Wingham Wildlife Park

Primates Rescue from Israel

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 13:10:19 GMT

At Wingham Wildlife Park we are dedicated to not only conservation of endangered animals but also to the rescue of primates which have come from less than suitable conditions. We had already rescued a group of Barbary Macaques from the AAP rescue organisation in the Netherlands in 2009, as well as a number of other primates coming to the park from a number of other backgrounds. However our most recent and to date largest primate rescue effort (in terms of numbers coming in) was the import of 10 animals from the Israeli Monkey Park (park name of the Israeli Primate Sanctuary Foundation) who are based in Kfar Daniel, Israel.

The park in Israel take on any primate species which they are equipped to look after to give a home to animals coming from the illegal pet trade, laboratories, entertainment venues etc. From there they will try to outplace as many animals as possible to parks such as ourselves to allow them to balance the problem of a constant stream of animals in need of help as well as the constraints of physical space available and funding given. We are looking to work with centres such as this and the AAP more as the park progresses because we know that we have the space and knowledge to be able to help these animals which really are in desperate need of aid.

The 10 animals which we imported on 14th February 2010 were made up of 2 different species, and arrived in this country via a flight to Heathrow Airport, where they were picked up by us personally. We have now been licensed by DEFRA to move quarantined animals from one quarantine location (such as the animal reception centre at Heathrow) to another (such as our own quarantine facility at the park). We are over the moon with being not only licensed to move our own animals but also quarantine them on site, as it gives us the opportunity to care for our animals as soon as they touch down in the UK.

The first of the two species which we received from Israel is a group of 6 Tufted Capuchins (made of 3 males and 3 females). These animals range in age from almost 16 years through to our youngest group member at 5 ½ years of age. This group has been together for almost 6 months after 2 of the males were added to an already existing group of 1 male and 3 females. The original group was made up of the 2 eldest animals (Dor and Domino), their daughter (Dominic) and a 3rd unrelated female called Yukatan. The 2 males who were later added are called Jelly and Limon.

We have all of the details associated with this group in terms of their origin, relation and birth dates because they came from a controlled breeding program. The whole group was retired from the breeding program in Israel, and it is unclear exactly why the project was abandoned leading to the animals being turned over to the Israeli Primate Sanctuary Foundation. All of the Capuchins however are in great condition and are already heading towards being favourites amongst the keepers (and we are sure will be the same for the public once they leave quarantine and can be fully appreciated), because of their incredible ability to interact with people.

The second species which we imported are a group of 4 male Squirrel Monkeys, who even though are also in great condition sadly, have not come from such well documented backgrounds. All we know for certain about this group is that they were all confiscated from the illegal pet trade, being offered for sale in Israel by a breeder who was not allowed to use these animals for commercial ends. The ages of the animals had been estimated by the Israeli Primate Sanctuary Foundation as being between 4 and 5 years old.

Having come from abroad they are all currently being housed in our quarantine facility which they will live in for the first 6 months of their stay in the UK to ensure that they have not brought in any contagious diseases in to our park (and surrounding wildlife) such as rabies. They had been given extensive tests before coming to the UK to screen for a variety of health issues, all of which came back negative, and it is now only a legal requirement, for them to be screened for rabies.

We are looking forward to them being able to go in to their permanent homes in the near future, giving them the freedom of being outdoors, with the last hurdle for these 10 primates to cross being the transition to our British weather, after having spent their whole lives in the far warmer Israel.

We would love to be able to rescue more of these animals (both the species discussed above, as well as many other primate species), however there are great costs involved with such rescues, especially from abroad. The move across to the UK, when you include shipping, quarantine and vets fees alone will cost us £15,000 by the time they reach the end of their quarantine stay. On top of that we are also building 2 brand new enclosures to house these species at the park, and are looking for all of the support we can to help this be possible now, and again in the future.

At the park we sell Peacock feathers and Porcupine quills, with all money from these sales going directly towards our primate rescue fund. Please help us to help them by buying these gifts in our gift shop. At the same time we would like to thank everyone who has so far not only purchased these items but also those who have made very generous donations directly to this fund.

