Baby Monkey Born At Calgary Zoo
22/02/2009 05:18
CBC News
First-time mother, Mosi, is learning how to take care of her baby, said zoo officials.
Visitors to the Calgary Zoo can now visit a baby Colobus monkey, born at the facility last week.
The female infant, who has not yet been named by her keepers, was born on Feb. 13, the zoo announced Friday. She joins her mother, Mosi, father, BK and another female, Roberta, in the troop that lives with the zoo's gorillas.
The baby has a distinctive white coat, which will slowly change over the next few months to match the adult's black coat with long fringes of white fur on the face, sides and tail, said zoo officials.
Mother and baby were kept away from the public for the first week to allow them to bond, said zookeeper Garth Irvine.
"Mosi is a first-time mother and has had a lot to learn, including how to carry her baby, but has taken very good care of her and is quite protective," he said.
The zoo recommended visiting at 9 a.m., just after the zoo opens, as the best chance to see the new addition.
The baby is the first Colobus monkey born at the Calgary Zoo, as part of a species survival plan to increase the numbers of the animals, whose populations are dwindling because of deforestation and hunting in their central African habitat.
SINC SAYS:
With the recent run of bad luck at the Calgary zoo, I’m sure this is good news for the keepers.
