Installment #5
Read Installment #4: Little Guenon, Big Sister

Things continued to go well for Gigi. The relationship between Gigi and her sister, Mimi, was consistently positive, as was her relationship with brother Dru. Most of the time, mom Fifi was patient with and even affectionate toward Gigi. However, we occasionally saw Fifi separate the two girls when they played with each other or sat together, encouraging Mimi to nurse from her briefly. Sometimes, Fifi would carry Mimi away from Gigi. It seemed as if Fifi was unsure about this new relationship that took up so much of her older daughter’s time. Even though we didn’t always understand the dynamics of what was going on with the new family, the Wolf’s guenons did and were working things out among themselves.
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At the San Diego Zoo, 11-year-old lowland gorilla female Azizi was trying hard to care for her firstborn baby. Frank, a healthy male, was born September 4, 2008. Azizi, who was hand reared, was cradling the infant and keeping him close to her body to provide warmth. Though Frank weighed in at a whopping 2.46 kilograms (almost 5½ pounds, big for a newborn gorilla), he still had not been observed nursing by the second day of life. Animal care staff intervened to assess the situation. Frank’s blood glucose was low, as was his body temperature. After correcting for these conditions, we returned him to his mother, but Azizi refused to pick him up. Clearly we had to take over for Azizi, at least temporarily, but we were determined to only help Azizi with Frank while promoting and preserving their early bond. We were careful to never separate the two as we cared for Frank. (See blog, Gorilla Born at the San Diego Zoo.)
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Installment #4
Read Installment #3: Little Guenon, Big Exhibit

Gigi was adjusting well to her daily visits to the San Diego Zoo’s Monkey Trails habitat, so we began to increase the time she spent with her family. Her day was now challenging and full. Following a morning weigh-in, Gigi received the first of four bottle feedings at 6 a.m. Then she was packed up and taken to Monkey Trails by 6:30 a.m, not to return to the Children’s Zoo nursery until late afternoon. Her family was anxiously awaiting her arrival and gathered to welcome her. Gigi spent each day in the company of guenons; even her bottle feedings were accomplished remotely without handling. Gigi nursed from her bottle, which was fed through the wire mesh, then went happily about her other activities. Many improvements to her relationships began to surface.
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Installment #3
Read Installment #2: Little Guenon Gets Acquainted

The exhibit that houses the Wolf’s guenons in Monkey Trails at the San Diego Zoo is beautiful. It is lushly planted and embellished with various leafy vegetation, climbing structures, pools, and grassy areas for rest and play. The exhibit is also very tall and hilly, offering our guests two-story viewing. These exciting exhibit elements are enriching for the guenon family and our guests, to be sure, but can be problematic for a youngster who does not yet “know the ropes.”
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Installment #2
Read Installment #1: Little Guenon Gigi

When Gigi was two weeks old, we had essentially eliminated all the obstacles of her socialization. Gigi was eating and gaining weight well, was bottle adapted, and could hold her body temperature outside of the incubator environment. She still relied upon a heat disk to keep her toasty when outside or in a cool room.
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Installment #1
Wolf’s guenon babies are new to the primate nursery at the San Diego Zoo. We have had brief and memorable experiences with two other guenon species: spot-nosed and swamp guenon or swamp monkey (see blog, Good Things Come in Small Packages). However, when a female Wolf’s guenon named Gigi arrived in the nursery on November 18, 2008, we were suddenly novices. The tiny female weighed 11.5 ounces (327 grams) and was a bit more lanky and elegant in comparison with other newborn guenons we had cared for. This tiny beauty was also more vocal, exhibiting an early flair for the dramatic.
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San Diego Zoo staff members Bryan Endress and Maren Peterson are currently in Vietnam to help put together a conservation plan for critically endangered Tonkin snub-nosed monkeys. They are keeping us posted on their progress. See their previous blog, Snub-nosed Monkey Habitat.

We are back in Hanoi for a few meetings before flying back to the States tomorrow. It was a good trip. Our field work ended with a trip to the other side of the proposed Khau Ca protected area. We were told we were the first foreigners to visit both sides. It was a beautiful area and the local community was extremely friendly. I’ll try to post pictures when we return.
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San Diego Zoo staff members Bryan Endress and Maren Peterson are currently in Vietnam to help put together a conservation plan for critically endangered Tonkin snub-nosed monkeys. They are keeping us posted on their progress. See their previous blog, Snub-nosed Monkeys: Meetings.

Our expedition to the Tonkin snub-nosed monkey habitat was yesterday. To get to the area, we hiked from 600 to 2,000 feet (180 to 600 meters) in altitude. We saw proposed reforestation areas, including family gardens, pastures, and corn and cassava fields. We stayed overnight at a ranger station with guides that patrol the forest.
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San Diego Zoo staff members Bryan Endress and Maren Peterson are currently in Vietnam to help put together a conservation plan for critically endangered Tonkin snub-nosed monkeys. They are keeping us posted on their progress. See Maren’s previous blog, Tonkin Snub-nosed Monkeys.

Yesterday was a series of meetings with the local conservation organization to discuss their proposed efforts. We had lunch – where we’re getting better at using chopsticks – and then braved the traffic to visit the University of Hanoi’s Forestry Department. They welcomed us with great kindness and excitement about potential collaborations. A number of professors gave presentations, and we toured their experimental forest. We then went to dinner and discussed conservation and research opportunities over many glasses of rice wine.
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What a way to end the year and begin a new one! Bryan Endress, division head of the San Diego Zoo’s Applied Plant Ecology Division, and I traveled to Vietnam yesterday; it’s a long 19+ hour flight. We will be meeting with collaborators from another conservation organization, governmental officials, university researchers, and local communities to discuss increasing our involvement in a Tonkin snub-nosed monkey (TSNM) conservation program. TSNMs were thought to be extinct; however, a few populations were discovered, and it is estimated there are around 200 to 300 left in the wild.
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