Vizuri

Western lowland gorillas face extinction in the wild, with fewer than 100,000 left across their African range. Vizuri represents one of the captive-born males helping to maintain genetic diversity in managed populations across European zoos.

Born at Zoo Basel to parents Quarta and Pepe, he spent his first eight years in Switzerland before making the journey to Russia. The move to Moscow Zoological Gardens in July 2006 marked a significant transition for the young gorilla, who was still developing his adult characteristics.

Nearly two decades have passed since his arrival in Moscow, where he has matured from a juvenile into an adult male. His subspecies carries the scientific name Gorilla gorilla gorilla and holds Critically Endangered status under IUCN classifications. At 26 years old, he continues to be part of the international conservation efforts for his species.