About the zoo's new orangutan

Last update: January 8, 2008 - 8:09 PM

• Born around 3:30 p.m. on Dec. 13 at the University of Minnesota Veterinary Medical Center. The baby weighed roughly 4 pounds and was 12 inches long, Como Zoo lead orangutan trainer Megan Elder said.

• Is the 14th orangutan baby at the zoo since 1959 and its first since Willie in 1999. It is the first delivered by C-section.

• Is one of six orangutans at the zoo and approximately 200 in U.S. zoos. There are about 7,000 orangutans left in the wild, on the Indonesian islands of Sumatra and Borneo.

• Elder said there are several factors working in the baby's favor. First, his mother, Markisa, was also reared by her mother instead of a human. Markisa also has a "role model" in 33-year-old Joy, the dominant orangutan at the Como Zoo who gave birth to Willie in 1999. "A big part of being a successful mom is watching others," Elder said.

BEN GOESSLING