Negra Nesting

Negra is a large chimpanzee with a Buddha-style belly. She is surprisingly pale, given her name, partly because her face is naturally not as dark as many chimpanzees, and partly because she has lived without sunlight for most of her life. She shows her age; it is hard to picture Negra as an infant clinging to her mother as her family traversed the forests of her African home. She was captured from this home in 1973, only a few years before it became illegal to import chimpanzees into the US from the wild. Her mother and other family members were probably killed in order to capture Negra and bring her to the United States.

Among other things, Negra was forced to produce infant chimpanzees who were to be sold into research. She had three babies taken away from her for this purpose. Negra was denied the opportunity to raise her own children as she would have in the wild, but she maintains a maternal quality which has probably helped in her leadership role at Buckshire. Her calm physical presence alone clearly relaxes the less dominant individuals of the group. She has been described as the queen of her clan, and it is easy to see why.

During my visit, Negra did not seek my attention until I began to hand out newspaper. She took every piece of newspaper that was offered to her, and then went to what was clearly her spot on the platform ledge of the last cage. She carefully folded and placed each sheet of paper to make her small nest – a natural instinct in chimpanzees. After giving out the newspaper, I would occasionally go over to Negra’s side of the building and quietly call her name. She would immediately (although slowly) get up, come over, and look into my eyes. I would give her a handful of peanuts, she would softly grunt and then return to her bed.

The regular enrichment given to the chimpanzees at Buckshire consists mainly of newspaper, peanuts, hard plastic balls (which Negra showed no interest in), and occasionally some “special treat” like snow from outside. It is a far cry from what she needs and deserves.

It is difficult to say how many more years Negra will live, but she clearly needs and deserves to live out the rest of her life in a sanctuary. Negra deserves to be forever free from the fear of life as a laboratory subject. She deserves to have choices in her life. She deserves to have room to walk, run and climb. She deserves to have access to the outdoors. She deserves a daily supply of a wide variety of food. And she deserves lots and lots of blankets so she can finally make the bed that will truly make her feel content.

Diana