| "All beings that feel pain or emotion should have basic rights."
Peter Singer |
I'm a monkey
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Cat Comforts Grieving Orangutan at Zoo
Tondalayo, a 45-year-old Sumatran orangutan, and T.J., a stray tabby cat, became an
inseparable duo after a zoo employee introduced them late last year.
Stephanie Willard,
Education Director at Zoo World in Panama City Beach, said Tondalayo was depressed since
losing her mate two years ago.
Her age prevented her from moving to another zoo or taking another mate. The ducks and
turtles swimming in a moat around her island were not enough, Willard told the Panama
City News Herald.
When the sweet-natured orange cat wandered into Willard's life, the solution became clear.
"It's an unbelievable match," Willard said. "This has worked out a lot better than
I expected it to. She's got brighter eyes now. He's brought a lot of light to her."
Zookeepers named the cat, T.K. - short for "Tondalayo's Kitty."
They play together, cuddle and sleep together each night. They have been together
constantly for more than a month. "He's perked up Tonda more than anything," Willard said.
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Shy gorilla, 35, looses virginity
A shy, 35-year-old lowland gorilla has lost his virginity to a flirtatious 14-year-old in an Atlanta zoo.
The courtship began last year when Ivan, the male gorilla, began flirting with Kinyani, a female, across a moat
that separated their habitats in the zoo's African rain forest section.
Kinyani was then with Willie B, a 430-pound 40-year-old who had his first sexual experience with her several
years ago. But Willie B proved an unfaithful lover and had begun to ignore Kinyani.
"Willie doesn't care that she's gone," said zoo spokeswoman Carol Flammer. "He was courting several
other females and ignoring Kinyani. Two are pregnant right now, and he's working on a third. He got off to a slow
start, but now Willie is preoccupied with mating."
While Willie B was romping with his paramours, zookeepers noticed Kinyani was staring longingly at Ivan and he
was flirting with her across the moat that separated their habitats. Zookeepers moved Kinyani into Ivan's habitat,
and she found him very attractive, trying to have her way with him on several occasions without success. "I
don't think he knew what Kinyani was proposing," Flammer said.
Late Thursday, however, Ivan finally figured things out. She presented to him two times, and the third time she
backed into him. He pulled her closer and they started mating. They were so engrossed in each other that when
it was time for the zoo's gorillas to be locked in their customary separate quarters for the night, zookeepers
decided to let Ivan and Kinyani share a room, where they continued cuddling. But by Friday morning, Kinyani had
had enough. She bolted from the room the minute zookeepers opened the door.
Flammer said Kinyani has never been pregnant and it is too early to tell whether the romantic encounter will
produce offspring. Zookeepers, however, are hopeful. "She was always a skinny gorilla, but lately she has
been putting on weight, so we're hoping she's just a late bloomer."
The gestation period for gorillas is eight-and-a-half months, and an infant gorilla weighs between four and five
pounds when it is born.
"Kinyani seems to be the correct socializing agent," Zoo President Terry Maple said. "She is romantic,
and she has done it before. Ivan has made the transition from an isolated gorilla to a social gorilla. With this
critical step, he has a chance to end up as successful as Willie B."
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Monkey's Grief Leads To Arrest
Dhaka, Bangladesh.
A monkey mourning the death of its mate evoked the sympathy of several hundred villagers and led to the arrest
of the man accused of shooting the animal, police said.
Abu Reza was arrested after about 500 villagers demonstrated in front of the office of the district administrator in
Jhenidah, about 170 miles southwest of Dhaka. He was later freed on bail.
The male monkey was killed by a rifle shot while playing with its mate in a tree. Villagers gathered as the wailing
female monkey, hugging the body of the male, refused to leave. When the Kanchannagar villagers marched to
Jhenidah, the grieving monkey followed, still holding the corpse.
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The technology for producing genetically identical
animals is now available, and that promises to be useful in experimental studies.
The achievement takes science closer toward nuclear transfer, the genetic procedure which could be
used to clone humans. |
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Gorilla Rescues Fallen Toddler At Zoo
Brookfield, Illinois.
A 3-year-old boy injured his head when he fell 18 feet onto a concrete exhibit area with seven gorillas.
Binti-Jua, a 7-year-old female gorilla with her own baby clutching her back, carefully picked up the child,
cradled him in her arms, then placed him near a door where zoo keepers could retrieve him. Though the boy was
conscious when taken to a hospital, he was later listed in critical condition.
Reported by zoo spokeswoman Sondra Katzen.
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Hero Gorilla
Johannesburg, South Africa:
Max the gorilla is back on his feet after being shot by a robber. The 25-year-old, 440 lb. gorilla was reunited with
his partner, Lisa, for the first time since his ordeal.
