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Brookfield Zoo Names Baby Gorilla 'Nora'

BROOKFIELD, Ill. (AP) -- A four-month-old baby gorilla at Brookfield Zoo outside Chicago now has a name after the public cast thousands of votes.

The zoo asked for public input for two weeks, and 70,000 votes later they've gone with the name "Nora."

Nora is a female gorilla born last November to Koola, her 18-year-old mother. The name means "honor" or "light."

The name received more than half the total votes. Other names considered for the infant gorilla included Alima, Amelia, and Emma.

Craig Demitros is the associate curator of primates for the Chicago Zoological Society. He says Nora is becoming more aware of her surroundings, but is always in contact with her mother.

Demitros says that in coming months, Nora will start riding her mother's back and exploring on her own.

(TM and © Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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