The World’s Oldest Gorilla Lives at the Dallas Zoo
…and she’s celebrating her 55th birthday tomorrow. Her name is Jenny, and she is very particular. She doesn’t eat bananas, but she will eat the peels. Anyway, the zoo is throwing a birthday party for her, and yes, there will be cake (made of “frozen treats” for Jen, the real stuff for humans).
Also, if you bring a cellphone to donate, admission is free. Jump for details.
MEDIA ADVISORY
Dallas Zoo Celebrates Birthday of Oldest Gorilla in the World on May 8
Give a gorilla a cell phone and get free admission
WHAT: Jenny gorilla celebrates her 55th birthday on May 8, making her the oldest captive gorilla in the world, according to global animal records managed through the International Species Information System (ISIS). At age 55, Jenny is the oldest gorilla ever to be documented on ISIS records. More than 700 institutions around the world report their collection to ISIS. Jenny, a Western lowland gorilla, was brought to the Dallas Zoo in 1957 at age 4.
The Dallas Zoo will host a birthday party for Jenny at 1:30, where she will receive a birthday cake made of frozen treats. Visitors to the Jake L. Hamon Gorilla Conservation Research Building will enjoy a slice of birthday cake from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. and can sign a large birthday card for Jenny. Volunteer Gorilla Guides will be on hand to answer questions about the gorillas. Visitors donating a cell phone for recycling at the ECO-CELL bin on May 8 - 11, will receive free admission to the Zoo for each phone recycled.
At 213 pounds, Jenny has a small build and a wonderful demeanor. She is in good health for her impressive age. She loves to forage for food items such as seeds and cereal hidden beneath pine shavings and wood wool. Ironically, Jenny doesn’t like to eat bananas but loves to eat the peels, something she has done since her infant years.
She lives at the Jake L. Hamon Gorilla Conservation Research Center, which was built in 1990 and extensively remodeled in 2005-2006. Jenny and her friends Hercules, 43; Timbo, 45; and Patrick, 17; roam the wooded habitat and can be viewed daily.
Gorillas are the largest primates in the world and considered critically endangered due to loss of habitat and poaching. The Dallas Zoo participates in a Species Survival Plan (SSP) through the Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA) to help manage captive gorilla populations, educate the public, and further our understanding of these magnificent creatures.
16 Comments to “The World’s Oldest Gorilla Lives at the Dallas Zoo”
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R.I.P. Jabari
Let’s hope the party doesn’t get out of hand. Either the cops will shoot her or the world’s most ticket-happy deputy constables will nail her for littering or loitering or speeding or something that real cops don’t have time to do because they’re busy taking wildlife sensitivity courses….
Had my 15 year old nephew and 12 year old niece here visiting from Michigan and dragged them to the Dallas Zoo.
Jenny was sitting by the lower level observation window. My nephew is a football player and thinks he’s pretty cool. Jenny completely won his heart. When he sat by the window, she moved near him so their shoulders were touching except for the plexiglass. He talked about nothing else for the rest of his visit.
If you haven’t been to the Dallas Zoo in awhile, you will be surprised. It’s a beautiful place with great exhibits and great animals. Go in the middle of the week so you miss the crowds.
When you go, make a special trip to visit with Jenny. She really likes attention.
Yes, come to the zoo and see the gorillas. This old one has a great demeanor. Also, check out the extensively remodeled cage (just don’t ask us why). If gorillas are critically endangered, then why did the zoo allow a poaching incident a few years ago? That’s not what I would call managing a captive gorilla population.
Panda Watch!
Thank you all for your concerns and thank you Texas Instruments for my Gorilla-style “Big Thumbs” keyboard that allows me to communicate with visitors and Frontburner readers. I would like to say that I look forward to leading the parade after the ribbon cutting ceremony opening the newly-named Industrial Boulevard, the “Great Apeway.”
The Dallas Zoo has one of the top gorilla facilities in the country and will be adding two more female gorillas in the next few months. The exhibit is beautiful and they also have two other gorillas that are in their 40’s. They are getting exceptional care, and the Zoo has been setting longevity records with animals for some time, which speaks to excellent care. They should be commended for turning a negative into a positive and creating a great experience for Dallas families.
The gorillas always remind me of idle men, beat down by a life of penurious tedium, sitting around on an abandoned loading dock waiting for one of the others to roll a cigarette, or for anything at all to happen.
GORILLA 1: ‘Member that time when Jabari jumped?
GORILLA 2: (nods barely perceptibly, gazing absently at his own fingers)
GORILLA 1: Ha! — that old boy just went for it, though, dinnee, that sunnumbitch!
GORILLA 2: (no response)
didn’t Jenny once date Glenn Frey or was it Joe Walsh
Thank heavens there are people who can bring lightheartedness down to earth with a solid, forthright lecture on the achievements of the Dallas Zoo. Though, of course, we regret that no one has mentioned the world-famous Okapi Breeding Program. Better not catch anybody smiling about the zoo. Why, that would be terribly inappropriate.
Do not dare smile at the monkeys.
Do not not chance a laugh at the beasts.
Do not grin at the striped-ass Okapi…
This is Dallas, have no fun in the least.
Hey Jenny your so fine, your so fine you blow my mind!
Of course, Jenny only listens to 90’s gangsta rap. Cop Killer is her favorite.
I think the Dallas Zoo has made tremendous strides in the last few years. The Children’s Zoo area is excellent and the newish Asian otter and African penguins exhibits are great. If they could ever get phase 2 of the Wilds of Africa completed they could turn the corner and really challenge the Fort Worth Zoo.
You can’t challenge the Fort Worth Zoo if you’re in a neighborhood famous for hookers, drug deals and shootouts.
I’ve never seen a hooker, drug deal, or a shootout in the Zoo parking lot, which is the extent of one’s brush with the local neighborhood. Talk about fear mongering.
I think he was referring to the zoo itself, not the parking lot. Well, at the least the shootout part.
If you travel through the zoo neighborhood with blinders, you won’t see anything.
If you travel with blinders because you is askeered uh Oak Cliff, then yer bound to be from North of the Trinity.