We are excited to introduce our new male Western Lowland Gorilla(Gorilla gorilla gorilla) to the Calgary community! Jasiri was born at the Atlanta Zoo on June 21, 1998 and arrived at the Calgary Zoo in mid-June after many years of planning and preparation. As our new silverback, Jasiri steps into the big shoes left by our beloved Kakinga, who sadly passed away in spring 2016. Western lowland gorillas are found in the forests of Cameroon, Gabon, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea and Central African Republic and are critically endangered. The wild population is decreasing significantly every year due to habitat loss, mining, poaching and disease. Everyone can help them by reducing the use of coltan; by recycling mobile phones and other electronics such as laptops, game consoles, cameras and tv screens.
The Wilder Institute/Calgary Zoo is situated on St. George Island, only five minutes from downtown Calgary and 20 minutes from the Calgary International Airport. Home to more than 4,000 animals from around the world, there’s plenty to see and do.
Calgary Zoo