Sometimes the chimpanzees do something we’ve never seen before. Once in a while we are able to capture it on video!
chimp
Happy “Belly Button Birthday”, Lynette!
Kevin Baldwin sponsored a day of sanctuary for the chimpanzees and Lynette Sali! Kevin shared this very touching message about his gift:
“In accordance with Lynette’s Christmas wish, I am making a donation on her behalf celebrating her “belly button” birthday on September 2nd. She is amazing having survived a rare form of blood cancer requiring a kidney transplant, the kidney of which was donated by her sister. Merry Christmas and a very happy belly button birthday Lynette!!”
Kevin, we are so touched by this special gift for the chimps in Lynette’s honor! We couldn’t be happier to be part of such a day of celebrating life and all the incredible gifts it brings.
Lynette, from our hearts, thank you for thinking of the chimpanzees and for sharing your life with them and making a lasting difference in their world. All of us here wish you the happiest of days!
Foxie:
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A Fine Forage
First things first – the Summer Biddin’ online auction is crazy! As I write this (way later than I intended to be writing a blog post), the total is up to $21,761! Thank you to everyone who has bid on items and donated to Raise the Barn. Bidding ends Monday night!
Now, for the chimp day.
We were planning for a lunch forage on the hill, and I noticed that we had a bounty of corn in the fridge, so we decided to put out whole ears still in the husk as part of the forage.
Negra was pretty much in heaven:
She also picked up some cattails for later:
Volunteer Chad did a really good job of corn distribution and everyone got in on the action.
Missy:
Foxie:
Burrito:
Jamie:
Annie eating corn in her nest:
Jody also got some corn leftovers, but she was more focused on a very novel treat that her friend Stephanie had delivered – banana blossoms!
Burrito found a blossom on the hill on his second trip to the buffet:
Apparently it was a lot of work to eat it, or he was taking a cue from Jody who often eats in a reclined position, because he finished it off lying down:
It’s very satisfying to see the chimpanzees satisfied, isn’t it?
Back to Normal
For those of you haven’t been following the recent Jody eyelid saga, here’s a recap: Last Thursday, Jody’s eyelid was partially detached during a fight in the group at lunchtime. Our incredibly talented, dedicated, and caring vet, Dr. Erin Zamzow, reattached the eyelid with some subcuticular sutures, and Jody stayed isolated from the other chimps for another day or two to give her eye a chance to heal. On Sunday, we reunited Jody with the group, and everyone was so happy to have her back. Maybe a little too happy, because they wanted to spend a lot of time grooming her eye. We didn’t want anyone to undo Dr. Zamzow’s work, so we made the decision to re-isolate Jody the next day. She’s been getting lots of extra blankets and treats, and lots of extra attention from caregivers, but she made it clear that she wanted to rejoin her friends ASAP. This morning we got the okay from Dr. Zamzow to re-reunite Jody with the group. Happy day!
It’s been quite a stressful week for Jody, and she is ecstatic to be back where she belongs. And maybe a little exhausted from her ordeal. After lunch today she drifted off to sleep as Negra gently groomed her back.
Summer’s exhale
The lush green of summer has melted into a golden reverie. Days are still warm, but early mornings and nights are decidedly cool, sometimes even goosebump inducing. Blooms have turned to berries, seeds are scattering in the wind along with feathers from empty nest boxes, and the remaining wild families are growing, juveniles bouncing between parent and independence. Summer’s exhale.
The chimps spent a long time exploring on the hill this morning after breakfast. Longer than I’ve seen for awhile. Climbing old haunts and investigating nooks and crannies. Annie and Burrito traversed the shaky bridges and just spent time enjoying, well, their time.
Foxie and Strawberry Shortcake:
Jamie:
Jody returned from her wild foraging adventures and sat in the raceway to Young’s Hill with her wildflower treat:
Meanwhile, back in the chimp house, Foxie!
Taking a break from cleaning:
Chimpanzees and Cattails?
The Cle Elum Seven chimpanzees and their relationship with cattails goes way back. In fact, I can’t think about cattails without thinking about Burrito covered in cattail fluff way back in 2008.
We have a couple of big ponds and some wetland areas around the property and the cattails look just beautiful right now, so Anna chopped some down to add to the chimps lunch forage on the hill today.
Jody in particular likes fresh cattails and she eats both the long green leaves and the brown flowers that remind me of corn dogs. After foraging for the lunch veggies, Jody collected as many cattails as her mouth could carry and headed for the greenhouse.
Meanwhile, Negra had the escher structure to herself and was enjoying all of the food I had scattered from top to bottom.
In fact, Negra climbed up higher than I’ve ever seen her go before!
Today, Negra brought a friend with her on her adventures – a green-haired Strawbery Shortcake doll.
After a good long time foraging, Negra too went back to the greenhouse. When she spotted Jody’s cattails, she decided she should take a couple. Being the Queen, Jody allowed this theft to happen.
Negra really has been a new chimpanzee lately. Not the food-stealing – that’s been part of her repertoire for a while, but climbing up high and staying out on the hill for a long time is new. She’s also been very playful with us caregivers. There is absolutely nothing better in this world than seeing Negra laugh and be happy and relaxed. She just continues to remind us that everyone grows into themselves on their own timescale. Welcome to the sanctuary, New Negra.
The Beauty of Jody
I have been periodically looking at these photos of Jody on the computer in the chimp house throughout the day today. They just fill my heart with love for her.
All of the chimpanzees are so different from one another in so many ways and each one has qualities that pull you into their personalities.
I admire the way that Jody approaches life in a self-assured way and knows what she wants out of any given situation. She often does her own thing with her confident flair, but at the same time she’s the watchful den-mother of the group.
She has the greatest vocalizations – her happy chimpanzee low-moan we refer to as her “dinosaur noises” because they are so drawn out, and she is the most likely to give a good-night grunt from her nest at the end of the day.
Her big round eyes seem capable of taking in more than anyone’s, and there’s almost always a glimmer of hope or anticipation in them.