"Max and Lisa are ecstatic to be back together and there was no sign of nervousness. He's made a
remarkable recovery," said zoo spokeswoman Jacqui Thompson.
Max was defending his turf when the robber, fleeing police, jumped into his zoo enclosure.
Though Max was shot twice in the chest and once in the jaw, he held the robber until police arrived. Max also
bit one of the policemen on the buttocks and arm before he was treated at a top private hospital.
Children have sent numerous get well messages to the western lowland gorilla, whose normal habitat is the
Central African jungle. Supporters have covered zoo walls with posters nominating Max for premier of
Johannesburg's Gauteng province. Zoo officials placed a giant blow-up gorilla holding a poster announcing:
Max is out! outside the zoo.
The police donated a bulletproof vest to Max-- unfortunately too small.
UPDATE!
Is South Africa's Crimefighting Gorilla Infertile?
Johannesburg
Max the gorilla has proved his machismo by fighting off an armed intruder at
Johannesburg's zoo, but the incident may have ruined his chances of becoming a father.
"Although Max's virility -- his urge to mate and his manhood and courage-- have never been in question, his
fertility is low according to initial tests. The incident was extremely stressful on both Max and Lisa. We're
concerned that the shooting incident has scarred Max's psyche."
The zoo said if further tests proved Max's infertility, it would investigate other options including importing
sperm from the United States, to inseminate.
To: marta@spookyfilms.com
From: "phillip cronje"
Subject: Max
Date: Tue, 10 Mar 98 18:58:07 PST
Hi from Johannesburg Zoo. Max is doing well. Thanks for your interest.
Regards
Phillip
Max's keeper
philkim@icon.coza
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Power Structures
Female chimpanzees were once thought of as passive vessels who got their status from the rank of the males in
their lives.
A 37-year study at Gombe National Park in Tanzania found that a female chimp depends more on the
feminine hierarchy than on her male sex partner's rank. One reason the conclusions took so long was that
displays of female dominance are rarer and more subtle than male dominance displays.
Male chimps use displays which are big shows of how amazing and wonderful they are; they rattle trees and drag
boulders down, every day, many times a day. Females might show signs of dominance a couple of times a year.
Male chimpanzees were easy to rank, from top chimp to bottom, but females were ranked as generally high,
middle or low in the hierarchy. Females with high rank -- old or young, large or small -- managed to dominate the
choice patches of food and managed to have more progeny in quicker succession than less dominant females.
Their young also survived at a higher rate and their daughters matured faster.
Chimp behavior in this regard might correspond in to human behavior in adolescence. Where adolescent boys
are often openly obnoxious and will fight with other boys, adolescent girls will use different methods to establish
status, such as shunning. Researchers still need to know why female dominance makes such a difference in
reproductive success, and what specifically makes one female dominate others.
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I'm a monkey
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I'm a monkey
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I'm a monkey too
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From:
Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors
by Carl Sagan & Ann Druyan
In a lab, macaques were fed only if they were willing to electrically shock
an unrelated macaque whose agony was visible through a two-way mirror.
87% of the monkeys preferred to go hungry; those who had been shocked in previous experiments were even
less willing. One went without food for nearly two weeks rather than hurt another.
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Nepali Villagers Plan Massive Monkey Kill
Conservationists from around the world and activists from the Nepal Forum of Environmental
Journalists began a campaign to protect wild monkeys that have been raiding crops of a
village in the Sindhupalchok district, 150 kilometers east of Kathmandu.
The villagers of Mankha are preparing to kill more than 500 monkeys in adjacent forests
Saturday. Devastating crop-raiding by the monkeys has raised the question of survival for the local people
as all the farms have been swept away by monkey troops since last year.
The government of Nepal is on the horns of a dilemma when news of plans for the mass monkey killing
broke, followed by pressure from conservationists around the globe calling for protection of the
monkeys.
EnviroLink Network 5/8/98
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Laboratory Chimps Get Breath of Fresh Air
CARIGNAN, Quebec (Reuters) - For the first time in their lives, 12 chimpanzees used for biomedical research
went out recently for a breather.
It was a day of celebration at Fauna Foundation's ranch, thefirst and only Canadian sanctuary for laboratory
chimpanzees, about 6 miles southeast of Montreal.
Most of the foundation's 15 chimps had never enjoyed the caress of the summer wind before they got to go
outside thanks to the inauguration of a new exterior enclosure. The Jane Goodall Institute, the renowned
American primatologist's group, donated money to build the enclosure.
The chimpanzees came from the Laboratory for Experimental Medicine and Surgery in Primates
(LEMSIP) at New York University, which closed last year. During their stay there the chimps lived in small cages
where they were subjected to tests in the search for vaccines against hepatitis and HIV.
