Little cuties!
A new baby at Trentham Monkey Forest
Four baby Barbary macaques have been born at Trentham Monkey Forest – high up in the treetops as they would be in the wild. Conservationists at the Stoke-on-Trent attraction say having a successful baby season is a “small but important win for a highly endangered species”, as over 50% of wild Barbary macaque populations have declined over 40 years.
It is now thought that fewer than 8,000 Barbary macaques remain in the wild.
Trentham Monkey Forest is home to 140 free roaming Barbary macaque monkeys, who’s natural behaviours are preserved due to the environment of which they live. The primates go about their days living remarkably similar lives to that of wild Barbary macaques in Morocco and Algeria, as the three social groups thrive within the 60-acre forest all-year-round.
The park is never certain whether a female could be pregnant and for the past few months, the monkey forest team has been observing a few monkeys from afar to see who a potential monkey mum might be.
Barbary macaques are strictly seasonal maters, mating in the winter with a gestation period of around five-and-a-half months. The park lets nature take its course and eagerly anticipates new arrivals during the warmer parts of the year.
During late spring and early summertime, expecting female monkeys will head to their sleeping areas of the woodland and could at any time, emerge with a clinging bundle of joy, the following day. This is usually a lovely surprise for the monkey team who usually spot a new arrival on its first ever morning, when they enter the woodland to feed the groups their breakfast. Lucky visitors to the woodland might even spot a new-born that is just hours old, on the same day we confirm a birth, if they happen to enter the park on the same day as a birth.
Head Guide Anna Smith who has been looking over the primates since the park opened in 2005, said: “It’s hard to describe how amazing baby season is. The Barbary macaque is a species that experiences challenging times in the wild. Being victims of the illegal pet trade, suffering habitat loss and experiencing wildfires has had a profound impact on their wild populations. Welcoming between six to 10 babies to the forest, who will go on to live remarkably similar days to their wild counterparts gives this species in jeopardy a powerful lifeline and is a small yet important victory for them. As we welcome four fresh bundles of joy to the woodland, we cannot wait to see who’s next to join the Monkey Forest family, with more babies expected to arrive soon.”
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