As Chad mentioned on Tuesday, Jamie’s Group is off Young’s Hill for the moment so we can complete the new outdoor expansion. Since the original 7 are so used to foraging for their own browse this time of year, it seems particularly important to make sure they still get to sample the edible plants growing naturally on the property. This afternoon Chad visited the pond to harvest some fresh cattails for their enjoyment. I love watching the subtle cattail fluff slowly drift around the greenhouse.
Investigation: Bubble Machine
A little bubble machine enrichment makes for some silly chimpanzee faces. See if you can spot Lucky’s micro tongue flexes (my personal favorite part of this video)!
It seems like just yesterday…
It seems like just yesterday that we watched J.B. pull a white Ford Transit van into the driveway carrying the precious cargo that is Mave, Willy B and Honey B. While it seems like no time has passed, it has in fact been 3(!!!) years today since that momentous occasion and A LOT has changed around here since that day. Take a trip down memory lane with me and watch the video we made in 2019 about their journey.
Here’s just a few things that have changed since that day:
You may have noticed we weren’t wearing masks in the video because the pandemic wasn’t on our radar yet. Ahhh good times…
When they arrived at the sanctuary, the 3 newcomers moved right into the new Front Rooms and Mezzanine space. Since then, we have added a lot of new living space for them. This space continues to expand to this day as staff and volunteers string wire after wire for the upcoming new outdoor space called “The Bray.”
On a personal note, I was pregnant with a little baby Luna at the time of their arrival. Luna, now over 2 and a half years old, has fully transformed into a rambunctious toddler but still remains a curiosity to Honey B.
There are now only 10 chimpanzees left awaiting their move from Wildlife Waystation. Read the latest news about the remaining Chimpanzees in Need from the North American Primate Sanctuary Alliance.
There were a lot of things that definitely didn’t go as “planned” (like our first introduction attempts) but the absolute best thing to happen since the arrival of Willy B, Honey B and Mave is their integration with the Lucky 6 group. Nothing brings more joy to us than to watch these friendships blossom.
A big cheers to many more years of sanctuary friendships!
Mave play bites Dora’s foot:
Cheers to many more munching moments like this one..
Willy B eats his lettuce from today’s anniversary party:
And cheers to countless more moments of intense eye contact with the incomparable Honey B:
Happy arrival anniversary to these 3 remarkable beings!
Wind and Willows
Today we awoke to an entirely different climate from last week. Cooling wind relief rolled in overnight to Central Washington and we are enjoying a perfect (although blustery) day in the upper 60’s. I even had to click on my car’s heated seats on my way to work!
Chad and I spent the morning cleaning the original side of the building and I sensed the chimpanzees were all enjoying the drop in temperatures. Jamie went for frequent explorations on Young’s Hill as she needed to check on J.B. and the progress being made on the new enclosure fence line. She skipped a playroom cabbage forage and opted to go outside instead of letting me close of the Greenhouse for cleaning. Meanwhile, Negra covered her head with a leopard print blanket to add that extra layer of comfort back into her nest.
I captured a few random moments from the day.
Portrait Studio Jamie:
Jamie examining her new book about Egypt (and mummies):
Here Jamie lovingly looks at her favorite book about Bonobos:
Since we didn’t get the Greenhouse closed off, we opted to put out some browse in the front rooms after we fully cleaned and disinfected them. Chad and Grace harvested fresh willow on the property and the chimpanzees eagerly collected the branches for consumption. No one was more eager to eat the willow than Missy:
Missy even kept a good grip on her willow during a quick wrestling match with Burrito:
Jamie again:
Burrito:
Meanwhile on the other side of the building, Kelsi captured this pretty spectacular moment. We counted seven chimpanzees in this grooming puddle!!
“Home! That was what they meant, those caressing appeals, those soft touches wafted through the air, those invisible little hands pulling and tugging, all one way.”
-Kenneth Grahame, The Wind in the Willows
Chimpanzees in the mist(er)
The temperature is hovering around 100 degrees right now in Cle Elum and we all feel it! Luckily, we have many ways to protect the chimpanzees and staff from the extreme elements. In fact, as I type, I can hear the chimps slurping on homemade popsicles that Chad just handed out. Just before lunch we played around with some mister hose attachments to see if anyone was interested. Honey B and Rayne were happy to try it out. I love watching their wild expressions as they try to catch as much water as possible.
Speaking of beating the heat… If I had one wish for the chimps this July, it would be for the amazingly generous donation of that certain portable evaporative cooler that has been hanging out at the top of our Amazon wish list.
Here’s Foxie expending as little energy as possible today:
The no swim zone
A common question people ask is if we put pools out for the chimpanzees (particularly in the summer) to sit or swim in. Yes we put out troughs, buckets and small pools of water out for them. However, swimming (or even standing) in shallow water is not something they like to do.
Most chimpanzees avoid water submersion of any type at all cost. Chimpanzees have dense muscular bodies that make them terrible swimmers and really adept sinkers. Perhaps you may have seen water moats carefully designed at zoos and sanctuaries to keep chimpanzees from escaping their enclosures. These moats usually include an additional barrier to prevent the chimpanzees from accidentally falling in the water. There are a few exceptions to this rule of course, but none of those exceptions live at CSNW.
That being said, the chimpanzees at this sanctuary love to enjoy water in other formats.
They love to eat water in its solid form. Here’s Cy:
Jamie in particular likes a good misting:
Here’s Rayne getting hydrated during Gordo’s birthday party earlier this week:
The chimpanzees have access to water spigots in their enclosure 24/7. Here Honey B drinks straight from the tap:
Jamie fills her watering can at the spigot so she can have her beverage “to go”:
Foxie uses a straw to enjoy a drink bucket that’s placed outside her enclosure:
Above you will also find a video of Missy and Burrito “fishing” for sunflower seeds as an afternoon enrichment project. Notice how Missy perches on the edge of the trough and strategically positions herself so she doesn’t get her feet wet.
We are on the edge of a big heat wave coming our way next week so we will certainly be working at keeping the chimps extra hydrated and comfortable in the coming days. Stay cool friends!
It’s World Chimpanzee Day!
In case you haven’t already heard, today is World Chimpanzee Day!
Here are the Goals of World Chimpanzee Day, straight from the official website:
- Celebrate our closest living relative in the animal kingdom.
- Improve understanding by educating global audiences about their uniqueness and innate value as a species, as well as their importance to ecosystems.
- Raise awareness and inspire action about threats they face in the wild including habitat loss, disease, and wildlife trafficking, while also advocating for their welfare in captive situations.
On this World Chimpanzee Day, we also remember one of the day’s founders and dedicated chimpanzee advocate, Steve Ross. Earlier this year Diana wrote this touching blog in his memory.
At the sanctuary, we celebrated the big day with our chimpanzee friends by setting out multiple forages of freshly picked roses. Kelsi grabbed this heart warming video of Terry’s official flower inspection. Eventually, the roses ended up as a snack for him too ☺️
