About a month after arriving at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, Bakari has officially made his public debut on the Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail. The 21-year-old western lowland gorilla spent the past several weeks acclimating to his new home before stepping into his new role as the troop’s silverback.
Disney shared the news on social media:
Now appearing on the Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail…Bakari the silverback gorilla! We’re happy to share that the new leader of the family troop is settling into his home and guests are catching a glimpse of him at Disney’s Animal Kingdom
Bakari arrived at Walt Disney World from the Saint Louis Zoo, where he had lived since 2011. Born at Brookfield Zoo in 2005, he spent much of his life in a bachelor gorilla troop at the Saint Louis Zoo’s Jungle of the Apes. These groups, made up of adult and younger males, give future silverbacks the opportunity to develop the social behaviors and leadership skills they’ll need before taking charge of a family troop. Similar bachelor groups can also be found in the wild.
Bakari’s arrival marks a new chapter for the Gorilla Falls troop following the passing of Gino, Disney’s longtime silverback, in 2025. Gino was 44 years old and had led the troop for nearly three decades after arriving at Disney’s Animal Kingdom when the park opened in 1998. During his lifetime, he fathered 14 offspring and played an important role in gorilla conservation through the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Species Survival Plan.
Bakari’s move to Disney’s Animal Kingdom was also coordinated through the AZA Species Survival Plan, a cooperative breeding program that helps maintain healthy, genetically diverse populations of animals in accredited zoos. Western lowland gorillas are listed as critically endangered, making programs like this an important part of the species’ long-term conservation.
Guests can now see Bakari alongside the rest of the Gorilla Falls family troop at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
