Dublin Zoo has announced the birth of a Goeldi’s monkey. Born on 3rd March the infant lives at the Kellogg’s Coco Pops South American House. It lives with mum, dad and 10 month old sister, Yari. The young monkey weighed just 30 grams (1ounce) at birth.
Susan O’ Brien, Dublin Zoo keeper said, “We’re delighted with the new addition. Inca, the mother, arrived to Dublin Zoo in 2012 from Banham Zoo in the UK and is a fantastic mother. She is keeping the newborn very close to her at the moment and swinging around the habitat with her new baby on her back.”
“The baby is feeding very well on a diet of crickets, mealworms and waxworms. This may not sound so tasty to us humans, but the insects are fed a high-vitamin diet which in-turn gets passed onto the Goeldi – a perfect diet for a newborn,” she added.
In the wild adults feed on fruit, vegetables, insects and bird eggs.
“In a couple of weeks we should be able to get close enough to determine the gender but for now we are happy for the family to bond and get to know each other.”
Most at home in the rainforests of South America these guys blend so well with their natural habitat that they were not discovered till 1904.
Photo Credit: Dublin Zoo
