New kid on the block

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Adults welcoming a new addition to the gibbon family

New ape baby for Joburg Zoo A newborn gibbon has caused a flurry of excitement at the Johannesburg Zoo. August 4, 2006 By Thabang Mokoka A NEW ape baby is adding much excitement to the lives of staff at the Johannesburg Zoo. Born on 3 June, the baby male gibbon is the offspring of a pair of siamang gibbons who originally came from zoos in Britain. Father Dodi came from Twycross Zoo, while mother Glastonbury came from Marwell Zoo. "The whole section was literally jumping for joy," said the curator of the animal collections sector, Althea Guinsberg, about the birth. The delay in the announcement of the birth was to give the vets a chance to monitor the animal, said the zoo's marketing co-ordinator, Senzo Ngcobo. The two adult gibbons are among "the most loved species in the zoo", she added. Siamang gibbons are an endangered species, famous for their inflatable throat sacs that expand when the animals make noises. In the wild, the gibbons are found in the mountains of the Malay peninsula, as well as in the rain and monsoon forests of Sumatra. "It is difficult to see the ape at the moment as the family is usually in hiding," said Ngcobo, who described the baby as "very cute". Although it requires patience to see the baby, as the parents tend to keep the young one in the more isolated part of the enclosure, the vocal ambience of the animals can be heard midday on most days at the zoo. Visitors to the zoo can view the parents and the new arrival at the gibbon enclosure, situated next to small cats' enclosure. The entrance fee for adults is R32 and R19 for children. The Johannesburg Zoo is on the corner of Jan Smuts Avenue and Upper Park Drive, in Parkview. The main entrance is on Upper Park Drive, Forest Town. For more information, contact the zoo on 011 646 2000 Permission to use web site material Publishers may use material from this site free of charge, as long as: Credit is given to either the "City of Johannesburg website (www.joburg.org.za)" or to "Johannesburg News Agency (www.joburg.org.za)"; If the article is used online, a link is provided to the original article on this website; The name of the article's author is acknowledged; The webmaster is informed of how and where the material is used (fill in this brief online form). Johannesburg News Agency is operated by BIG Media at 011-484-1400 Print this Page E-mail this article to a friend Help using Joburg.org.za