Gorilla mom has no love for newborn at S.F. Zoo SAN FRANCISCO ZOO Keepers trying to stimulate maternal instinct in mother

A baby gorilla born at the San Francisco Zoo on Dec. 8, 2008 was promptly abandoned by his mother. Zookeepers are trying to get her to pay attention and raise the infant. A baby gorilla born at the San Francisco Zoo on Dec. 8, 2008 was promptly abandoned by his mother. Zookeepers are trying to get her to pay attention and raise the infant. Photo: Amy Frankel, San Francisco Zoo Photo: Amy Frankel, San Francisco Zoo Image 1 of / 5 Caption Close Gorilla mom has no love for newborn at S.F. Zoo 1 / 5 Back to Gallery

Keepers at the San Francisco Zoo placed a newborn gorilla in an incubator Tuesday after his mother continued to ignore the infant, zoo officials said.

The baby male, described as healthy and weighing 6 pounds, was removed from the gorilla house and put in the zoo hospital around 5 a.m., about 17 hours after his mother, an endangered western lowland gorilla named Monifa, gave birth.

"He's in excellent health, he's moving around, grabbing things, sucking on his thumb and on our fingers," said the zoo's curator of primates, Corrine Macdonald.

Macdonald said keepers planned to briefly anesthetize and examine the mother, then place the baby on her chest and allow her to wake up.

"Hopefully, she will accept the infant then," Macdonald said.

The baby was given an electrolyte fluid solution but no milk. A newborn gorilla does not require milk for up to three days after birth, Macdonald said.

Late Tuesday, there was no word of whether the strategy was working. Keepers remained behind closed doors inside the gorilla house.

If Monifa remains aloof, keepers will decide whether to raise the infant by hand or to see if another female gorilla can become a surrogate mother.

The gorilla birth was the first at the zoo in 10 years. Keepers were initially ecstatic Monday because Monifa appeared to be caring for the infant. But about two hours later, the mother left the nest to eat and did not return.

The baby's father is the king of the gorilla house, Oscar Jonesy, who is on long-term loan from a zoo in Buffalo, N.Y.

Macdonald spent all Monday night and this morning inside the gorilla house, observing the drama before deciding to separate mother and baby. Monifa obligingly went into another enclosure to allow keepers to remove her infant and take him to the hospital.