Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

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Missy

Portraits in Passing

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As we move through our days, we often capture little moments in passing. By the time our lead day comes around and we sit down to make the blog post, we’ve usually gathered so much content that some images end up left behind. Sometimes they don’t quite fit the week’s “theme” and other times, there’s simply too much to include. Today, I wanted to share a few portraits I took today, along with a small collection that’s been sitting on my phone, waiting for their moment.

Cy:

Foxie:

Negra:

Neggie in a nest series:

It’s hard to get portraits of Missy, she is always on the go. However today I was able to catch a moment of her sitting still:

Check out our Wish List, it’s one of the easiest and most impactful ways to help. We’ve just added a bunch of items, and every contribution goes a long way in enriching the lives of our residents!

Walking in the Rain

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We all had an adventure on this walk the other day!

It was fun to join the chimpanzees getting caught in the rain.

It reminded me of the very first heavy rain that the Cle Elum Seven experienced. Thanks to this blog, you can learn more about that experience here: Rainstorm Bravery

The photo of Missy in the doorway, watching the rain is still one of my favorites:

Missy in doorway during rainstorm

Like mother, like daughter?

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Honey B was born on June 11th, 1989. Just hours after birth she was taken from her mother and raised by human caregivers.  Her mother just so happens to be Missy, a now longtime resident at CSNW. Missy and Honey B don’t live together in the same group at the sanctuary, and that’s not for lack of trying. During the now unsuccessful introduction process between Missy and Honey B’s groups, we watched for any inclination that they might know each other, but we didn’t observe any noticeable acknowledgement.

Here’s one of the few photos I could find with them in the same frame. Honey B is on the chair and Missy is sitting in the doorway:

Despite the apparent lack of relationship between Missy and Honey B, caregivers do see some behavior similarities between the two. Whether their behaviors are due to some inherited trait, or just a coincidence, that’s open to interpretation. I’ve listed a few of their shared similarities below:

  • An amazing ability to haze caregivers. Honey B is famous for spitting huge quantities of smoothie on an unsuspecting human. Missy always chooses to back up Jamie during hazing events with a round of threat barks and even the occasional leap at the caging.

Missy:

  • They’re both high ranking individuals in their groups.

Honey B:

  • They’re popular amongst their group mates, often found in a grooming or play session.

Missy:

  • They both are extremely intelligent and socially savvy

Honey B:

  • They can be stubborn shifters, sometimes choosing to hold up the cleaning process because they decide to stay somewhere else. For Missy it’s the playroom and for Honey B, it’s usually the front rooms that they choose to hang out in.

Missy:

  • They egg on the drama.  If there’s a fight, you can usually find them in the middle of all the chaos.

Honey B:

  • They are both picky eaters, usually preferring to eat just a few of their meal items.

Missy:

Today we talked about the similarities, perhaps another day we can discuss their differences?

 

Valentine’s Day with Burrito and Friends

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Happy Valentine’s Day! Today we celebrated our forever valentines (the chimpanzees of CSNW) with a lovely party planned and prepared by caregiver Jenna! Jenna threw an amazing party, complete with chocolate pudding covered strawberries, fruit-filled ice treats, acai smoothie bowls with berries and homemade granola, chow cookies, and edible flowers in pools of gatorade. She also made mail boxes for Jamie and Cy (the resident book worms) where staff and volunteers could write notes for the chimps (or in Cy’s case, cut out pictures of people from magazines, his favorites!), and banners with photos of the chimps. Check out the video to see Burrito, Missy, Foxie, Negra, Annie, and Jamie enjoy all of their special goodies, and come back tomorrow to see Cy and friends enjoy their party!

Blue Skies

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Though the air might be chilly, the skies are blue, and for January, that’s really all we can ask for! As soon as the sun peeked through the clouds, Jamie’s group couldn’t resist soaking up some much needed Vitamin D. A little sunshine can do wonders, especially in the middle of winter!

Burrito, Annie, Foxie, and Missy were ready to get out and explore:

Burrito climbed up and enjoyed the view:

More of Burrito:

  

Missy adventured past the path and into the snow:

Foxie came out with her doll to see what was happening:

Jamie went out onto Young’s Hill for a quick lap and then tried to get some snow to go. Unfortunately, this snow is pretty hard and compacted so it wasn’t very fruitful:

If you’re looking for ways to support the chimps, our Wish List is a fantastic way to make a direct impact on their care!

Chimpanzee Locomotion (in Snow)

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Yesterday, Krissy posted a video of Rayne getting snow snacks following our first snowfall here at the sanctuary on November 17th.

You can tell in that video that the sky was a bit overcast. With a few notable exceptions, that’s how the sky has looked for most of this winter so far. The appearance of the sun receives a great deal of excitement from the humans these days.

And today, it was visible!

Perhaps Missy and Annie were equally excited for the sight of the sun because Ellen spotted them on one of the climbing structures on Young’s Hill.

I was able to climb up to the top of the observation deck and snap some photos of Missy walking back inside.

There was a path shoveled from a couple of weeks ago for the chimps to follow, but, still, they had to get their hands and feet in the snow some.

When I was looking at the photos I took, what came to mind is the way chimpanzees move.

Most often, when on the ground or a flat surface, chimpanzees are quadrupedal. That means they walk on both their hands and their feet. Their particular quadrupedal walking utilizes the flat part their feet, like humans, and the knuckles of their hands.

Chimpanzees can also walk bipedally like humans, just utilizing the bottom of their feet and allowing their arms to hang by their sides (or hold a bunch of foraged food like the photo of Missy below).

Their heads sit differently on their spine than humans and their hips are different, so bipedal walking is not as easy for them.

Missy, however, often does a “jump through” movement, especially when traversing the outdoors. In scientific circles this is known as “crutch-walking.”

You can see it in the photos below. Her arms are parallel and she pulls both of her feet through her arms at the same time.

After doing that once or twice, she moved on to the more common quadrupedal locomotion: