Zura

Western lowland gorillas face extinction in the wild, with fewer than 100,000 remaining across their African range. The daughter of Toni and Oscar, Zura entered the world at Columbus Zoo and Aquarium in September 1981, part of the managed breeding programs that help maintain genetic diversity for this critically endangered subspecies.

At just over a year old, she made the cross-country move to San Francisco Zoological Society in late 1982. There she would spend the next 38 years of her life, growing from infant to adult female within the same zoo community.

Her subspecies, Gorilla gorilla gorilla, carries the highest conservation priority among great apes. She lived through nearly four decades of changing conservation awareness and evolving zoo practices, from the early 1980s through 2020.

Zura died at San Francisco Zoological Society in November 2020, having lived 39 years in managed care. Her lifespan represents the kind of longevity that modern zoo medicine and husbandry can provide for critically endangered species.