Baby Monkey Naming Competition

Earlier this week Drusillas Park announced the exciting news that twin baby cotton-top tamarins had been born. Now these tiny bundles of mischief are starting to explore, play and interact a little more, Zoo Keepers want to give the double act some suitable names.

Drusillas is launching a competition at 8pm tonight (Thursday 25th January) to name the cheeky little monkeys. The twins are inseparable so the zoo wants to give them names that pair up well together, e.g. Chocolate & Chip, Caramel & Toffee, Fortune & Cookie and so on.

All name suggestions must be gender neutral as the monkeys are too young to sex at the moment, so keepers won’t be able to determine their gender for quite some time. Anyone who wants to be in with a chance of winning should go to the Drusillas Facebook Page for details of how to enter https://www.facebook.com/drusillaspark/ . The competition will be closing on Tuesday 30th Jan 2018.

Cotton-top tamarins have always been a popular attraction at the zoo and the two tiny fluff balls have been delighting visitors and making excellent progress.

Parents Florencia and Pasto, who welcomed the twins at the end of last month, have been keeping their youngsters very closely guarded for the first few weeks. They have now started to show their little ones off; proudly parading them around on their backs. The adorable duo can be easily spotted as they explore their new surroundings. 

Cotton-top tamarins are one of the most endangered primates in South America, so the news of their birth has been very exciting indeed.

Zoo Manager, Sue Woodgate, commented: “We are absolutely delighted with our new arrivals. These beautiful monkeys are facing serious threat in the wild, and we are in great danger of losing this wonderful and charismatic species altogether. We are just ecstatic that the twins have been born.”

“Habitat destruction is one of the main threats facing cotton-top tamarins in the wild. Deforestation is a major problem for these monkeys; they are losing more and more of their habitat every day as the trees are cleared for timber production, human settlements, agriculture and charcoal production. There is also a huge risk to the tamarins from the illegal wildlife trade. These monkeys are adorable yes, but under no circumstances should they be kept as pets.”

Zoo Keepers at Drusillas Park are delighted with the birth of the twins, and are thrilled to be able to do their part in safe guarding this amazing species.