Baby gorilla found in plane cargo being recovered in Turkish zoo

A young gorilla rescued from the cargo hold of an airplane is recovering in a Istanbul Zooofficials said Sunday, as wildlife officials consider returning it to its natural habitat.

5-Month-Old Gorilla Discovered in Box on Turkish Airlines Flight from Nigeria to Thailand last month. After a public contest, he was named Zeytin or Oliva and is recovering at the Polonezkoy Zoo.

“Of course, what we want and wish is for the baby gorilla… to continue its life in its homeland,” Fahrettin Ulu, regional director of Nature Conservation and National Parks in Istanbul, said Sunday.

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“The important thing is that an absolutely safe environment is established where you are going, which is extremely important to us.”

Zeytin, a 5-month-old male gorilla who was rescued at Istanbul airport, drinks milk in a specially created section of a zoo in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

In the weeks since he was found, Zeytin has gained weight and is showing signs of recovery from his traumatic trip.

“When he first arrived, he was very shy and would stay where we left him,” said veterinarian Gulfem Esmen. “Now he doesn’t have that shyness anymore. He doesn’t even care much about us. He plays alone.”

Both gorilla species (the western and eastern gorillas, which populate the remote forests and mountains of central Africa) are classified as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

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As Istanbul emerges as a major air center Across continents, customs officials have increasingly intercepted illegally traded animals. In October, 17 young Nile crocodiles and 10 monitor lizards were found in the luggage of an Egyptian passenger at the city’s Sabiha Gokcen airport.