Flags and banners greeted a small group of foundation volunteers and friends for the unveiling of the enclosure.
A feast fit for kings had been prepared: Cakes, fruits, everything needed to indulge a chimp's favorite pastime,
eating. There were also new swings, colorful toys and ropes.
As spectators and chimps waited in feverish anticipation,
Gloria Grow, founder of the Fauna Foundation, gave the signal
and opened the doors. The 12 chimps came out at once, not
allowing the cakes or the toys to divert their attention from
the new horizon that stretched out before their eyes.
Their amazement lasted for about 20 minutes, until the sky
fell on their heads. Surprised by the rain, they took refuge
inside and stood looking pensively at their wet cakes.
"It was wonderful. They were so excited, even under the
rain. They were also worried because it's a new
area and they are always nervous in a new area. It was such an
incredible moment." |
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Passionate Woman Defends Rights of Chimps
Grow's own life changed abruptly in 1996 when she attended
an animal rights demonstration in Washington. "It was a
revelation because I saw all the terrible things we are doing to
animals," she said. "We are so mean to them because we think
they are less than us, but are they? I don't think so."
When LEMSIP closed, she decided, along with her husband, Dr.
Richard Allan, a veterinarian, to take the chimps in. That
undertaking has kept her breathless 24 hours a day since then.
Grow is in charge of daily maintenance of the sanctuary and
its animal guests. Goodall, an inspiration for thousands of
primate lovers around the world, has visited the foundation's
ranch twice and has given great support to Grow.
"One of things she said to me was not to feel guilty. I feel very bad when I see the chimps in a cage,"
Grow said. "They are still behind bars, they are still prisoners, it's
just a different kind of prison. Her words really made me feel
better."
Grow says that, in spite of all her efforts to give the
chimps a better life, nothing will ever make up for what they
have been through. In the LEMSIP laboratories, they were
infected with massive doses of HIV and pieces of their livers
and lymph nodes were biopsied on a regular basis.
"The chimps have really done a lot for us. They're heroes.
Everybody owes them something," Grow said. They have been used
for biomedical research for our benefit. They didn't choose to
live like that and we are benefiting from the drugs that were
tested on them."
Scientific Dilemma
Jim Mahoney, a veterinarian and part of the LEMSIP team that
conducted research on the chimps, was a guest at the enclosure's
unveiling. Thanks to his efforts 90 of the 240 chimpanzees of
his laboratory have found homes to spend their last days. About
100 others were sent to another laboratory where they will still
be used for research.
"I tried to save as many chimpanzees as I could so they
wouldn't subjected to anymore research," explained Mahoney, who
said he is aware of the physical and psychological suffering the
chimps go through in laboratories.
Mahoney, author of the new book Saving Molly, is still
seeking retirement homes for 24 chimps. There are about a dozen
chimp sanctuaries in the United States.
Biomedical research is not carried out in Canada although it
is not prohibited. In the United States, about 2,000 chimpanzees
are used for scientific research, Mahoney said. He said there is
also a colony of laboratory chimps in Holland and a small one in
Africa.
"Chimpanzees are the only animals that will allow the
various viruses to multiply in their bodies and produce some of
the same changes that occur human beings. With hepatitis A, B and C, liver tissue and the
bloodstream undergo the same changes as in humans. But for
reasons scientists do not understand, the animals do not suffer
from the symptoms of hepatitis or HIV."
Hard to Unlock the Puzzle
"There is probably very important information there that we
need. But it's very hard to study and unlock the puzzle,"
Mahoney said, adding that science needs an absolute knowledge of
the moment of infection.
It would not be possible to test vaccines on human beings
because the only way to do it is to follow up with an infectious
dose of the virus. In research, the vaccine has to protect the
chimpanzees from approximately 1,000 times the infectious dose.
"You could not do that with a human being, it would be
totally unethical,'' Mahoney said. "Now the question of course
is: Is it ethical to even do it with chimpanzees? Therein lies
the dilemma: If you can't do it to a human being, can you do it
to an animal?"
He thinks humans have no right to use animals in this way
but neither can they abandon the knowledge gained through
medical research in the past 50 years. "I can't bring myself to
ignore that (medical) need. But now that the laboratory no
longer exists, I'm not sure I would want to take on that
terrible pain again. It's horrible."
Like all the other people attending the party at the Fauna
Foundation ranch, Mahoney was happy to see the chimps finally
enjoying some fresh air. "It was wonderful. Some of them I have
known for 20 years," he said.
"I've spent two years trying to find a home for them, so a
lot of emotions have been invested in those animals. And the
fact that they do remember me is even more touching."
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