Gorillas test positive at San Diego park

Several gorillas at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park have tested positive for the coronavirus in what is believed to be the first cases among such primates in captivity.

The park’s executive director, Lisa Peterson, said Monday that eight gorillas at the park are believed to have the virus and several have been coughing.

It appears the infection came from a member of the park’s wildlife care team that also tested positive for the virus but has been asymptomatic. Veterinarians are closely monitoring the

gorillas who will remain in their habitat at the park,

While other wildlife has contracted the coronavirus from

minks to tigers, the gorilla cases are believed to be the first reported from a zoo in the United States and possibly the world.

Ken Bohn / Associated Press Seven members of the gorilla troop at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park in Escondido, Calif., have been infected with the virus.