Dudley Zoo Reveals the Gender and Name of their Spider Monkey

Posted By : The Animal Facts Editorial Team

Date: August 13, 2020 12:50 pm

Nina the spider monkey infant at Dudley Zoo

Photo Credit: Dudley Zoo

Dudley Zoo in the United Kingdom has provided an update on their two week old Colombian spider monkey infant. This update included revealing that the infant is a female.

We covered the birth of the infant two weeks ago when mother Evita gave birth unexpectedly in the middle of the day.

You can read that story here – Dudley Zoo Celebrates First Spider Monkey Birth in 4 Decades

Evita and father, Chester have taken well to parenthood and keepers have been able to capture some of their journey in their footage below.

Keepers have chosen the name Nina for the infant which means ‘girl’ in Spanish. Spanish is the official language of Colombia where the spider monkeys are found.

Video of the spider monkey family at Dudley Zoo

Photo Credit: Dudley Zoo

Lower Primates Senior Keeper, Jade Reddall said: “Mum, dad and baby are doing really well.

“From her surprise outdoor delivery, Evita is proving to be a natural mum and is taking wonderful care of her baby girl, keeping her snuggled close.

“Dads typically do not help in raising offspring, but Chester is being really attentive towards Evita and Nina which is great to see and we’ve spotted him on camera gently stroking his daughter.

Colombian spider monkeys are listed as endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) on their red list. They are threatened by the bush meat trade and habitat destruction.

Learn more about Dudley Zoo on their website – Dudley Zoo