Salamander, Fire (Salamandra salamandra)

Sun, 07 Mar 2010 17:43:21 GMT

Animal facts

Size
This species generally reaches lengths of around 8 inches, however depending on its locality type this length can vary somewhat.

Habitat and Distribution
Through all of Southern and Central Europe this species can be found anywhere you can also find moist forests (or moist areas such as ponds and streams within forests). It is a terrestrial species which spends much of its time living amongst the leaf litter and mosses which cover the ground.

Age
This can be a very long lived species with the record being 50 years in captivity.

Diet
This species feeds on a variety of small insects including spiders, small worms, flies and beetles.

Groups and Breeding
These animals are fairly placid towards one another and can be seen in very large numbers in some areas. During breeding season a male will deposit a small sperm packet on the floor and then encourages a female to walk over it and lower her cloaca to draw it in to her to fertilise the eggs. The eggs will develop inside her where they will then be deposited as they hatch out in to small bodies of still or slow running water.

Threats
This animal does face a number of threats from human encroachment on to its natural habitat and is becoming less common throughout a number of areas in its range.

Interesting fact's
This animal comes in one colour combination, which is black and bright yellow. However depending on which area of its range it comes from the patterns can vary dramatically. For example the Spanish ones are black with a number of yellow spots, while the Russian ones are black with 2 thick stripes along its whole length.

Bibrons Gecko (Chondrodactylus bibroni)

Sun, 07 Mar 2010 17:29:30 GMT

Animal facts

Size
This gecko reaches lengths of around 8 inches.

Habitat and Distribution
This African gecko can be found in dry forests and rock faces across almost all of the southern parts of Africa.

Age
This gecko has been known to live for 18 years or more in captivity.

Diet
The majority of this carnivorous geckos diet is made up of invertebrates such as crickets, locusts and spiders, however it will also feed on very small mammals and reptiles when it is fully grown.

Groups and Breeding
This is an aggressive gecko when it comes to males of the species however females can often be found living both amongst themselves and the males. After breeding these geckos lay 2 eggs, which they can do approximately 5 to 10 times per year. These eggs hatch after 45 days.

Threats
This is a wide spread gecko which is not generally threatened even through predation because of its prolific breeding habits.

Interesting fact's
As people move further in to areas which were first populated by these geckos they are becoming more and more common in peoples houses, where they are capitalising on the extensive array of food items.

Black & White Tegu (Tupinambis merianae)

Sun, 07 Mar 2010 17:11:44 GMT

Animal facts

Size
This lizard reaches a total length of around 4.5 feet, however larger specimens have been recorded. This is an extremely stocky animal, especially with males.

Habitat and Distribution
This rainforest dweller can be found throughout much of Eastern and Central South America, where it spends almost all of its time on the ground.

Age
The average lifespan of this reptile is from 10 to 15 years.

Diet
This is a carnivorous lizard feeding on a variety of invertebrates, small mammals, lizards, snakes, birds, eggs and amphibians. However in times of short food supply they have also been known to feed on small ammounts of fruit matter.

Groups and Breeding
These lizards are generally fairly solitary and during the breeding season females will lay around 35 to 40 eggs which hatch after approximately 90 days. The small young have a bright green coloration where the adults have their white areas, to allow them to better fit in with the vegetation of the forest floor.

Threats
This lizard is not threatened in the wild other than the threat of deforestation.

Interesting fact's
This is one of the most advanced and intelligent lizards in the world.

Crab, Caribbean Hermit (Coenobita clypeatus)

Sun, 21 Feb 2010 14:32:44 GMT

Animal facts

Habitat and Distribution
This species starts its life in the sea and spends its early life around the shoreline, but with age some will wander far inland and burrow under trees and near peoples houses. Their natural distribution covers The Bahamas, Belize, Venezuela, Southern Florida, The Virgin Islands and the West Indies.

