Woodland Park Zoo announced Thursday that its 15-year-old Sumatran orangutan, Batu, has lost her baby after carrying the fetus nearly to term. An ultrasound performed during an anesthetized exam revealed the fetus was no longer viable. The pregnancy would have marked the zoo’s first orangutan birth in 35 years.

The Woodland Park Zoo announced Thursday that its pregnant orangutan, Batu, has lost her baby after carrying the fetus nearly to term.

Pending confirmatory testing, this would mark Woodland Park Zoo’s first case of bird flu, a viral infection carried by wild birds such as waterfowl. Bird flu is primarily spread through respiratory secretions and bird-to-bird contact, according to the zoo.

SEATTLE - Woodland Park Zoo announced the heartbreaking loss of a near-term orangutan baby this week. Batu, a 15-year-old Sumatran orangutan, had carried the fetus almost to term, but an ultrasound during a medical exam revealed it was no longer viable.