Sunrise Surprise 11/18

On the way to the Sunrise Surprise Stroll, I begin my mornings by seeing how many Zoo bunnies I pass going in. "Zoo bunnies" are wild California brush rabbits that live around, and even in, the Zoo. As I arrive in the very early dawn, I always see them in the Zoo's mini train yard and along the path to the Otto Center. This morning I saw four Zoo bunnies! I stopped a moment to look at a red squirrel on the path, stooping down so as to not disturb him. He approached me after a moment, stood up straight on his hind legs, and flashed me! I'd never seen that behavior before, and after he did it a second time, I decided it was best to wait in the trailer. =) I'm sure that's not was he was actually doing, but it was both funny and bizarre.

Once our guests arrived, the cool morning began at the nursery in the Children's Zoo. There we were introduced to bonobo siblings Mali and Tutapenda. Mali was born September 24, 2007 to mom Ikela and dad Yenge. It was a hard birth, and Mali's arm was injured- one of the complications that brought her to the nursery. She has been thriving there and a big hit with all of the Zoo's guests. Shortly thereafter, on October 29, 2007, a baby was born to mom Lolita and same dad Yenge. His name, Tutapenda, means "we will love" in Swahili. He was rejected by his mother at birth. Keepers use nursery rearing as a last resort, preferring each animal to be raised naturally whenever possible. However, one of Lolita's older offspring, Machumba, repeatedly brought baby Tutapenda to the keepers. She remembered the keepers caring for other babies and wanted them to take him as well!

Baby bonobos develop much like baby humans. Unlike many monkies, these apes are not able to get around shortly after birth. They are currently on their backs in their crib, and their abilities are pretty much limited to waving around their arms and legs, sucking on their fingers and toes. They drink milk, whether from bottle or mom, for about two years. Right now, both Mali and Tutapenda have been getting much more expressive facially. Nursery keepers say that Tutapenda puts on a really funny "serious" pouty face when he wants something now. The babies are being introduced back into the bonobo society slowly and incrementally. They are takento the bonobo enclosure frequently. At first, they are placed in a protected chute. The other apes can reach in to hold, touch, and kiss the babies. After awhile, adults that are known to be good tempered and kind are allowed in with them. The chute is small and well padded to help prevent any incidents. Little by little, the exposure is increased until the group has accepted the babies, and they are released into the enclosure to spend the rest of their days with their group. It's an anxious time for keepers, but they have had great success. The babies do initially bond with the nursery keepers as "moms", but they quickly come to realize the difference between a uniform and fur, and they transistion into their natural environment smoothly.

Leaving the Children's Zoo, we went down into the heart of Monkey Trails. There amongst the guenons reside three mandrills. There are two females, Angie and Dora, born in 1990 and 1992 respectively. And there is one unmistakable, unmissable male, PJ, born November 17, 1991. As the dominant male, PJ has a bright vividly rainbowed behind. He's also huge. The multi-colored rump is dual purpose. It is thought that it provides enhanced visibility to aide in group movement through dense rainforests. It is also a sign of dominance. The higher up the social structure a male is, the more colorful he is. If an individual "moves up" to alpha male, he will actually become more colorul. With most primates, a "smile" is actually a threat; if a monkey or ape is smiling at you, it's not good news! However, mandrills are one of the only primates that actually grin as a greeting. PJ gave us a few grins with keeper prompting, and it was awesome and hysterical. Threats are made by "yawning", which shows off his enormous canines, and head bobbing. That was interesting to learn, as later on in the day when a keeper was walking the miniature horse through Monkey Trails, I knew then by the head bobbing that PJ was not too thrilled by the visit!

The mandrills have been trained to perform a variety of behaviors that help the keepers do quick and stress-free medical checks. They use a combinaion of verbal and visual cues, though they've found that the monkies are mainly reacting to the visual requests. We were able to see each of these behaviors; though very useful, they are also cute. They will touch each of their feet or their chest to the fencing, allowing keepers to check foot health and hear their heartbeat. They will stick out their tongue and open their mouths to confirm dental and general health. They turn their bottoms to the keepers and also stand up tall, touching a finger to the keeprs finger, allowing them to see their entire body, making sure everything is alright there. And they will grin, which keepers admit is the one request that has no real medical necessity. =) All of the behaviors, both important and great to see, are memorable and help to educate the public about this incredible and intelligent species.

A great example of the mandrill social hierarchy, we heard a story from our educator's time at the Moorpark College Teaching Zoo. Several women students were working and learning with the zoo's mandrills. The dominant male there ranked the women according to his liking, just as he did with the female mandrills. The higher up the social structure, the better he treated these students. The unlucky women on the bottom of the alpha male's "list" received the worst treatment, getting the most hard pinches and smacks when they were with him! Even there in Monkey Trails, when Angie was exhibiting the training behaviors, she looked around each time first to make sure PJ was nowhere near. The behaviors require submissive posturing, and she did not want to appear vulnerable in front of him.