Massa (gorilla, 1971-2020)
The western lowland gorilla Massa (* 1971 in Cameroon ; † January 1, 2020 in Krefeld ) was one of the monkeys that died on New Year's Eve 2019/20 in the fire in the monkey house in Krefeld Zoo .
Massa came to Krefeld Zoo from Cameroon on April 29, 1975 . Up to the age of 48 he took care of offspring and was therefore the oldest breeding gorilla in Europe. After he had become sterile due to age, he was kept in a so-called senior group together with the elderly female lowland gorillas Boma and Tumba (both born in 1973). Tumba died on May 13, 2019, Boma, like Massa, was one of the victims of the fire. Two weeks after the fire, police announced that three of these animals were not killed until the morning after the fire. The gorilla in which the narcotic administered by the veterinarian did not develop its full effect due to the severity of the burn injuries with extensive skin damage and who was therefore shot by a police officer is Massa.
In addition to the silverback Massa, other great apes and other monkeys, birds and fruit bats died. Two chimpanzees ( Bally and Limbo ) were found only slightly injured in the aftermath of the extinguishing work, contrary to expectations.
Importance for breeding
For many years, Massa was an integral part of the western lowland gorilla breeding program. Krefeld Zoo is a member of the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria and participates in the European conservation breeding program . According to an article in the NRZ from 2013, Massa had around 60 living offspring at the time.
Massa's direct descendants include:
- Gorgo (born June 28, 1981 , lives in the Darwineum in Rostock Zoo)
- Rebecca (born September 1, 1982 , lives in Frankfurt Zoo )
- Irlala †
- Bagira (born June 6, 1985 , lives in Saarbrücken Zoo )
- Kisoro †
- Mueli †
- Jambo (born November 18, 1993 , lives in the Emirates Park Zoo, Abu Dhabi)
- Kira (born September 25, 1995 , lives in the Moscow Zoo , Russia)
Web links
- Zoo Krefeld website
- Massa's family tree on Flickr
- Massa in photos on Flickr
- Massa on videos on Youtube
- The life and death of the great Massa. In: Spiegel Online . July 25, 2020.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Chronicle of a New Year's Tragedy. rp-online.de, January 2, 2020.
- ↑ “This is a tragedy that you cannot even imagine.” Rp-online.de, January 1, 2020.
- ↑ Policeman released Gorilla Massa to Krefeld zoo fire with a submachine gun. wdr.de, January 15, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
- ↑ These great apes fell victim to the inferno. bild.de, January 2, 2020.
- ↑ A birth as the best anniversary present. nrz.de, June 5, 2013.
- ↑ Krefeld's Gorillas - famous in the zoo world. rp-online.de, November 16, 2018.
- ↑ Massa in Jim Davis' unofficial gorilla stud book, accessed January 15, 2020.
- ^ Willard : Gorilla Family - Krefeld (2012).