Melbourne Zoo Rigo the gorilla.....

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Hi everyone - without sounding like a total weirdo, I would have to agree with the comment that Rigo IS particularly handsome!!! I think all gorillas are gorgeous but there certainly is something very special about him in my opinion. I really hope there is a happy ending to this story in the very near future...for Rigo's sake...
 
Rigo's story.

gorilla_girl said:
Hi everyone - without sounding like a total weirdo, I would have to agree with the comment that Rigo IS particularly handsome!!! I think all gorillas are gorgeous but there certainly is something very special about him in my opinion. I really hope there is a happy ending to this story in the very near future...for Rigo's sake...
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Don't we all- hope there's a happy outcome for him....

Over the years I've seen dozens(if not hundreds) of gorillas in the UK, Europe, even in the USA,- (and OZ too)- plus I have loads of photos/postcards etc of them. They are all different, each and every one..

But I'd still rate Rigo as one of the most impressive males I've seen- his son Ya Kwanza at Jersey is very similar in appearance. Betsi's son Buzandi (not related to Rigo) is now a young silverback breeding in a group in Hanover Germany- he looks remarkably like his mother Betsi and is also a very handsome male in his own right.

Looks don't count much when it comes to breeding though. Its which male they want to try and breed from genetically who gets the chance. Since I heard that Rigo can see at least something of other gorillas when they are in the indoor dens at Melbourne the scenario looks better for if he's introduced to the group.
 
I was pretty sure of this, but wanted to check before I opened my mouth - Rigo doesn't have access to the last of the old ape pits, and therefore, no visual contact with the other gorillas. He can smell and hear them though.

The zoo is about to move Motaba and the 2 young boys to the old pits as a bachelor group, and work on re-introducing Rigo back to the main group.
 
lets hope this all goes well. at least then that means no gorillas will be housed alone...

zoopro when you say "the last" of the ape pits, do you mean the one that is closest to the gorilla nursury? from what i have seen of the inside of the gorilla dens (literally by looking through the windows) i'm guessing thsi is the only exhibits whos night dens are visble to the other gorillas?

however if this is the case - then this is the exhibit rigo currently resides in.
 
Yes, Patrick, the one on the left of the four. The four old ape pits each have night dens in the old ape house. The nursery and the new gorilla exhibit share night dens in the new gorilla house (the one with the public viewing into the kitchen), but the dens are not connected to the old ape house. There is a raceway at the back that links the two buildings together.
 
oh, see now i always thought that it was still one building inside.

it would be nice if they could redevelop the area so as to have the rainforest, a new outddor batchelor (or future second troop) exhibit, and a small, off-display outside exhibit for sick or quarrentined animals to get a bit of sunshine....

its nice that the entire area is now devoted to just gorillas..
 
Melbourne gorilla accomodation.

Thankyou ZooPro for describing the set-up behind the gorilla exhibits.

Sadly it seems to indicate that Rigo won't have had any visual contact with the main group when they are all indoors -as they are kept some way apart. Still, I don't doubt he's aware of the others from sound and smell, which is better than nothing.
 
Qualifications

Hi guys,

I was interested to hear your posts on Rigo and gorillas in the region of Australia in general. I am wondering where your qualifications lay, and if any of you actually work with or know these gorillas? Or if you have had any dealings with gorilla behaviour or introductions in the past?

Many thanks,

gorillagirl
 
ZooPro- Have you you heard whether the planned exchange of Rigo/Motaba in the Melbourne group is still on the cards?
 
I saw Ringo on Friday and he is huge. I took a few photos through the bamboo where you can just see him. Unfortunatly the photos are on the start of a film and probobly wont get developed for a while. When I get them I will post them if they are any good. It was interesting the number of people who know all about Ringo and where trying to get a peak at him. He seem to have a lot of fans.
 
hey monty its RIGO not ringo..;)

he is a big fella and he does have a lot of fans. i can't stress how dissapointed i am with his treatment by melbourne zoo. i really can only explain his years of isolation at melbourne as a result of his situation being a low priority, not because of other factors.

the orangutans have been moved now, so the least they can do is do a cheapo refurb on his enclosure. cut the walls down between the grottoes and open it up.

gorillas are what melbourne is famous for and for good reason.
the zoo should build a second exhibit.
 
