World's First Test Tube Gorilla Born

In a cooperative project between the Cincinnati Zoo and Henry Doorly Zoo, Omaha, Nebraska, a female lowland gorilla was born on 9 October 1995 as a result of in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer.

This first gorilla ever to be produced by this type of technology will lead the way for future projects involving assisted reproduction in other endangered primates. Many local infertility specialists were involved in this project, demonstrating that protocols and equipment currently used for ovarian stimulation and oocyte retrieval in humans can be successfully applied in gorillas.

The baby, named Timu (meaning team in Swahili), was born by unassisted delivery 204 days after IVF, shorter than the range of 255-265 days previously reported. These techniques will be tested on other gorillas in the near future, according to the Gorilla Species Survival Plan.

Five excellent embryos that are frozen will soon be transfered to gorillas in zoos around the United States. The project is made possible by grants from the Institute of Museum Services and the J. Schell Russell Charitable Trust.

Betsy Dresser, Ph.D.
Audubon Institute

Read more about "Timu", the world's first test-tube gorilla.