New Lemurs at the Zoo...OH MY!

Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s animal family recently grew by two, with the addition of male ring-tailed lemurs Hank and Stewart in Monkey Pavilion. The pair moved here from Pueblo Zoo to join fellow ring-tailed lemurs Jimmy and Jabari, and black and white ruffed lemur Ozzy. Hank, age 5, and Stewart, age 4, both have the signature ring-tailed lemur tail – very long with vivid black and white stripes. The easiest way to tell them apart is by looking at their size. Hank is smaller, weighing in at about five pounds.



You can see Hank and Stewart on exhibit, but they haven’t moved in with the rest of the lemurs yet. They are currently going through what we call the “howdy” process, getting to know their new roommates a bit better before they share the same exhibit space. A mesh door called a “howdy” separates Hank and Stewart from the others so they can see and get used to each other. It takes time, though, and you might see them “stink fighting” as a way to establish territory. They have potent scent glands on their wrists, which they rub on their tails and wave in the air in an attempt to outstink the others.

Lemurs are primates, and are related to monkeys and apes. In the wild, they only live on the African island of Madagascar. Black and white ruffed lemurs are critically endangered and ring-tailed lemur populations are decreasing, mainly because of habitat destruction due to farming and logging.

Birth Announcement: Geoffroy’s Marmosets Twins

Born July 15, 2010
Monkey Pavilion is proud to welcome our two newest additions!

New parents Sumo, Dad, and Fig, Mom are thrilled with their two new babies. Sumo and Fig are great parents and are doing a great job taking care of the twins. When you come to Monkey Pavilion to see them you will have to look closely. The babies are very small and you might see their little white heads or maybe just their black and white striped tails wrapped around mom or dad’s back. As the twins get older you may also see their siblings carrying them around. They have a big sister named Nova and two big brothers named Juan and Diego.


Suma and Fig


Little faces riding on back.

Geoffroy’s Marmosets live in the Atlantic rainforests of Southeast Brazil. They are an average size marmoset, weighing around 10 to 12 ounces, and they can live up to 14 years. Geoffroy’s have blackish brown coats with lighter strips on their backs. They have beautiful white faces, but perhaps their most striking features are the big black tuffs of hair that stick out from above their ears. Typically they will live in family groups of up to fourteen individuals with one dominant breeding pair. The dominant female gives birth to twins after a gestation of 4.5 months. The birth weight of the litter is high, about 20% of the mother’s weight; this would be the same as a human giving birth to twins each weighing 11 lbs. The entire family helps raise the young and will take turns carrying the babies until they need to nurse. Marmoset infants are completely dependant for the first two weeks but they are weaned by two months and can move independently. They reach puberty at 14-18 months and adult size at two years.

Please visit our new babies in the Monkey Pavilion.


Nova


The twins, July 22, 2010.


The Geoffroy’s Marmoset family.

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.

Meet the Primates of the Rainforest Review Show: White-cheeked Gibbons

White-cheeked gibbons of Southeast Asia:



In the Southeast Asia part of Monkey Pavilion you will see our white-cheeked gibbon Tanh-Linh. Tanh-Linh is one of our best acrobats and has some amazing behaviors to show you. Tanh-Linh is 21 years old and was born at the Oregon Zoo. He came to CMZ when he was five years old to be friends with our female white-cheeked gibbon, Debbie. They are a perfect pair and are best friends. However, Debbie is dominate over Tanh-Linh and he will not do any of his behaviors if she is in the enclosure. We separate them for the show and reunite them shortly there after.



You can tell Tanh-Linh and Debbie apart because they are two different colors. Tanh-Linh is the black one with fluffy white cheeks and Debbie is the white one with a small patch of black on the top of her head. Scientists believe that the color difference in this species is to help them decipher who is male and who is female when they are looking for mates. White-cheeked gibbons form monogamous pairs and will usually spend their whole lives with one mate. Their offspring will live with them until they reach maturity and leave the natal group. When white-cheeked gibbon babies are born they will be white like the female for the first year or so. When they are around two years old all the babies will turn black. Finally, once the females reach maturity around 5 or 6 years, they will turn back to white. Tanh-Linh and Debbie have one surviving offspring named Tangra. This summer we sent her to a zoo in Texas to find a mate of her own.



Tanh-Linh and Debbie are a great pair to watch and can be seen either in one of our outdoor enclosures or in their home exhibit inside Monkey Pavilion. They will amaze you with their swinging and leaping abilities. So be sure to catch Tanh-Linh center stage during our Rainforest Review Show at 11:30 in Monkey Pavilion.

Meet the Stars of the Rainforest Review Show: Mangabeys

Mangabeys of Africa

Black-crested mangabeys are cool looking primates that come from the Congo region of Africa. Their dark black coats and spiky hairdos make them a must see animal at the Cheyenne Mountain zoo.