Oops I did get his name wrong. The gorilas are not as popular as the zoos newer attractions. There was no waiting even to see in the den viewing window at feeding time.
 
update....

hey guys thought you might be glad to hear what the FOTZ volunteers at the zoo are telling vistors...

motaba has moved with his sons to the ape grottoes, the home of the zoos new batchelor group.

rigo will be introduced to the females in the rainforest in the next week...

incidently the male gorillas are ot the only exhibit inhabitants to be permanantly moved on.. th eremaining two guenons are back in the arboral primates exhbit after motaba beat one of the males so badly he had to be euthanized! in motabas defence, apparently the guenons never learnt to be submissive to the gorillas and particuarly took a shine to taunting poor motaba who received a bite on the shoulder from the now deceased monkey.

the zoo hopes to get funding to fix up or rebuild the ape grottoes into a better gorilla exhibit.
 
Pat
that's gorilla movements and pigmy hippo rumours. Could you start a new thread with other news?
 
patrick said:
hey guys thought you might be glad to hear what the FOTZ volunteers at the zoo are telling vistors...

motaba has moved with his sons to the ape grottoes, the home of the zoos new batchelor group. rigo will be introduced to the females in the rainforest in the next week...

So its finally happening... I hope Rigo's story has a good ending. Its almost as good a story as that of Willie B, the gorilla who lived for 27 years completely alone at Altanta Zoo USA -where they had no other gorillas. After never having any contact with another gorilla since leaving Africa as a baby, he was finally introduced to one of the several groups which came from the RPC- not only did he settle in okay , proving he still knew he was a gorilla after all that time- he even fathered several babies before he died. A terribly sad story but with a happy ending.

So there's hope for Rigo, who's not quite so disadvantaged as Willie B. was.
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MARK said:
I think he sired five babies,
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Yes, it was something like that- very successful. Atlanta tried to repeat this success with another male gorilla Ivan, who had lived alone in a shopping mall for many years. But though they got him in with females and mating occurred(I think) there haven't been any offspring. Can't remember if Ivan is still alive, I think so...

It will be interesting in due course to see whether 1. Rigo mates naturally. 2. proves to be still fertile...
 
Rigo was last seen on display in Melbourne around 1990. Only remember him being alone in a pit enclosure. Rigo is much loved in Melbourne (even though we haven't seen him for a while). Not only is he the father of Muzuri (YA KWANZA) he is magnificent and a sight to behold. At 40 we can only hope that he can integrate with the group. One thing I do know is that if he goes on display again the zoo will make a lot of money. This could all be pure fantasy but I believe alot of the appeal in Rigo was that he was so interactive when on display. Admittedly not all positive, but to see Rigo was not like watching other gorillas who seem to be oblivious to our presence. Rigo would sit and plot his revenge, gathering clumps of dirt and grass behind his back and then tossing his weapons at the crowds oggling him. Fences slowly got higher and the mesh smaller but this didn't stop my kids from getting down on their hands and knees to crawl past the gorilla who threw things at them.

I adore Rigo and have followed his demise through rumour. Not alot of info. from the zoo on Rigo, an annual update would be great. We all know he was born wild and parent reared and this only adds to his allure and pathetic situation. To hope that Rigo will live out his years "happy" is all that we can wish for but in the meantime Melbourne Zoo should acknowledge the love we have for him and keep us informed as to his health and mental wellbing. I don't know that he will cope with being "on display" and I for one would donate to his future upkeep whether on display or not as long as people keep working hard towards his contentedness. Wasn't it Michael the gorilla who recounted the story of his horrific abduction via sign language. They remember and they know and my intuition tells me that Rigo remembers alot too. Maybe it is kinder to not have him on display. My dream is that Damien Aspinall will rescue him with lots of money and a clan and home of his own away from prying eyes.
 
gretak25;130 This could all be pure fantasy but I believe alot of the appeal in Rigo was that he was so interactive when on display. Admittedly not all positive said:
I live on the other side of the World but have followed Rigo's situation for several decades now(and seen him three or four times over the years) It seems now that finally he will,(like the USA Atlanta Gorilla Willie B), get a chance to live a more normal life with other gorillas. The habit of male gorillas throwing stuff at visitors is almost universal but is also often a sign of anger/stress and also varies individually from male to male. Some aren't 'throwers' at all. But in Rigo's case this trait definately seems to have been inherited by his son Ya Kwanza at Jersey who also hurls sods of grass at his admiring public, often very accurate too.

Rigo has always been something of an unusual case, partly because of the small gorilla population in Australia and the problem of sending him elsewhere,e.g. abroad- so he's stayed at Melbourne all those years. But you should see a happy outcome for him now.
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