Brookfield Zoo in Chicago has an adorable new simian resident. A squirrel monkey, whose gender is yet to be determined, was born to 8-year-old Gizmo, an experienced mother on 10 March 2023. The baby’s dad is 8-year-old Zeus. The pairing of the parents was based on a recommendation from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Species Survival Plan (SSP).
The infant will spend between 5 and 10 weeks riding on its mother’s back before venturing off to explore on its own. Young squirrel monkeys are weaned between 4 and 6 months of age, after which time they begin eating a diet of fruits, seeds, insects, small lizards, and bird eggs. Zoogoers will notice that even with her baby on her back, Gizmo and the other squirrel monkeys are very adept climbers and move on all four limbs when walking or running across the tree branches
Their tail is used more for balancing rather than gripping. Although not endangered in their native tropical forests of northern Brazil, French Guiana, Guyana, and Suriname the species’ population is declining mainly due to hunting for meat, habitat loss, and the pet trade. There are also two other new arrivals at the zoo - cotton-top tamarins Sebastian, a 12-year-old male, and his mate, 8-year-old Cassidy, who arrived recently from another accredited zoo.