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"The brown capuchin is also known as the black-capped or tuffed capuchin. Its hair is very similar to the cowl or capuche (French for ‘skullcap’) worn by Franciscan monks, thus its name. Extensively hunted for meat, brown capuchins are also kept as pets in many parts of the world. In some parts of the world these intelligent primates are trained to perform household tasks for people with disabilities." This photograph was taken at Singapore Zoological Gardens.
During my excursion to South FL's Monkey Jungle last week, I had an opportunity to visit a 38 yr. old, male, Eastern Lowland Gorilla that has spent the last 28 or so years with them. One of the employees told me the Gorilla's (I didn't catch his name...I mean the Gorilla's name) sad tale of rejection and a long companion-less existence. Okay, how about we just call the Gorilla "Dave" from now on.
From what I gather, prior to calling the Monkey Jungle his home, "Dave" lived at another Zoo for about 10 years. However, prior to that, he was part of a circus attraction that had removed his canine teeth out of mixture of safety concerns and a perverse love for cruelty.
Since moving to the Monkey Jungle, "Dave's" handlers have repeatedly arranged pairings with local, single female Gorillas. Sadly, all of these dates ended in rejection. The handler I spoke to believes this is because the females didn't feel "Dave" has what it takes to protect them or their future offspring due to his deficiencies in the canine tooth department. Additionally, they considered bringing in a younger male Gorilla so "Dave" would at least have a buddy, but this idea was eventually rejected because the handlers felt he would be unable to defend himself if things went sour.
As a result, "Dave' has and continues to live a quite life of solitude in Miami-Dade county, Florida.
Why can't we just get him a set of dentures with huge canines or better yet, implant the motherfuckers. Gorillas in capacity live to around 50, so he's got some good years left to try to make things work, right? So if you know anyone that has the expertise and some good ideas regarding Gorilla dentistry, please tell them about "Dave".
Cleveland Metroparks Zoo - The Rainforest - Cleveland, Ohio USA
Francois' Langur Monkey
Class: Mammalia
Order: Primates
Scientific Name: Presbytis francoisi
Range: Southeast China to central Laos and Viet Nam
Habitat: Rocky places with trees