Belfast Zoo has held a particular celebration to have fun the primary birthday of Kofi, their youngest Western lowland gorilla.
Okofi and his gorilla household had been surrounded by reward bins of meals and a particular jelly cake - and so they promptly bought tucked in.
The gorilla was born in Belfast Zoo final yr to mom Kamili and father Gugas and is a part of the critically endangered species with lower than 100,000 complete inhabitants within the wild.
Talking concerning the birthday, Belfast Zoo senior keeper Lara Clarke stated: “Kofi’s first birthday is extra than simply cake and presents.
“His birthday is trigger for important celebration for us as we replicate on our ongoing conservation work with this critically endangered species.
“It was twelve months in the past that we welcomed Kofi into the world and he has actually stolen the hearts of tourists and workers alike.
“We work collaboratively as a part of an internationally essential breeding and conservation programme for these stunning however extremely threatened gorillas.”
Guests to the zoo can signal an additional giant birthday card which will probably be on show within the customer centre.
Zoo supervisor Alyn Cairns added: “Our data present that in 2021-22 we welcomed over 30 births, two thirds of that are both endangered or critically endangered.
“Conservation and training are on the coronary heart of what we do and it's essential that we proceed to work collaboratively with zoos throughout Europe as a way to forestall these weak species from changing into extinct.
“2022 has been a extremely profitable yr for us when it comes to conservation as now we have welcomed a number of endangered species resembling cotton-top tamarins, Jap bongo, a male giraffe calf and several other uncommon Francois leaf monkeys.
“Along with this now we have additionally efficiently bred purple squirrels which can quickly be launched into the wild as a part of a collaborative breeding programme with a number of native teams.”