A critically endangered species of Western lowland gorilla has just given birth at the London Zoo following an eight and a half month pregnancy.

A critically endangered species of Western lowland gorilla has just given birth at the London Zoo following an eight and a half month pregnancy.

Because the mother is so protective of the baby, the zoo hasn’t been able to identify the gender of the newborn yet.

The fifteen-year-old mother lives in an area of the zoo with three other gorillas including the father.

In the next few days, zookeepers are hoping to get a closer look and determine the gender.

If it is a male, he will have to be isolated from his family when he reaches sexual maturity at age 10.

A London Zoo spokesperson is quoted as saying: “Western-lowland gorillas are critically endangered in the wild, so this infant is a really important addition not only to the Zoo, but for the European conservation breeding programme.”

Western lowland gorillas living in the wild are threatened by poachers and disease.

Because of their low birth rate, estimates from the International Union for Conservation of Nature say that even if poaching and habitat destruction were not a factor, population recovery in the wild would still take around 75 years.