Press Release Archive

Contact: Aimee Yamamori, Director of Media and Public Relations, Phoenix Zoo
(602) 914-4305 or pager (602) 223-8222

Date: March 20, 2006

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

AND THE WINNER IS....

Phoenix Zoo Baby Orangutan Name Announced

PHOENIX—After a three week long public vote, the Phoenix Zoo's baby orangutan has a name. "Kasih" (pronounced kah-see-ha), which is an Indonesian word for love, received the most votes with 38% of the total votes cast. More than 3, 000 people took part in the poll which started after the baby's public debut on February 18. This is the first orangutan birth at the Phoenix Zoo in 11 years.
 
"I think Kasih is a perfect name for an absolutely precious baby orangutan that is clearly loved by not only her mother but also the more than 3, 000 people who voted for a name, " said Geoff Hall, Phoenix Zoo Vice President and General Curator.
 
The orangutan keeper staff researched Indonesian names and picked a choice of five male and five female names based on their meaning and pronunciation to find the most suitable names for the Zoo's new addition. After the baby's sex was confirmed, five top female names were submitted for the public to pick their favorite choice. The second most popular name with 33% of the vote was "Melati" which means jasmine flower.
 
The baby's mother, Bess, is 26 years old and a first-time parent. Bess was born at the Phoenix Zoo in 1979 and still shares a home with her mother--the Zoo's other female orangutan--Duchess. The father of the baby is Michael, an 18-year-old male orangutan that came to the Zoo from Utah's Hogle Zoo in October 2000. An endangered species, the Bornean orangutan is bred in captivity based on the recommendations of a Species Survival Plan developed by the American Zoo and Aquarium Association.
 
Mother and baby are now joined in their exhibit by Bess' mother and the baby's grandmother, Duchess. Mom and baby will be exhibited daily from noon to 5 p.m. They can be exhibited only when the temperature is at least 60 degrees and there are sunny skies. The father has not been re-introduced to the group yet. Visitors should go to the Zoo's website at phoenixzoo.org for any updates or changes to the baby's viewing schedule.

Keepers suspected a pregnancy just about nine months ago after breeding was observed. During that time they worked extensively on a birth management plan to prepare Bess for motherhood.
 
Bornean orangutans are found only on the island of Borneo in South East Asia, where its habitat includes lowland swamps and forests. When breeding in the wild, orangutans give birth to a single baby, about every four to eight years.

The Phoenix Zoo is one of the country's largest private non profit zoological parks and has been open since 1962.
 
To find out more about orangutans, click here.
To find out more about Baby Kasih and to see photos, click here.