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Maury Povich can credit the bulk of his success to the paternity tests he was known for conducting on his long-running talk show. Those reveals revolved around disputes between humans trying to determine who sired a child, but one zoo opted to turn to the host to solve the mystery concerning the father of a baby orangutan.
On August 27th, the Denver Zoo welcomed a new member to its menagerie after a Sumatran orangutan named Eirina welcomed a baby girl who was eventually dubbed “Siska” (a nod to Dr. Fransiska Sulistyo, a veterinarian and conservationist specializing in the species).
However, there was a bit of mystery surrounding the birth. The enclosure Eirina calls home at the zoo is home to multiple male orangutans, and it was unclear if the father was the 30-year-old Berani or the 16-year-old Jaya.
Thankfully, Maury Povich was more than happy to help out.
Earlier this month, Povich filmed himself opening up the signature manila envelope that contained the results of the DNA test that determined Berani was the orangutan who helped bring Siska into the world (which was a pretty big deal when you consider their species is considered Critically Endangered).
Fresh off receiving the Daytime Emmys Lifetime Achievement Honor, Maury Povich is here to help us announce the paternity results for Siska, our four-month-old Sumatran orangutan! Is Siska's father thirty-year-old Berani or 16-year-old Jaya? Watch the video for the big reveal! 🧡 pic.twitter.com/jyh1Mp0Y7C
— Denver Zoo (@DenverZoo) December 19, 2023
According to The Washington Post, the Denver Zoo conducted the paternity test in-house but opted to reach out to Maury to see if he’d be willing to reprise the role he routinely played over the course of his time at the helm of a show that aired for 31 years.
The zoo released a clip of Siska’s dad swinging around the orangutan exhibit after the reveal, so it’s safe to assume he was happy to hear the news. There was no footage of Jaya running around the room while repeatedly yelling “I told you!” but I’m going to tell myself that’s exactly what happened until proven otherwise.