Baby Bird

Western lowland gorillas face extinction in the wild, with fewer than 100,000 remaining across their African range. Baby Bird was born into this critically endangered subspecies on March 1, 2014, at Mefou Primate Sanctuary in Cameroon. Her parents, Nona and Nkan Daniel, were part of the sanctuary’s conservation efforts.

Life at Mefou began promisingly for the young female. Born into captivity, she represented hope for her subspecies’ future through managed breeding programs. The sanctuary environment provided her first months of development alongside her mother.

Tragically, her time was brief. Baby Bird died on October 18, 2014, at just seven months old. She had spent her entire short life at the same sanctuary where she was born, never experiencing a transfer to another facility.