The oldest orangutan in the world celebrated his 63rd birthday (3 photos + 1 video)

Bella is the world's oldest orangutan living in captivity. This lovely lady celebrated her 63rd birthday in a big way this week with a big fruit cake and a party.





The female orangutan, Bella, is estimated to have been born in 1961. Three years later, she was rescued from the wild and transported to the Hagenbeck Zoo in Hamburg, Germany. Bella has lived there ever since and recently celebrated her 63rd birthday. The zoo staff congratulated her with a cake made from soft boiled rice and fruit, which she ate with great appetite.



Orangutans typically live to be 35 to 40 years old in the wild, while those in captivity can live to be around 50 years old. But Bella surpassed everyone. She currently holds the world record for the oldest Sumatran orangutan in captivity: she is considered the oldest orangutan in the world. Zoo officials say Bella is "smart, curious, gentle, and never aggressive."



During her life, Bella gave birth to six cubs, and also raised four “adopted” babies who were not accepted by their mothers. For this she even received the nickname “supermom”. She shared her birthday cake with one of her foster children, Berani the orangutan.