Baby gorilla delivered via rare C-section at Washington State zoo

U.S. newsBaby gorilla delivered via rare C-section at Washington State zooUnder a dozen C-sections have been performed on gorillas around the world, according to the zoo, which said the newborn and his mother are in good health.Listen to this article with a free account00:0000:00A medical team who typically works on humans helped to deliver a baby gorilla via cesarean section at Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle on Sunday.Nichole Hamilton via Woodland Park ZooShareAdd NBC News to GoogleMay 27, 2026, 7:48 PM EDTBy Tim StellohA baby gorilla born over the weekend at a Washington State zoo was delivered via a rare cesarean section, officials said.Subscribe to read this story ad-free Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content.The procedure, performed Sunday at Seattle’s Woodland Zoo, was done on a 29-year-old western lowland gorilla who was five days past her due date, the zoo said in a blog post Tuesday.The newborn boy weighed 5.4 pounds, over a pound more than the average infant gorilla, the zoo said. Both he and his mother, Olympia, are in good health, a zoo official said in the post, though they remain cautious because the “situation is very fluid and fragile.”According to the zoo, under a dozen C-sections have been performed on gorillas around the world. None have been done at Woodland.Olympia, a gorilla housed at Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle, in her habitat prior to her pregnancy.Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park ZooA team that typically does the procedure on humans performed a C-section on Olympia after an ultrasound showed decreased amniotic fluid and an incompletely dilated cervix, the zoo said.After the newborn was introduced to the troop, another female gorilla who recently gave birth began caring for the baby. Zoo officials said this wasn’t surprising and they plan on allowing the other mother, Jamanji, to care for both babies while Olympia recovers.ShareAdd NBC News to GoogleTim StellohTim Stelloh is a breaking news reporter for NBC News Dig...