Hesty’s baby boy arrives at Denver Zoo, a conservation gain
Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance says Hesty, a first-time orangutan mother, gave birth to a healthy male infant on May 24 after a seven-hour labor. Animal Care and Animal Health teams stayed nearby during the birth, and specialists said mother and baby were bonding well.
Hesty and her baby boy
Animal Care Specialists said nursing was progressing successfully. Hesty and her baby boy have successfully figured things out together, a milestone for a mother who was born at Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance in 2010 to Nias and Mias.
Hesty’s own start was different. After her birth, she needed assist-rearing support from Animal Care staff for several weeks before she was reunited with her mother.
Molly Kainuma on Hesty
Assistant Curator Molly Kainuma said she was part of Hesty’s hand-rearing team when Hesty was born. In a statement, Kainuma said: “When Hesty was born, Michelle Valois (Animal Care Specialist – Primates) and I were both part of her hand-rearing team. Watching her become a mother herself nearly 16 years later is incredibly special. Not only does it make those long hours and uncertain moments worthwhile, but it’s also deeply rewarding to see that Hesty learned how to care for an infant from her own mother and from Eirina. Seeing her naturally demonstrate such strong maternal instincts and resiliency is the very best outcome we could have hoped for. We are so excited to welcome Hesty’s baby boy to our orangutan family!”
The zoo said its teams spent years training with Hesty before this pregnancy so she would voluntarily take part in behaviors that let staff monitor her health and the baby’s development during pregnancy and after birth. That preparation fed into the birth’s conservation value for Critically Endangered Sumatran orangutans and its link to the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ Species Survival Plan.
Species Survival Plan
The birth adds a male infant to the zoo’s orangutan family at a time when the species remains Critically Endangered. For visitors and supporters, the immediate change is simple: Hesty is now caring for a newborn, and zoo staff are watching that early bond closely as nursing continues.
