Gorilla baby Makari steps out from mum's shadow
The baby western lowland gorilla, who was born on September 5 2017, has been spotted sitting up and moving around the enclosure under the watchful eye of mum Miliki, 22, and dad of three Bukavu, 20.
Big sister Meisie, now seven - the first western lowland gorilla born at Blackpool, has been keeping her distance from her little brother, baring the odd sniff.
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Hide AdBut half brother Moanda, aged five, to mum Njema, 24, has been keen to get to know his sibling.
Acting section head of primates Simon Childs said: “When Makari arrived in September we were all over the moon.
“As it is Miliki’s second baby we already knew she would be a great mother and she has certainly stayed true to form.
“She is also spending much more time with Bukavu since the birth, meaning the little one has lots of bonding time with dad.
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Hide Ad“We have recently seen him wobbling cautiously over to his father to play with the hair on his arms, which Bukavu doesn’t seem to mind.
“It’s so wonderful to see the family all together, they are such a content group, which is testament to the great job all the keepers here do.”
Blackpool Zoo is home to six of the endangered western lowland gorillas, which originally hail from Angola, Cameroon and Central African Republic among other places.