Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

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Where There’s a Hill, There’s a Way

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The chimpanzees in Jamie’s group often begin their mornings by patrolling their outdoor enclosure, Young’s Hill.

Downpours, blizzards, and extreme cold are just about the only events that can deter them from engaging in this ritual activity. The temperature was well below freezing this morning when I opened the door to Young’s Hill after breakfast. I was quite cold despite the morning sun and a couple extra layers over my scrubs, so I doubted any of them would want to be outside either. I had equipped my shorter camera lens thinking that I might photograph a brave chimp or two as they curiously peeked their heads across the threshold.

I was quite wrong (as we humans so often are when we attempt to predict chimpanzee behavior).

The chimpanzees darted out into the wide open habitat in a single file line, diverging further up the slope and dispersing among the structures and bamboo. Some individuals seemed more interested in watching Aaron, Gary, Jose, and J.B. work on The Bray, while others trekked uphill to the grove of pine trees. I managed to get only unflattering shots of their backsides as they disappeared beyond my view.

Missy and Annie:

Missy, Annie and Burrito:

Foxie, Burrito and Annie:

Jamie, Foxie, Burrito, Annie and Jody:

Foxie and Burrito:

Missy (if you can spot her):

Only Negra chose to remain inside. As comedian Jim Gaffigan would probably describe her, Negra is “what you would call indoorsy.” With the exception of special events, Neggie generally prefers to nest in the greenhouse after breakfast and leaves the outdoor exploration to her companions. I stopped to visit her on my way back to the Chimp House and saw she was snoozing peacefully under a mountain of fleece blankets in the warm greenhouse.

The care staff had been busy cleaning the playrooms for a short while when J.B. shared an unexpected photo in our team’s group chat. Negra was now sitting atop a platform outside on Young’s Hill! The Queen, for some reason, decided that this chilly morning was the perfect moment to go on a hike.

I detoured into the foyer to switch lenses and dashed outside in a desperate attempt to document the moment (hoping to share it on the blog this afternoon). I made it around the corner just in time to get a single blurry photo of Negra plodding her way back into the greenhouse. Some of the other chimps remained outside for a bit longer, but Neggie’s interest in the outdoors appeared to have subsided for the day.

However brief, these unexpected winter adventures have been reason enough to keep the outdoor enclosures accessible even when the conditions are less than ideal. We never know what interests and motives the chimpanzees might have, so we give them the freedom to choose their own path whenever it is safe to do so.

Burrito sunbathing this morning:

P.S. It’s 3:00 p.m. and I just stepped outside for a quick breath of fresh air before publishing this post. The sun is now behind a wall of incoming clouds and the temperature is about to start plummeting. I started to think about how the chimpanzees were probably snuggling in the heated playroom when a dark, incongruous silhouette atop Young’s Hill caught my eye. I could just make out Missy’s stout frame as she galloped alone along the far edge of the enclosure. It was yet another surprise that shouldn’t have surprised me.

Skips Don’t Lie

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Wherever, whenever, Gordo’s ready to play chase together.

The playful “bunny hop” that Gordo performs during games of chase is perfection. The hop has been mentioned on the blog before (1, 2, 3), but I wanted to share some additional video clips so you all could see Gordo’s iconic moves up close.

Gordo has some “wallflower” tendencies; it’s not unusual for him to hang out at the group’s periphery when he wants some quiet time. Despite this aloof nature, we’ve discovered that Gordo can be coaxed into goofing around by his companions and caregivers. This gradual process begins with him sitting as stoically as possible, gazing back as we make playful gestures in his direction. Gordo’s poker face slowly begins to crack with anticipation; he often tips his hand by scratching his torso or letting out an anxious yawn. Suddenly, he bursts forward with a dramatic “bunny hop”, launching himself into a rowdy game of chase.

Instead of sprinting gracefully, however, Gordo tends to lackadaisically skip from one corner of the room to the other. He looks back at us, we pursue, and the dance goes on until one (or both) of us get winded.

Hop. Skip. Repeat.

 

The VIP Lounge

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The chimpanzees spend more time resting and socializing in the heated indoor areas as the weather gets wetter and colder.

We’ve recently been focusing much of our content on the chimps’ outdoor enclosures, especially Young’s Hill and The Bray. Large outdoor habitats are irreplaceable because they provide chimpanzees with unique opportunities to engage in “natural” behaviors such as climbing, foraging, and patrolling as a group. The greenhouse-type enclosures, including the new Riverview and Oakwood Greenhouses, also have certain characteristics that the chimps can take full advantage of at their leisure.

Even so, chimpanzees living in sanctuary also need clean, climate-controlled, enriched indoor spaces. These are locations where they can be cozy, entertained and secure, regardless of the conditions outside. It would be easy to look at the artificial interiors and think that these enclosures are inferior to the outdoor ones, but the chimpanzees don’t seem to think so. Instead, the residents seem to utilize the various spaces differently so that together they provide one expansive, complex, multi-functional home.

Sofia highlighted the indoor front rooms in her September post “Back to Front Room 7” and Anna wrote about them again in last week’s post “Small space, big fun“. I thought it might be fun to share some additional video clips of the chimpanzees enjoying that same space today!

Jamieween 2022

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This year’s iteration of Jamieween was a joyful success!

With the help of our amazing supporters, we caregivers prepared a feast and party to celebrate The Boss’s honorary birthday. The staff collected some video clips and photographs of the event to share with you all. Please be aware that we also recorded the highlights of the other group’s party but haven’t had time to sort through all the files yet. We hope to share additional content from today’s event very soon!

