Milwaukee County Zoo is transferring a female gorilla and her offspring to Columbus Zoo
Jordyn Noennig
The Milwaukee County Zoo will be saying goodbye to 17-year-old female Western lowland gorilla Shalia and her offspring, 4-year-old male Sulaiman (Sully), in the coming weeks.
The two will be transferred to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, where another Milwaukee County Zoo gorilla had been transferred to recently.
Following the transfers, and the death of adult gorillas Cassius and Naku in 2018, the Milwaukee County Zoo will have just two adult male gorillas left at the exhibit.
Cassius, a male, and Naku, a female, died from gastrointestinal infections, likely E. coli from the exhibit's water system.
Prior to the deaths, Cassius, Naku, Shalia, Sully and Zahra, a female baby gorilla, were a family unit.
Cassius was the father of Sully. Cassius and Naku were the parents of Zahra. She was transferred to the Columbus Zoo in June 2018 following the death of her parents.
Now Shalia and Sully will also transfer to the Columbus Zoo.
“It’s important for Sully’s social development and long-term welfare to have bonding opportunities with other young males and have an adult male provide stability,” apes and primates curator Trish Khan said in a news release.
The Columbus Zoo will offer Shalia and Sully a suitable family unit in joining with a silverback, Mac, and his family. Mac has a history of accepting offspring other than his own, and his family group consists of several adult females and their offspring, as well as Zahra.
The Milwaukee County Zoo’s lead gorilla keeper will accompany Shalia and Sully to make the transition as smooth as possible.
The Milwaukee zoo adheres to direction from the Specials Survival Program, as do all accredited zoos.
The program will decide if Milwaukee will be eligible to receive a new gorilla family unit. The zoo is hoping for a recommendation by next spring.
Until then, the two remaining western lowland gorillas at the zoo include two males, half-brothers Maji (28 years old) and Hodari (24). Both have spent most of their lives here together.
Jordyn Noennig covers pop culture and entertainment in Milwaukee. Follow her on Instagram @JordynTaylor_n. Find her on Twitter @JordynTNoennig. Call her at 262-446-6601 or email Jordyn.Noennig@jrn.com.