Trunkline Magazine (Louisville Zoo) March 2019 | Page 13

C olobus C rossing
Imagine you and your family sit-
ting on an expanded outdoor dining
patio munching on delicious good-
ies served from the African Outpost
and observing colobus monkeys and
Schmidt’s red-tailed monkeys as they
leap and swing from place to place
within their new habitat; they may
even cross directly over your head
as you walk by the exhibit. You can
likely already hear the squeals of joy,
awe and wonder coming from your
children or grandchildren.
The monkeys have arrived in
Louisville: 4 male colobus monkeys
and 3 red-tailed monkeys. Learn
more about them below.
Monkeying Around
Four colobus monkeys arrived in
Louisville in January of 2019: a father
and his three sons. All the monkeys
in this group are from the Colum-
bus Zoo. The father of the group
is named Radi and the sons are
named Rajesh, Sheldon and Leonard
after characters from the TV sitcom
“The Big Bang Theory.” Zoo keep-
ers say the monkeys are settling in
nicely and are already displaying
their leaping abilities — sometimes
leaping clear across the width of
their off-exhibit day room from shelf
to shelf. The monkeys seem to be
a chatty group so far. “When they
aren’t pleased with each other, they
sometimes make clucking or click-
ing sounds, which are interesting to
OPENING
APRIL
2019
hear,” Gorilla For-
est Supervisor Jill Katka said. Colobus
monkeys are arboreal (tree-dwelling);
they love to climb and have a diet
consisting vegetables like onions, po-
tatoes and broccoli and leaves from
plants like forsythia, serviceberry and
other “browse” collected on Zoo
grounds during warmer months and
then frozen for the animals to enjoy
during the winter.
Three members of the second
species that will be sharing the new
exhibit, Schmidt’s red-tailed monkeys,
arrived in November 2018. Sisters
Indi and Chi Chi came from the Na-
tional Zoo in Washington, DC. Indi is
described as a confident monkey that
calmly watches over her sister. Chi
Chi is bolder, exploring enrichment
items and seeking new experiences
— but still hides behind her sister
when things get too exciting. Male
Ahnmom came from Lowry Park Zoo
in Tampa, and keepers describe him
as a young, active and curious mon-
Red-tailed monkey Ahnmom
enjoys a nutritious snack.
key that enjoys enrichment, toys and
just generally having lots of things to
do. “It’s a fun challenge keeping him
busy,” said Katka. “We like to pre-
pare things for him to investigate like
paper bags filled with hay and treats
inside. We also encourage the mon-
keys’ natural foraging behaviors by
scattering a variety of foods around
the exhibit space like peas, corn, lima
beans and other small vegetables.”
Come out and meet our new
animal ambassadors this spring!
New colobus monkeys. Tails were
slightly colored by National Zoo to
help keepers tell them apart.
Louisville Zoo Trunkline • Spring 2019 • 13