GERMANY-BABY MONKEYS Baby monkey Pinto delights visitors at Munich's Hellabrunn Zoo
Record ID:
149317
GERMANY-BABY MONKEYS Baby monkey Pinto delights visitors at Munich's Hellabrunn Zoo
- Title: GERMANY-BABY MONKEYS Baby monkey Pinto delights visitors at Munich's Hellabrunn Zoo
- Date: 22nd July 2015
- Summary: MUNICH, GERMANY (JULY 22, 2015) (REUTERS) VISITORS ENTERING HELLABRUNN ZOO HELLABRUNN ZOO SIGN VARIOUS OF ADULT DRILL MONKEYS AND BABY PINTO IN ENCLOSURE VARIOUS OF WOMAN HOLDING CHILD WATCHING MONKEYS VARIOUS OF MONKEYS IN ENCLOSURE VISITORS AND JOURNALISTS WATCHING MONKEYS (SOUNDBITE) (German) ZOO CURATOR, CARSTEN ZEHRER, SAYING: "Unfortunately this species is severely threatened with extinction in west Africa and it is also relatively rare in zoos. Currently there are only about 80 of them in European zoos. The number in zoos is growing relatively slowly, but we are very happy that we have a group here at Hellabrunn Zoo which has produced young for the third year in a row. Today we are presenting our youngest family member - the little Pinto, who was born almost a month ago on June 24." VARIOUS OF ADULT DRILL CARRYING BABY (SOUNDBITE) (German) ZOO CURATOR, CARSTEN ZEHRER, SAYING: "His daily routine isn't very exciting at the moment -- it's mainly sleeping and drinking. But in the last few minutes we could already see that his mother was putting him down and he had to walk behind her for a few steps. They are raised to be independent quite quickly. He has also just started to try out solid foods, so to say -- he takes what the mother is eating into his mouth and chews it around.") VARIOUS OF MONKEYS IN ENCLOSURE VISITORS WATCHING MONKEYS
- Embargoed: 6th August 2015 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Germany
- Country: Germany
- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVA8WHB7V96SSOLH2444T2DY301E
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Pint-sized Pinto stays close to his mother's side in the monkey enclosure at Munich's Hellabrunn Zoo, where visitors were enchanted by the drill monkey family on Wednesday (July 22).
Born almost a month ago on June 24, baby Pinto is a special addition to the zoo's conservation programme, as zoo curator Carsten Zehrer explained.
"Unfortunately this species is severely threatened with extinction in west Africa and it is also relatively rare in zoos. Currently there are only about 80 of them in European zoos. The number in zoos is growing relatively slowly, but we are very happy that we have a group here at Hellabrunn Zoo which has produced young for the third year in a row," he said.
Closely related to the baboon and the mandrill, the drill monkey can be found in the wild in the forests of Cameroon, Nigeria, Gabon and the island of Bioko off the coast of western Africa.
Though thousands of kilometres from his natural home, Pinto is developing well.
"In the last few minutes we could already see that his mother was putting him down and he had to walk behind her for a few steps. They are raised to be independent quite quickly. He has also just started to try out solid foods," Zehrer said.
Pinto should start to spend more time away from his mother over the next few weeks and begin playing with the other drills. Even so, baby drills continue to suckle for up to a year, so mother Kaduna won't be getting a break anytime soon. At ten years old, she has given birth to three babies in as many years, an important boost to the zoo's drill population.
The drill is one of Africa's most severely endangered apes, with only around 3,500 left in the wild according to Hellabrunn Zoo. As well as the loss of their habitat due to deforestation, drills are also threatened by hunting for the commercial bushmeat trade. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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