Chimpanzee Family Celebrate A Birthday at Monarto Safari Park

Posted By : The Animal Facts Editorial Team

Date: September 8, 2020 10:45 pm

Zola cebrates her birthday with mom Zombi

Photo Credit: Monarto Safari Park

The chimpanzee family at Monarto Safari Park have celebrated the first birth of the youngest member of their troop, Zola with a party.

Zola was born last year to mother Zombi and currently spends her day close to mom including hitching a ride on her chest.

Keepers at the park in South Australia set up a range of exciting enrichment activities for the group to explore. These included papier mache balls filled with dried pellets, seeds and nuts. Streamers, Happy Birthday paper and big boxes of presents filled with healthy treats also festooned the outdoor area.

Zola cebrates her birthday with mom Zombi

Photo Credit:Monarto Safari Park

“Little Zola doesn’t stop,” said Senior keeper Laura Hanley. “She charges around all the time and loves to play with her brother 4 year old Enzi, and 18-month-old Hope.

“She loves wrestling with her two pals and copies what they do. She’s also very adventurous and likes to jump on and off things and make up games,” finished Laura.

Zola is one of the twelve chimpanzees housed at Monarto Safari Park. The troop includes four adult females, four adult males, one adolescent females, a juvenile female and two female infants.

Zola cebrates her birthday with mom Zombi

Photo Credit: Monarto Safari Park

— AD —

Young chimpanzees are known for their mischief and have a white tuft of fur on the base of their back. This signals that they are young and should be allowed to get away with this mischief.

The chimpanzee is listed as endangered on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List. Currently they are considered extinct in four of the 25 countries they call home.

Wild chimpanzees face threats from habitat loss including for logging, mining, palm oil farming and human expansion. They are also captured for the illegal wildlife trade and bushmeat trade.

Zola cebrates her birthday with mom Zombi

Photo Credit: Monarto Safari Park

Zoos SA provide conservation support and funds to both the Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary and the Jane Goodall Institute Tchimpounga Sanctuary in Africa.

Learn more about chimpanzees here – Chimpanzee Fact File | The Animal Facts

Learn more about Monarto Safari Park on their website – Monarto Safari Park