Some of the plentiful treats and toys we served and delivered to the chimps today:

Burrito:

Jamie:

Jody (with the prized pumpkin):

Jamie turned 45 years old this year, but the decades haven’t slowed her down one bit. Yesterday, for the first time in her life, she courageously shimmied her way up into the canopy of a real, living tree. This chimpanzee’s confidence, intelligence and curiosity truly know no bounds, and we’re honored to care for her in her sanctuary home.

Here are some of my favorite photos of Jamie from the past year:

Vignettes of Young’s Hill

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We caregivers have been excitedly toting around cameras while the chimpanzees continue to explore the new version of Young’s Hill. The outdoor habitat has retained all the lovable qualities of the original and provides the chimps with even more space and a potential for novel experiences (e.g., climbing up the trunk of a real tree). The weather has cooled substantially since last Wednesday’s big reveal, but we can still count on Jamie and her companions to do a thorough patrol of the new perimeter each morning.

For today’s blog post, I thought I’d share some additional images from the group’s first outings in Young’s Hill 2.0.

The group patrolling together:

Missy climbing a new log structure:

Burrito using the familiar Twister to get a better view:

Burrito waiting impatiently for the others to catch up:

Burrito perched on a tree trunk, inspecting the new vegetation:

Annie using a new structure to take in a new view of the property:

The most popular addition has been the grove of Ponderosa pines (and one Douglas fir) that is now located just within the enclosure’s eastern boundary. The relocated lookout tower provides a perfect vantage to both examine the evergreen trees up close and take in the scenic mountain views across the valley.

With the bright afternoon sunlight coming down from the southwest, the chimpanzees were visible as dark silhouettes against the golden backdrop of early autumn. Missy made an imposing figure when perched atop the lookout.

 

As Jenna demonstrated yesterday, focusing the camera lens on the chimpanzees is tricky when we have two layers of field fence and electrified wires between us. Our objective isn’t to make you forget about the fencing entirely, but rather to portray the chimpanzees as we perceive them, with the wires out of focus and their expressions in clear view. If you look back at any of the photographs above, you can see the hazy streaks created by the fencing that separates us and them.

Auto-focus admittedly makes tracking the chimpanzees a little bit easier, and a lens with a wide aperture helps to blur out foreground obstacles, but we still often find ourselves embroiled in games of trial-and-error just to get a few photos for the daily blog.

This image, for example…

…was taken just milliseconds before this one:

Have a great week, everyone!

P.S. The answer to yesterday’s guessing game is 17 blankets. Congratulations to Linda C., Nancy Potter, and Gayle Marie Stone for guessing correctly!

Spectators

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The chimps in Jamie’s group have been supervising the expansion and renovation of their outdoor enclosure, Young’s Hill.

It’s been a few months since J.B. gave this detailed progress report on the project, and it’s been several weeks since Chad posted this update that the chimps would be temporarily without access to The Hill. J.B., volunteers, and the team from Sage Mechanical have been working around the clock since then to quickly make the necessary additions and improvements (including moving the lookout tower to a new home). Staff have tagged in this week to help put up the last few sections of fencing and clean up the area in preparation for chimpanzees.

The chimps remain interested in all the work, but they seem to be less anxious and more curious now that Young’s Hill appears ready. We still need to conduct a comprehensive safety and security check, but it won’t be long before we let them go out and explore their new backyard.

Jamie viewing the new enclosure:

A new path leading to the Young’s Hill perimeter:

Ponderosa pines next to the new fences:

The new access gates:

Annie watching Chad and J.B. working:

The shady new location of Carlene’s Tower:

New vegetation planted in an irrigated section of Young’s Hill:

The driveway up to the new Young’s Hill gate:

The view from the new perimeter:

Foxie watching curiously:

You may have noticed the construction materials scattered around outside the enclosure. There is still much work to be done on the other side of the hill, and we’re not really “cleaning up” as much as we are migrating to the other side. From their south-facing greenhouse enclosures, the chimps in Cy’s group monitored the construction of the sanctuary’s second open-top enclosure, lovingly named The Bray.

The Sage Mechanical crew shifted their focus to The Bray as soon as they finished their work on Young’s Hill, so they were working right in front of the chimpanzees today. The chimps acted like spectators, bringing their breakfast chow up to the platforms in order to get the best view. Some of them even asked their caregivers to serve them their meals out there instead of in the interior hallway.

Katelyn serving Terry outside:

The unfinished Bray containing a few familiar structures:

Jose from Sage Mechanical working within view of the chimps:

J.B. working with Chad to install the final section of snake exclusion fence:

Gary’s arsenal of power tools:

The crew transporting fence posts with the telehandler:

Gordo watching Gary’s telehandler go by:

Ryan’s Lookout, a new installation that will be a keystone structure in The Bray:

Keep a close eye on the blog this week for further updates!

Eat, Drink and Be Terry

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We caregivers often talk about Terry’s kind and easygoing personality. He’s not without occasional bursts of machismo, but these emotional tempests quickly subside to reveal his true gentle nature. It’s always a pleasure to be in Terry’s warm presence, and he seems to hold us caregivers in equally high esteem.

Today, I sat near Terry while he industriously processed a paper braid stuffed with seeds and raisins. It’s always nice to see the chimpanzees engaged with their enrichment, and we value opportunities to share those moments with our readers and supporters. On that note, here’s a clip of Terry’s sweet face for you all to enjoy!