Meet our latest baby gibbon at Noah’s Ark Zoo Farm
12th Sep 2014
The summer baby boom may be coming to a close but we’ve still got new arrivals swinging their way into our visitors hearts here at Noah’s Ark Zoo Farm! We’re happy to introduce the incredibly cute Siamang gibbon Seth!
Born back in July, keepers have been monitoring the tiny primate’s development ahead of formally announcing his arrival. He’s the most recent baby born to mum Salome and dad Samson. The fourth of their boys, Seth has joined Sultana, Sidney and Sam. We offered a Bristol Post reader the chance to name our new arrival – sticking to the ‘S’ theme that runs in our gibbon family. Keepers chose reader Calvin Agate’s name of ‘Seth’ for the little endangered baby gibbon and the lucky reader got the chance to come and meet his namesake. Calvin visited the Siamang gibbons at the Wraxall zoo alongside primate keeper Clare Pearce.
These black, furry gibbons hail from Malaysia, Thailand and Sumatra in South-east Asia, where populations are endangered. Known for their distinctive, loud calls which can be heard up to two miles away! Wild populations are facing a number of threats, principally from the loss of their habitat as forests are cleared by loggers – particularly in the palm oil industry. Oil palm has replaced a great deal of rainforest in Indonesia and Malaysia. Forest fires and illegal logging have further reduced forest cover – as well as the destruction of forest for coffee plantations or developments and infrastructure. Siamangs are also at risk of capture and poaching for the illegal pet trade, and in some cases also for illegal bush meat. As such, breeding programmes like those run at Noah’s Ark are vital to maintaining the future of the species. As part of his prize, Bristol Post reader Calvin Agate has adopted little Seth for a year.
Our animal adoptions are a great way to support your favourite faces at Noah’s Ark. You can support our wildlife conservation through your visits to Noah’s Ark and through adopting one of our animals for yourself. Threatened animals like Bengal Tigers, Giraffes and Gibbons are all available for adoption and as part of the scheme you’ll receive a soft toy, certificate, your name displayed at the animal exhibit and a free zoo ticket to visit your adopted animals and everyone else at Noah’s Ark. Little Seth can now be seen in our Primate section, alongside our lively Ring Tailed Lemurs, Tamarins and Marmosets. With the recent arrival of our second elephant, Janu, who joins Buta in our 5 star elephant enclosure Eden, there’s all the more recent to stop by Noah’s Ark this month!
We are open from Monday – Saturday, 10:30am – 5pm. For more information please visit the Noah’s Ark Zoo Farm website or call 01275 852606.
