Editing Colo (gorilla)

{{Short description|Western lowland gorilla}}
{{Infobox animal
| name         = Colo
| image        = ColoAtZoo.JPG
| caption      = Colo, photographed March 5, 2009
| image_size   =
| species      = [[Western lowland gorilla]] (''[[Gorilla gorilla gorilla]]'') 
| gender       = Female
| birth_date   = {{Birth date|1956|12|22}}
| birth_place  = [[Columbus Zoo and Aquarium]], [[Powell, Ohio|Powell]] in [[Liberty Township, Delaware County, Ohio]], U.S.
| death_date   = {{death date and age|2017|01|17|1956|12|22|mf=yes}}
| death_place  = Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, Powell in Liberty Township, Delaware County, Ohio, U.S.
| employer     =
| known_for = First gorilla born in captivity and oldest gorilla in captivity
| role         = 
| years_active =
| weight       =
| website      = {{URL|https://web.archive.org/web/20181212131459/http://www.columbuszoo.org/home/animals/meet-our-animals/colomemorial}}
}}

'''Colo''' (December 22, 1956 – January 17, 2017) was a [[western gorilla]] widely known as the first [[gorilla]] to be born in captivity anywhere in the world and the [[Oldest_hominids#Gorillas|oldest known gorilla]] in the world in 2017.<ref>{{cite news| url = https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-38659471| title = Colo, the oldest gorilla in captivity, dies aged 60| work = BBC News| access-date = January 18, 2017| date = January 18, 2017| archive-date = October 21, 2021| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20211021215114/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-38659471| url-status = live}}</ref><ref name="Newman2013">{{cite book|author=James L. Newman|title=Encountering Gorillas: A Chronicle of Discovery, Exploitation, Understanding, and Survival|url=https://archive.org/details/encounteringgori0000newm|url-access=registration|date=5 July 2013|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield Publishers|isbn=978-1-4422-1957-1|pages=[https://archive.org/details/encounteringgori0000newm/page/125 125]–8}}</ref><ref name="Gorillas in Our Midst: The Story of the Columbus Zoo Gorillas">{{cite book|last1=Lyttle|first1=Jeff|title=Gorillas in Our Midst: The Story of the Columbus Zoo Gorillas|date=1997|publisher=Ohio State University Press|location=Columbus, Ohio|isbn=9780814207666}}</ref><ref name="DonahueTrump2007">{{cite book|author1=Jesse Donahue|author2=Erik Trump|title=Political Animals: Public Art in American Zoos and Aquariums|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Tb-fdQcUxdYC&pg=PA99|year=2007|publisher=Lexington Books|isbn=978-0-7391-1120-8|pages=99–102}}</ref> Colo was born at the [[Columbus Zoo and Aquarium]] to Millie Christina (mother) and Baron Macombo (father), and lived there for her entire life. She was briefly called "Cuddles" before a contest was held to officially name her. (Mrs. Howard Brannon of Zanesville, Ohio, won the contest.)<ref>Colo’s Story: The Life of One Grand Gorilla by Nancy Roe Pimm {{ISBN|978-0-9841554-4-6}}</ref> Colo's name was derived from the place of her birth, [[Columbus, Ohio|Columbus]], [[Ohio]].<ref name=columbuszoo>{{cite web|url=https://columbuszoo.org/colo/|title=Columbus Zoo – Colo's Birthday!|access-date=2016-09-08|archive-date=2015-07-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150714051241/https://columbuszoo.org/colo/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Life==

The Columbus Zoo first introduced gorillas in 1951. It was in 1956 that two gorillas first produced offspring in the zoo. The gorilla was named Colo, short for Columbus.
After she was rejected at birth by her mother, zookeepers had to hand-raise Colo. They hand-raised her much like a human child, by dressing her in clothes and giving her bottles of [[Infant formula|formula]].<ref name="Popular Science Monthly 1960">{{cite journal|title=Popular Science Monthly|journal=Popular Science Monthly|date=1960|volume=176|pages=83–4}}</ref> At the age of two years, Colo was introduced to a 19-month-old male from [[Africa]] called Bongo. Colo and Bongo had three offspring; Emmy on February 1, 1968, Oscar on July 18, 1969, and Toni on December 28, 1971.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.zooborns.com/zooborns/2012/12/oldest-known-gorilla-in-the-world-celebrates-birthday-at-columbus-zoo.html|title=World's Oldest Gorilla Celebrates Birthday at Columbus Zoo|access-date=2016-09-08|archive-date=2016-09-15|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160915141759/http://www.zooborns.com/zooborns/2012/12/oldest-known-gorilla-in-the-world-celebrates-birthday-at-columbus-zoo.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

