Young gorilla found in plane’s cargo could be returned to the wild

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A young gorilla rescued from a plane’s cargo hold is recovering at an Istanbul zoo, officials have said.

Wildlife officers are considering returning the animal, found in a box on a Turkish Airlines flight, to his natural habitat.

The five-month-old gorilla was discovered in a box on a Turkish Airlines flight from Nigeria to Thailand last month.

After a public competition, he has been named Zeytin, or Olive, and is at Polonezkoy Zoo.

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

“What is important is that an absolutely safe environment is established in the place it goes to, which is extremely important for us.”

Zeytin, a five-month-old male gorilla infant who was rescued at Istanbul Airport, reacts with a keeper, in a specially created section of a zoo, in Istanbul, Turkey (AP)

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

“When he first came, he was very shy, he would stay where we left him,” said veterinarian Gulfem Esmen. “He doesn’t have that shyness now. He doesn’t even care about us much. He plays games by himself.”

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

The endangered baby gorilla, found by Turkish Ministry of Trade Customs Enforcement teams at Istanbul Airport, is named 'Zeytin' (Olive) (Anadolu via Getty Images)

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

In March last year six Indian nationals were arrested at the Bangkok airport after an endangered red panda and 87 other exotic animals and birds were seized from their luggage in a major wildlife trafficking bust.

A red panda, two monkeys, 29 lizards, 21 snakes, and rare birds, including a parrot, and a Sulawesi bear cuscus – a type of rare marsupial native to Indonesia – were seized by customs agents at Suvarnabhumi Airport.

Thai customs officials made the shocking discovery after finding their luggage suspicious during the security check at the airport.

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