad start.

Here's the official statement:

Welcome Abeo! The Louisville Zoo is now caring for a male infant gorilla from the Woodland Park Zoo. The baby’s mother, Akenji, was unable to bond with the newborn. The Louisville Zoo was chosen as the new home for Abeo due to our team's experience and gorilla Kweli's successful rearing of Kindi after her mother passed away in 2016. Abeo will remain behind-the-scenes as he gets acclimated to his new home and introduced to the other residents of Gorilla Forest!

The name Abeo is Yoruba/Nigerian and means "bringer of happiness" which definitely fits! I'm not gonna lie, I got verklempt just looking at his sweet face. I know animals have their reasons, but it broke my heart to read that his birth mother wasn't able or willing to bond with him.

But he will without a doubt be loved by his foster mother, Kweli. She and her keepers are excited to care for Abeo and I know Kentuckians and the surrounding area are excited to visit. I know I've said this before, but there has never been a better time to visit the Louisville Zoo! Three babies! Too. Cute. For. Words. I wonder if Jelani will let Abeo watch cartoons with him on visitors' iPads.

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