Belfast Zoo: UK's oldest gorilla, Delilah, celebrates 60th birthday

Delilah was given a birthday box filled with vegetables to celebrate her 60th birthday

The UK's oldest gorilla has celebrated her 60th birthday at Belfast Zoo.

Delilah was part of the first gorilla troop at the zoo when it arrived in the city in 1992.

For more than 30 years, she has been delighting visitors at Belfast Zoo, and even became a small-screen star in the 1970s as part of the BBC's Animal Magic with Johnny Morris.

Zoo keeper Simon Beasley said the western lowland gorilla still has a lot of character despite her age.

"Delilah is a dream animal to work with and will engage with the keepers and enjoys when you talk to her during her breakfast in the morning," he said.

As Europe's second oldest ape, she enjoys additional support from her keepers, like Demi Cummings.

"Delilah receives a special diet of root vegetables and a milky drink with added supplements to ease her aches and pains," she said.

"She has also lost some of her teeth and, therefore, receives extra food which has been carefully steamed."

Delilah, pictured with her premature baby in 1983, spent time at Bristol Zoo before making the move to Belfast

Delilah lives among the rest of the troop, including Gugas, Kwanza, Kamili, Namoki, Baako, Olivia and Kofi.

Ms Cummings described her as the "loving grandparent figure" in the group.

"She is often seen engaging and playing with the youngest gorilla, two-year-old Kofi," she said.

"These animals are incredibly social, and every member of the troop plays an important role in the family dynamic."

'Fit and healthy'

Western lowland gorillas are a highly endangered species of great ape, found in West Africa's rainforests.

Recent figures show fewer than 200,000 gorillas remain in the wild.

Baby gorilla Daniel watches on as Delilah shares a banana with Bristol Zoo's head ape keeper Michael Colbourne in 1972

Manager of Belfast Zoo, Alyn Cairns, said the care provided by the zoo keepers has allowed Delilah to keep "fit and healthy" at her age.

"Western lowland gorillas are in serious decline due to destruction of their habitats, poaching and disease," he said.

"Belfast Zoo is part of a collaborative breeding programme, and we play an important role in gorilla conservation."