Rare Wolf's Guenon Born at Sacramento Zoo
April 08, 2013
On January 26th, Sacramento Zoo's female Wolf's Guenon gave birth to her first infant. Currently, there are fewer than 35 of these monkeys, housed at 11 AZA institutions in the United States. Mother Mimi and father Eddie have been very protective of the baby, making it difficult for keepers to determine the weight or even its sex.
“Little is known about Wolf’s Guenons because of
their small population in zoos. In the wild, the dense forests in which they
live make them hard to spot,” said Harrison Edell, Sacramento Zoo General
Curator. “This birth is significant to the Sacramento Zoo; with every birth, we
learn more about this species’ biology, contributing to our overall knowledge
about this species.”
Wolf’s Guenons are native to central Africa where
they inhabit forests and forage for fruits, seeds, and an occasional insect.
Forming loose family groups in the wild, these monkeys are even known to spend
time with other primate species including Bonobos, colobus monkeys and other
guenons. A larger mixed-species group may mean that there are more eyes on the
lookout for predators, and many guenons have learned to recognize other
monkeys’ alarm calls so that they know how to respond correctly if a neighbor
spots a leopard or eagle.
Photo Credit, Mike Owyang, Sacramento Zoo