Connecticut's Beardsley Zoo
  • Home
  • About
    • Blog
    • Contact Us
    • Jobs
    • Press
  • Guest Info
    • Accessibility
    • Calendar
    • COVID Guidelines
    • For Kids >
      • Coloring Pages
      • Zoo Patrol
      • Zoo Tots
    • Our Animals >
      • Eastern Rat Snake
    • Our Plants
    • Parents
    • Zoo Cams >
      • Outdoor Red Panda Cam
      • Indoor Red Panda Cam
      • Outdoor Spider Monkey Cam
      • Indoor Spider Monkey Cam
      • Otter Cam
    • Zoo Etiquette
    • Zoo Map
  • Membership
  • Education
    • Citizen Science >
      • FrogWatch
      • MonarchWatch
    • Conservation >
      • City Nature Challenge
      • Conservation Pledge
    • Cool Blue >
      • Cool Blue Schools
    • Programs
    • Educational Resources
    • Evening Lectures
    • Field Trips
    • Just 4 Teens >
      • CDC
      • Explorers
    • Teachers
  • Support
    • Animal Sponsorship
    • Appeal
    • Corporate Support
    • Donate
    • Events
    • Gift Guide
    • Honor & Remember
    • Monthly Giving
    • Naming Opportunities
    • Wish List
  • Parties, Rentals & Weddings
    • Birthdays
    • Private Events
    • Weddings
    • Rates and Details
    • Preferred Vendors
    • Preferred Wedding Vendors
    • Event Guidelines
  • Volunteer
    • Interns
  • En Espanol
  • Buy Tickets

Press Room and News

There’s New Monkey Business Happening at Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo

7/28/2022

 
Picture
Arrival of Two New Black-handed Spider Monkeys Expands the Family Group to Four
 
BRIDGEPORT, Conn. – July 28, 2022–Two spider monkeys at the Zoo plus two new spider monkey arrivals equals a whole lot of monkeying around! The new additions, both female Black-handed spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi geoffroyi) from Montgomery Zoo in Alabama, joined their new troop in the spider monkey habitat this week. 

​Bertha, 30 years old, and Janet, 16 years old, have successfully been introduced to the Zoo’s current eight-year-old male spider monkey, Gilligan, and TT, a 22-year-old female. Both Gilligan and TT have been at the Zoo since the opening of the spider monkey habitat in June 2019. ​
“These monkeys are part of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA)’s Species Survival Program (SSP), an important part of helping these endangered animals,” Dancho said. “This species is threatened by intense habitat degradation and deforestation, so a breeding recommendation from the AZA will allow us to possibly welcome babies to help sustain the population.”
 
Zoo Director Gregg Dancho said that the spider monkey habitat was built to accommodate a larger monkey troop and features a landscaped outdoor yard with multiple opportunities for climbing and engaging in social behaviors. An arboreal species, this New World monkey hangs out in the upper levels of the forest canopy in a variety of forestland, including rainforests, mangrove swamps, and cloud forests. The monkeys have free choice in whether to be inside or outside, and large guest viewing windows are offered in both locations. 
 
“The spider monkey habitat, along with the Natt Family Red Panda Habitat and the new Andean bear habitat slated to open later this summer, are models for the kind of animal homes the Zoo will continue to build in the future,” said Dancho. 
 
About Black-handed Spider Monkeys
Black-handed spider monkeys (genus Ateles geoffroyi geoffroyi) are large, extremely agile monkeys that live in tropical rainforests from southern Mexico through Central and South America to Brazil. Also known as Geoffroy’s spider monkey, this primate can move swiftly through the trees, using its long tail as a fifth limb, sometimes suspending by its tail while eating. They spend much of their time in treetops, foraging for food: nuts, fruits, leaves, bird eggs, and spiders. Their lifespan is up to 47 years in human care. Spider monkeys are highly threatened species, with three species listed as critically endangered, five as endangered and one as vulnerable. The Black-handed spider monkey is endangered, with a decreasing population in the wild. Indigenous peoples often hunt spider monkeys for food. Logging and deforestation continue to shrink their habitat. 

Comments are closed.

    Contact

    Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo appreciates the support it receives from local, regional and national media outlets. Media representatives are invited to tour 
    Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo on their own or with the Zoo Director by calling 203-767-0334 or emailing 
    ​lisa@clairstone.com

    To be added to the media list and receive all press releases and the Zoo’s monthly e-newsletter, email your credentials and contact information to lisa@clairstone.com

    Archives

    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    December 2020
    May 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    October 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    August 2018
    March 2018

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

PRESS
JOBS
CONTACT US
EN ESPANOL
​203-394-6565
​info@beardsleyzoo.org 
1875 Noble Avenue, Bridgeport, CT 06610
Open 9am-4pm daily
​Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo is dedicated to acquainting a diverse public to the delicate balance that exists between living things and their environment.

Connecticut's Beardsley Zoo is a 501(c)(3) not for profit owned and operated by the Connecticut Zoological Society.

2019 Kids Out and About #1
Association of Zoos & Aquariums
Connecticut - Still Revolutionary
Weekly Best of Fairfield County Readers' Poll 2014
FC Buzz Events - Arts & Culture of Fairfield County
© 2022 Connecticut's Beardsley Zoo
  • Home
  • About
    • Blog
    • Contact Us
    • Jobs
    • Press
  • Guest Info
    • Accessibility
    • Calendar
    • COVID Guidelines
    • For Kids >
      • Coloring Pages
      • Zoo Patrol
      • Zoo Tots
    • Our Animals >
      • Eastern Rat Snake
    • Our Plants
    • Parents
    • Zoo Cams >
      • Outdoor Red Panda Cam
      • Indoor Red Panda Cam
      • Outdoor Spider Monkey Cam
      • Indoor Spider Monkey Cam
      • Otter Cam
    • Zoo Etiquette
    • Zoo Map
  • Membership
  • Education
    • Citizen Science >
      • FrogWatch
      • MonarchWatch
    • Conservation >
      • City Nature Challenge
      • Conservation Pledge
    • Cool Blue >
      • Cool Blue Schools
    • Programs
    • Educational Resources
    • Evening Lectures
    • Field Trips
    • Just 4 Teens >
      • CDC
      • Explorers
    • Teachers
  • Support
    • Animal Sponsorship
    • Appeal
    • Corporate Support
    • Donate
    • Events
    • Gift Guide
    • Honor & Remember
    • Monthly Giving
    • Naming Opportunities
    • Wish List
  • Parties, Rentals & Weddings
    • Birthdays
    • Private Events
    • Weddings
    • Rates and Details
    • Preferred Vendors
    • Preferred Wedding Vendors
    • Event Guidelines
  • Volunteer
    • Interns
  • En Espanol
  • Buy Tickets