Meet the Stars of the Rainforest Review Show: Lar Gibbons

Tembeling and Schanee: What happened to their Hands?

On your visits to Monkey Pavilion you may have noticed that we have a very special pair of Lar gibbons who call Cheyenne Mountain Zoo home. Our male, Tembeling, was born here at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in 1996. His companion, Schanee, came to us from Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and was born in 1980.



Tembeling has always been a guest favorite. He has a very sweet face and a fiery personality, but guests are probably most drawn to him because he is not just an ordinary gibbon. Tembeling is an amputee and is missing his left hand. In 1996, when Tembeling was still a baby he received an accidental bite wound to his left wrist. The zoo’s veterinary team tried very hard to repair the damage, but was unable even after several surgeries. At that point they felt that it would be in his best interest to amputate the hand. Tembeling has adapted amazingly well to this injury and sometimes people do not even realize that his hand is missing. During Monkey Pavilion’s Rainforest Review show he is always a crowd favorite as he shows how he has adapted to do all things gibbon in his own special way.


Tembeling

Schanee came to Cheyenne Mountain Zoo about 2 years ago to be a companion to Tembeling. She is more shy than Tembeling but will vocalize often, especially when excited about something. Schanee is also an amputee who is missing her left hand. Her injury happened later in life and was also due to an accidental bite wound. She suffered a broken arm and nerve damage to her hand and after many attempts to save her hand it was decided that it was beyond repair. Even though her injury happened when she was older, she has shown amazing resilience and adaptability in re-learning how to climb, swing and play. Who knows, she may have even picked up some pointers from her talented companion, Tembeling.


Schanee

Anyone who visits Schanee and Tembeling know that they are inseparable and love to be together. They are both an amazing example of how adaptable gibbons are through their ability to figure out ways to move around their environment using what they have. It is fascinating to watch them and see just how well these two very special primates have adapted to life with one hand.