Age
This species can live for around 30 years, and in some cases have been known to live for 40 years.

Diet
These animals are omnivores feeding both off plant matter and scavenging for dead animal matter such as fish.

Groups and Breeding
This species does not live in groups as such, but may be found in very close proximity with one another, however once a year these crabs will congregate in massive numbers in a number of areas where they will leave their shells on the land and crawl in to the sea, where they will then spawn in huge numbers. Due to the fragile nature of the crabs without their shells, many empty shells are left on the beaches in the morning where crabs have been eaten by predators.

Interesting fact's
These crabs have a very fragile exo skeleton which offers them little protection and is not well suited for living on the land. Due to this they have to scavenge around the sea for a suitably sized shell in which they can live. Their abdomen sits inside the shell, and the opening is slightly larger than the crabs claw, so that if they need to retreat the opening is sealed by the claw making them very difficult to remove.

Capuchin, Tufted (Cebus apella)

Sun, 21 Feb 2010 12:36:17 GMT

Animal facts

Size
This animal has a body length which generally does not exceed 57cm, with a tail of around the same size. This stocky primate reaches weights of approximately 4.8kg in mature males, while females may only reach around 2kg.

Habitat and Distribution
This is a forest dwelling species, which is most commonly found in rainforests. Its distribution covers much of Brazil and Guyana.

Age
In captivity this species has often lived to 45 years or more.

Diet
This animal feeds on a variety of fruits, leaves, nuts, animal prey and insects, all of which are foraged for in groups, with any individual which finds food alerting the rest of the group with a high pitched whistle. The dominant male will sit in the middle of the group where the most food is and where he is most protected from predators.

Groups and Breeding
This animal lives in groups of 2 to 20 individuals, which often only have a single mature male in its ranks. These groups wonder throughout their range and do not have fixed territories. After mating the females will have a gestation period of approximately 180 days with generally one baby being born (however twins are not unheard of). This young is weaned at 9 months old, but will not reach sexual maturity itself until it is 7 years old.

Threats
This species is not listed as being under threat of extinction even though it does have many factors which may alter this level in the future. It is hunted for both food by locals as well as for being shipped to captive environments including the pet trade or laboratories. Finally, as with so many animals it is under constant threat from the degradation of its habitat by logging.

Interesting fact's
This animal is well known for its use of tools, in particular the use of stones to crack open hard nuts. A nut is placed on to a large anvil rock with a groove hollowed out for it to sit in. A smaller hard rock is then picked up by the animal and smashed down on top of the nut to open it.

The original group of these animals in our park was rescued from The Monkey Park (run by the Israeli Primate Sanctuary Foundation) in Israel. Please click here for more information about this origins, journey and our final plans for the group.

Monkey, Squirrel (Saimiri sciureus)

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 11:45:36 GMT

Animal facts

Size
The body of this primate ranges in size from 10 to 14 inches, with the tail being around 2 inches longer than the body in most cases. This is a slender animal with females weighing only 20 pounds in some cases, while the much heavier males can reach 45 pounds.

Habitat and Distribution
This South American primate can be found in the forests of Brazil, Venezuela, Guyana, Surinam and Columbia.

Age
The average age of this animal in captivity is around 20 to 25 years.

Diet
The majority of this animals diet is made up of fruit, however they have a high protein requirement and as such will also eat a lot of animal prey, such as insects, frogs, birds and even bats.

Groups and Breeding
These animals can live in troops made up of 50 to 100 individuals, however they have been recorded living in troops up to 500 strong. Within these groups there is a very strict male dominated hierarchy. During the breeding season males will become very promiscuous and females will be mated by several males, ready to give birth 6 months later at the start of the wet season, where the food is most abundant. Females will give birth to just a single baby.

Threats
Even though this animal is somewhat protected under CITES law it is still hunted for food as well as being collected for both the pet trade and for laboratory use. However the greatest threat faced by this animal is the deforestation of their habitat.