On April 25, 1979, Columbus Zoo had its first third generation birth. The infant was named Cora, short for Central Ohio Rare Ape. On January 27, 1997, Colo's great-grandson Jantu was born. A birth at the [[Henry Doorly Zoo]] made Colo a great-great-grandmother in 2003.<ref name=GG>{{cite web|url=http://gorillagenealogy.web44.net/index.php?p=1_16|title=Columbus — Gorilla Genealogy – Charts & Family Trees for Gorillas in Captivity|access-date=2016-09-08|archive-date=2016-09-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160916142157/http://gorillagenealogy.web44.net/index.php?p=1_16|url-status=dead}}</ref> Although Colo did not raise any of her own offspring, she reared her twin grandsons, Macombo II and Mosuba, from birth.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Grzimek|first1=Bernhard |title=Grzimek's Animal life encyclopedia {{!}} Volume 10 - Mammals 1|year=1984|publisher=Van Nostrand Reinhold.|location=New York|isbn=9780442230449|page=540|edition=English}}</ref> Colo also acted as a guardian for her grandson, named J.J. after "Jungle" [[Jack Hanna]] with whom he shares a birthday.<ref name="Pimm2011">{{cite book|author=Nancy Roe Pimm|title=Colo's Story: The Life of One Grand Gorilla|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yT20FaiK9P4C&pg=PA41|date=1 January 2011|publisher=Lerner Publishing Group|isbn=978-0-9841554-4-6|pages=41–2}}</ref>

Colo was held at the Columbus Zoo and has been there longer than any other animal in the zoo's captive animal collection. Colo and her progeny, five of whom are still held at the Columbus Zoo, comprised about one-third of the Zoo's 17 captive gorillas as of 2015.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/slightlyblurred/6236728332/|title=Gorilla Family – Columbus|date=12 October 2011|access-date=18 January 2017|archive-date=1 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170201235557/https://www.flickr.com/photos/slightlyblurred/6236728332/|url-status=live}}</ref>

Colo became the oldest living gorilla in captivity following the death of 55-year-old [[Jenny (gorilla)|Jenny]] in September 2008.<ref name=fwst>{{cite news |title=55-year-old gorilla dies at Dallas Zoo |url=http://www.star-telegram.com/dallas_news/story/888756.html|agency=[[Associated Press]]|publisher=[[Fort Worth Star Telegram]]|date=2008-09-06 |access-date=2008-09-28}} {{Dead link|date=October 2010|bot=H3llBot}}</ref> Colo celebrated her 60th birthday on December 22, 2016.<ref name="columbuszoo"/> The Columbus Zoo announced that Colo died in her sleep on January 17, 2017.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://columbuszoo.org/home/about/press-releases/press-release-articles/2017/01/17/columbus-zoo-announces-the-death-of-colo|title=Columbus Zoo Announces the Death of Colo, World's Oldest Zoo Gorilla|access-date=2017-01-17|archive-date=2017-01-22|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170122062105/https://columbuszoo.org/home/about/press-releases/press-release-articles/2017/01/17/columbus-zoo-announces-the-death-of-colo|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Genealogy==
Colo was a mother to three, a grandmother to 16, a great-grandmother to 12, and a great-great-grandmother to three.<ref name=wapo>{{Cite news| url = https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/01/18/a-nation-mourns-the-death-of-colo-the-worlds-oldest-zoo-gorilla/| newspaper = The Washington Post| date = January 18, 2017| access-date = January 18, 2017| title = Thousands mourn the death of Colo, the world's oldest zoo gorilla| first = Samantha| last = Schmidt| archive-date = January 18, 2017| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170118114344/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/01/18/a-nation-mourns-the-death-of-colo-the-worlds-oldest-zoo-gorilla/| url-status = live}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Oldest apes#Gorillas]]
* [[List of individual apes]]

== References ==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* [https://www.flickr.com/photos/slightlyblurred/6232845694 Colo's family tree on Flickr]
* [http://www.pasttheirprimefilm.com Documentary about geriatric zoo animal care through the story of Colo on her 55th birthday]

{{S-start}}
{{s-bef
| before = 
}} 
{{s-ttl
| title = World's oldest living Gorilla
| years =  — January 17, 2017
| alongside = 
}} 
{{S-aft
| after = [[Trudy (gorilla)|Trudy ]]
}}{{S-end|after=[[Fatou (gorilla)|Fatou]]}}



{{Notable apes}}

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Colo (Gorilla)}}
[[Category:Individual gorillas]]
[[Category:1956 animal births]]
[[Category:2017 animal deaths]]
[[Category:Individual primates in the United States]]