Whipsnade Zoo has shared a tender picture of two motherly Sulawesi-crested macaques doting on three-month-old infant, Eka.
Zoo member Mark Johnson captured the special moment between the primate parents Maggie and Bella at the conservation zoo. Whilst Maggie is Eka’s biological mum, these critically endangered monkeys engage in allomothering, where the female troop members all lend a hand in caring for the infants.
Eka, meaning first born, was the first addition to the troop since they moved into their new habitat, Monkey Forest, last year. Another two babies have since been born as part of the conservation breeding programme, which is carefully managed to preserve a healthy population of these sadly endangered primates.
Sulawesi crested macaques come from a tiny island in Indonesia called Sulawesi and due to pressures from habitat loss and poaching the population has declined by roughly 80 per cent, leading to the animals being classed as critically endangered. The macaques at Whipsnade Zoo are part of an international conservation breeding programme, to help boost the numbers of these monkeys.
ZSL, the conservation charity behind Whipsnade Zoo, works across southeast Asia and around the world to protect animals like the Sulawesi crested macaques from threats including habitat loss and destruction.
ZSL is working with palm oil production companies in Indonesia to encourage sustainable production and practices, which helps reduce habitat loss. ZSL also works alongside local communities and governments in Asia to halt the smuggling of precious animals like the critically endangered pangolin, as well as the poaching of tigers.
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