These amazing primates live in the mid-level forest canopy. They spend their day leaping from tree to tree or running along branches looking for food. When they come across a food source they must gather it quickly because there is lots of competition. They must also keep their eyes on the sky because the crowned hawk eagle might be looking for them. They have to be ready to run at a moments notice to avoid this predator. Nature has provided them with some unique adaptation that helps them meet the challenges of surviving in the wild.

Come to Monkey Pavilion and meet one of our resident Mangabeys during our Rainforest Review Show.
















His name is Tana and he was born at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo 19 years ago. He is the youngest of our three male mangabeys and is a very active primate. Tana loves to run around in his outdoor exhibit and forage through the grass looking for yummy treats. Keepers like to put sunflower seeds, cereal, and raisins in the grass so that Tana has hours of foraging time. When he has found all of his treats in the grass you may see him doing other foraging behaviors.


Mangabeys love to peel the bark off the trees in their exhibits with their teeth. This natural behavior is their way of looking for insects to eat. No matter what he is doing he is always fun to watch, so come on by Monkey Pavilion and see what Tana is doing today.

Meet the Stars of the Rainforest Review Show: Lemurs

Lemurs of Madagascar

We have three amazing lemurs in Monkey Pavilion and they all have different, cool behaviors to show you. Watch them leap through the air, balance on ropes and feed upside down. Our group of lemurs consists of two Ring-tailed lemurs and one Black and White Ruffed lemur. They are all wonderful creatures with fun personalities.

Our Ring-tailed lemurs are a father and son duo. The Dad is named Jimmy and he is 17 years old. His son’s name is Jabari and he is 4 years old. You can tell them apart by their eye color. Jimmy has dark brown eyes and Jabari’s are a lovely shade of yellow.

They are the best of friends and you will most often see them huddled close together sleeping or grooming each other. Jimmy is a great dad to Jabari and has taught him many things. Our Monkey Pavilion keepers tell us, “One time when some new foods were being introduced, Jabari did not know what to think. So he waited for Jimmy to try some of the new foods. Jimmy went over to the food and picked up a Brussels sprout. Jabari came over and sat right next to Jimmy. Jabari watched Jimmy for a minute then took the Brussels sprout away from him and began to eat it. It was amazing to watch the learning process.”


JIMMY


JABARI
Jimmy and Jabari share their habitat with a black and white ruffed lemur named Ozzy.


OZZY
Ozzy is 8 years old and one of the loudest calling primates in the building. He makes a low dog like screech, mixed with a high pitched scream that will amaze you. How could a sound like that come from such a cute, little, fuzzy creature? Ozzy is a very energetic guy and loves doing his show behaviors. His favorite treats are grapes, dates and figs. He will do his behaviors over and over again just to get his yummy rewards.



You can see the lemurs on exhibit in one of our three outdoor enclosures during the summer months. They love to sun themselves by lying on their backs in the grass. Or sometimes you can see the Ring-tails sitting in a Buddha like position getting sun on their bellies. The lemurs start our Rainforest review show at 11:30, so be sure to get a front row spot and see the lemurs do their cool behaviors.

Monkey Pavilion Presents “Rainforest Review”

The primates of Monkey Pavilion all have one very important thing in common… they are all from the RAINFOREST. You can find them in Madagascar, Africa, and South East Asia. Our resident lemurs, mangabeys and gibbons all have unique adaptations that help them survive in their rainforest habitats. The rainforest provides food and shelter for these animals. Unfortunately it is being destroyed at a rapid rate by logging and agriculture. These industries have left the forest in fragmented pieces and are unusable for the animal inhabitants.

As stewards of our environment it is up to us to save wild places for these animals and there is always something that we can do to help. You can live “green” by recycling, conserving natural resources, and buying environmentally safe products as a few examples. You can also help support organizations like the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. Cheyenne Mountain Zoo supports many conservation projects, like Project Simpona, an organization that is trying to save the Silky Sifakas Lemurs in Madagascar. The Simpona or Silky sifaka (Propithecus diadema candidus) is a rare and critically endangered species of lemur that is endemic to a very small mountainous area in Northeastern Madagascar.


Silky Sifakas Lemur in the wild.

Lemurs at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo


Ruffed Lemur


Ring-tailed Lemur

Q4C also supports the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). FSC was created to change the dialogue about and the practice of sustainable forestry worldwide. They work to protect rainforest habitat and they certify sustainably harvested wood.

Stop by Monkey Pavilion at 11:30 every day to see the Rainforest Review Show and learn more.


Monkey Pavilion Keeper, Joanna, outside at the lemurs.



Monkey Pavilion Keeper, Jeannette, getting a little help in the Rainforest Review show from one of our residents.