Nation's oldest gorilla passes away in Jinan

A 44-year-old gorilla passed away at the Jinan Zoo in Jinan city, East China's Shandong province, on Saturday due to a sudden cerebral hemorrhage, despite being given immediate medical treatment, according to the zoo.

The male gorilla called Willy was born in 1976 at a zoo in Germany. He came to Jinan in 1996, becoming the only gorilla in Shandong province.

Willy was the oldest among the gorillas that live in zoos in China, the zoo said.

He started losing teeth and moving slowly as he aged, especially during the past three years, when he was reluctant to eat and move.

The average age of gorillas living in the wild is 35. The age of gorillas raised in zoos is between 40 and 50 years old, according to the zoo.