ENDANGERED GORILLA BORN AT TWYCROSS ZOO
A proud gorilla mum welcomes her newborn baby western lowland gorilla, a critically endangered species. The adorable baby gorilla was born at approximately 9.15am on Thursday 3rd January at Twycross Zoo, Leicestershire. Mum, Ozala, experienced a natural and stress-free birth and is keeping the new arrival very close to her. Curator of Living Collections, Charlotte Macdonald, said: “Ozala is a confident, attentive mother and is taking great care of her baby. The baby’s father, our silverback Oumbie, is gentle but protective and is showing a lot of interest in the infant. On the day of the baby’s birth he was very inquisitive, sitting beside Ozala and putting his face right up to the baby to smell it. In time, he will touch and play with the baby but for now he lets Ozala take things at her own pace.” The western lowland gorilla is listed as 'critically endangered' on the IUCN Redlist of Threatened Species, as there are estimated to be fewer than 100,000 left in the wild.
Other great stories
HAVING A HOOT: BABY OWL HAS A CHUCKLE
Something appears to have tickled this baby owl as he seems to be having a real HOOT .
CALAMITY AIRSTRIP 15 YEARS ON
FIFTEEEN years after it was closed pictures by a British teacher show the calamity Hong Kong airport that was closed for being too dangerous .
SERENE ICEBERGS
A SERENE turquoise glow glimmers from underneath these powerful icebergs .
FOUR-YEAR-OLD TWIN BOY BELIEVES HE'S A GIRL
A mum from Gloucestershire has accepted her four-year-old twin son’s decision to live full time as a girl - and is now letting him wear a skirt to school .
CAN YOU TWERK IT OUT? - MILEY CYRUS LOOKALIKE
Walking down the street in her local town, heads turn as Jessica Villafane passes by .
VISOR FASHION FAIL
FROM motorcycling to department store shopping these spookily faceless people are part of the Chinese-fad for wearing protective solar-visors in public .
A LOT OF BOTTLE: ARTIST PAINTS PICTURE USING JUST COKE
This artist had a lot of bottle to re-create a masterpiece painted with nothing but 24 litres of cola .
PHOTOGRAPHER BLENDS NIGHT AND DAY IN CITYSCAPES
ALL IS not as it seems in these deceptive cityscapes .
STUNNING ENGLISH COUNTRYSIDE
LOCATIONS bursting with vibrant greens and chestnut browns, these photographs capture the peaceful English countryside in all its glory .
BODYBUILDER SQUIRREL
FLEXING his muscles and staring straight at his opponent, this bodybuilding squirrel is the nuts .
PAWS FOR THOUGHT: POLAR BEAR RELAXES IN SNOW
STARING intently into the camera, a polar bear appears to be lost in thought while relaxing in the snow .
ANGER AS BLOCKBUSTER ADVERTISES EMPLOYEES JOBS TO MAKE THEM “WORK HARDER”
Struggling home entertainment chain Blockbuster has been slammed for advertising its workers' jobs while they are still in them in order to scare them into working harder .