Excitement was in the air this week at Tayto Park as zookeepers announced the arrival of a baby Geoldi’s Monkey! A first for the zoo team, the latest addition to the zoo located in Ashbourne, Co. Meath was born to parents Rue and Rocco, Tayto Parks resident Geoldi’s Monkeys!
As for names, this little one has no name yet, as the zookeeping team are giving the first-time parents space to bond and adjust to their new roles! Geoldi’s Monkeys are a small and vulnerable primate found throughout western regions of the Amazon basin, they are known to eat a wide variety of fruits and insects, spending most of their lives up in the tree canopy they serve the ecosystem as important seed dispersers!
This birth marks an important contribution to the conservation of Geoldi’s Monkeys as this group at Tayto Park are members of a European breeding programme (EEP), aiming towards maintaining healthy populations of these primates for the future!
Pictured are Rue with her baby Geoldi’s Monkey along with Drusilla and eldest daughter, Inda fawning over baby Kirana a female Sulawesi-Crested Macaque.
Photo Credits:
Patrick Bolger & Emma Babbington
Park and Zoo Manager at Tayto Park, Lee Donohoe said, “It’s been a very busy few weeks for the zoo team here at Tayto Park, along with the birth of our baby Geoldi’s Monkey, we also welcomed baby Kirana, a female Sulawesi-Crested Macaque towards the end of 2021, with baby lemurs also due in the coming weeks! All new arrivals and their mums are doing well and we’re looking forward to finding out the sex of our Geoldi’s Monkey soon! The birth of any species at the park is always exciting but even more so when they have such conservation importance.”
Visitors will be able to catch a glimpse of the latest zoo arrivals as Tayto Park announce the opening of it's zoo for the 2022 season with ‘Zoo Walk’ – opening this weekend, Saturday 26th of February and every weekend in March!
Home to more than 250 animals, go wild with wonder at the Tayto Park ‘Zoo Walk’, follow the discovery trail and explore over 100 species from Amur Tiger and Amur Leopard, Ring-Tailed Lemurs and Mountain Lions to a fascinating array of Birds!
Meet the Tayto Park Zookeepers and learn all about the animal collection at Tayto Park with daily talks on Big Cats, Primates, Birds, Conservation and more! All before getting up close and personal with a Birds of Prey Encounter at the World of Raptors Show, featuring birds of prey from around the globe, including vultures, eagles, owls, hawks and more!
The perfect day out for all the family, put your zoo skills to the test this Spring with Tayto Park ‘Zoo Walk’ – which schedule includes;
Big Cat Weekend – 26th/27th February - will be your chance to embrace the 2022 Year Of The Tiger with Tayto Parks Endangered Amur Tiger and Critically Endangered Amur Leopard.
Primate Weekend - 5th/6th March - will be all about some of Tayto Parks most social groups of animals, from Sulawesi-Crested Macaques to Ring-Tailed Lemurs you’ll have a wild time learning about these groups!
Small Carnivores Weekend - 12th/13th March - will be the time for some of Tayto Parks smaller zoo animals to shine in their own unique way! Zookeepers just love explaining the special adaptations of Asian small-clawed otters, corsac foxes and more!
Conservation Weekend – 19th/20th March - will be a showcase for some of the most successful animal conservation ambassadors in the Tayto Park collections! Learn about the zoos breeding programs, conservation successes and if you’re lucky you might just spot some of the newborn primates!
Bird Weekend - 26th/27th March - explore on all things feather! Discover the fantastic range of colour with the Tayto Park birds such as the Southern Ground Hornbill, Kookaburras to name just a few!
All tickets for Zoo Walk must be pre-booked from www.taytopark.ie – tickets priced at €10.00 and under 3’s GO FREE!
Slán go fóill,
Danny