I’m not sure if you’ve ever noticed, but the Cle Elum Seven are really attractive chimpanzees. Just look at these beautiful faces:
Negra:
Jody:
Missy:
Annie:
animal protection
August Birthdays
A couple of weeks ago we celebrated Foxie’s 38th birthday, and One Green Planet shared the birthday video on their site today. Check it out and please share!
Speaking of birthdays, we have another August birthday coming up—Missy is turning 39 this Saturday! We have big plans underway already, including all of Missy’s favorites: socks, slinkies, kongs, and tomatoes!
Here’s some recent photos of the upcoming birthday girl:
Missy and Annie (this picture was posted to our Instagram the other day for the 100 Happy Days challenge)
If you want to contribute toward the birthday festivities, make a donation today in Missy’s name, or become one of her pals!
The train
There is a train that goes along the river that is in the valley below the sanctuary. Negra often likes to watch the train go by at her window spot from the playroom—the train can be seen on the south side of the building and Young’s Hill. Jody however, was on the north end of the hill this morning when the train started to go by. We don’t always hear the horn blowing (because there aren’t any large train crossings near us) but you can sometimes hear a slight screech of the wheels against the tracks.
When Jody heard that this morning, she got a little spooked, and approached Jamie for some reassurance by reaching out and hugging her back. Jamie grunted (sorry, the photos don’t show that!) to sort of affirm, “yes, I heard that, too, and it’s okay.”
Still somewhat spooked, Jody retreated toward the safety of the greenhouse.
But before she could reach the building, she saw the train passing by, and I think she was comforted in seeing that the strange noise was really coming from something quite normal in their lives.
Arm rest
After the lunch forage the other day, Jamie brought in her haul and casually ate at her leisure. Pretty leisurely too, I might add, with her arm just resting on the ladder. I think we can all relate… I know I love to just sit back, relax, and enjoy a snack. Usually that snack isn’t raw onions, but Jamie’s palate must be more refined than mine 😉
Night Bag Noises
Nightbags, or night bags, are the post dinner treat for the chimpanzees here at Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest. Jamie, Jody, Missy, Annie, Negra, Foxie and Burrito all love these nut-filled bags and each has a preferred practice for how to get the most out of these small but delectable treats.
The sound of the chimpanzees crunching on nuts and seeds is, in my opinion, the sound of satisfaction and a job well done. No other noise is more evocative to me of hope, love, home, and sanctuary. But you don’t have to take my word for it. Listen for yourself and decide.
Jody and plants
Jody loves plants, of all varieties. In the wild, chimpanzees are known as “frugivores” meaning the majority of their diet is made up of fruit. But they also supplement with leaves, bark, pith, seeds, nuts, honey, ants, termites, and in some communities they will even hunt small mammals. Though Jody loves the fresh produce we offer, she also likes to supplement throughout the day with plants.
Sometimes she forages for native plants that grow wild on Young’s Hill:
or she also loves to munch on bamboo that we have planted in the greenhouse and on Young’s Hill:
and other times she likes to collect plants we put out as a forage. The other day she collected some pea tendrils from our garden:
Today she found a mouthful of cattails and took them inside to enjoy at her leisure:
(and she even found some leftover pea tendrils from the other day, too!)
Negra’s lips
One of my favorite blog posts is one that J.B. posted about the stages of Negra’s lips drooping. I think her heavy lips are one of her more endearing qualities, wouldn’t you agree?