Interesting fact's
These animals will sear urine on their feet and tails as well as rubbing food items in to their tail. It is thought that this practice is designed to help them mark out scent trails.

Crocodile, West African Dwarf (Osteolaemus tetraspis)

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 14:34:50 GMT

Animal facts

Size
This species of crocodile rarely reaches a length of 1.6m, with males often being slightly larger than females.

Habitat and Distribution
This species can be found in rivers, lakes and swamps throughout much of Western and Wet-Central Africa including Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Senegal, Gabon, Ghana, Tog, Gambia, Liberia and Nigeria.

Age
This species has been recorded to live for as long as 75 years.

Diet
This is an opportunistic animal which will feed on fish, mammals and even large invertebrates such as crabs. However it will also feed on carrion when given the opportunity, which it will forage for in and near water.

Groups and Breeding
This species can be found in small groups however is mostly found leading a solitary existence, and even when living in groups, each individual will usually have its own burrow. After breeding the female will lay a clutch of up to 10 hard shelled eggs, which will hatch out after incubating in a nest for 100 days.

Threats
The two main threats for this crocodile are hunting for meat (for local consumption) as well as deforestation. It has a beautiful skin however it is of very low quality when turned in to leather because it is so heavily armoured, and covers such a small area, due to this it is not hunted for its skin.

Interesting fact's
This is the smallest of all crocodilian species.

Gibbon, Northern White Cheeked (Nomascus leucogenys)

Fri, 29 Jan 2010 13:02:19 GMT

Animal facts

Size
The average size of this animal is 1.5 to 2 feet and it can weigh almost 13 pounds.

Habitat and Distribution
This primate lives in temperate forests throughout parts of Vietnam and Laos. Much of its range was naturally in China (which gave its other common name of the Chinese White Cheeked Gibbon) however there have been no sightings of this animal in China since 1990 despite extensive surveying work. It is now thus believed to be extinct in its Chinese range.

Age
The average lifespan of this animal in the wild is believed to be around 28 years.

Diet
The vast majority of this animals diet is made up of fruits which it will forage for throughout its whole waking day. In smaller amounts it will also feed on some leaves and insects.

Groups and Breeding
This species lives in family groups based around a bonded breeding pair (which will remain together for their whole life). These animals will advertise their territories through singing. New groups form as single animals, which have broken away from their family group or have been the result of a group split due to the death of the parent pair, find their way together to bond as a new pair.

Threats
A major contributor to the decline of this species in the wild has been through hunting for food and their use in traditional medicine. However the largest contributor to their decline, as with so many species, has been the deforestation of their natural habitat.

Interesting fact's
It is very easy to tell the difference between males and females of this species. The males are of a very dark colouration over their whole body except for the white tufts of fur around their cheeks (hence their common name). Females on the other hand contrast entirely by having a cream base coat with a black tuft of fur on top of the head, and black skin in the face.

Monkey, Goeldi's (Callimico goeldii)

Fri, 29 Jan 2010 12:40:21 GMT

Animal facts

Size
This monkey has a body length of around 8 inches, with the tail adding a further 12 inches or so to its size.

Habitat and Distribution
This species lives in rainforests through the upper amazon basin regions of Bolivia, Brazil, Columbia, Ecuador and Peru.

Age
This species generally lives for around 10 years in captivity.

Diet
This species feeds on a variety of food items including fruits, sap and a large number of insects.

Groups and Breeding
This species will give birth to a single baby per year after a gestation of 140 to 180 days. After birth the mother will care for the young for the first 2 to 3 weeks, however after this period the male will take over most of these responsibilities with the exception of feeding. Weaning takes around 65 days.

Threats
This species is listed as being vulnerable due to its range being greatly fragmented by unsuitable living habitat where the forest has been destroyed through logging activity. Due to this there is an increased difficulty in breeding new and pure bloodlines and increased competition between groups over food.

Interesting fact's
This species shares its range with a number of Tamarin species and can sometimes be seen living amongst mixed groups of Tamarins in the wild.