CHESSINGTON WORLD OF ADVENTURES SCOOPS AWARD FOR REHABILITATION OF ORPHANED SPIDER MONKEY IN 2015 BIAZA AWARDS

CHESSINGTON WORLD OF ADVENTURES SCOOPS AWARD FOR REHABILITATION OF ORPHANED SPIDER MONKEY IN 2015 BIAZA AWARDS

Keepers at Chessington World of Adventures Resort were congratulated by the Zoo world last night at the prestigious 2015 BIAZA Award ceremony for their work in hand-rearing and rehabilitating an orphaned spider monkey.

Keepers were honoured with a Bronze award in recognition of their ground-breaking work with Chantico, a spider monkey orphaned at just two-weeks old who was hand-reared and then successfully integrated into a larger troop with no mother present. This is the first time a spider monkey has successfully been re-introduced into a larger grouping size -  this has only ever been done in smaller troops of two individuals, and when the mother is present. Due to its success, this approach has now been added to the husbandry guidelines for this species.

Lisa Britton, Primates Supervisor at Chessington World of Adventures, said: “We are so pleased to be recognised for our work with Chantico, as this has been a labour of love for the Zoo team here at Chessington. When the baby was orphaned at two weeks, we had to make the difficult decision to hand-rear her to ensure her safety. We handled her as little as possible and housed her close to the main group for the first year, which proved to be a successful strategy as the integration into the large troop was seamless and Chantico is now fully settled within the group. We are so proud that our approach is now being added to the husbandry guidelines for other zoos in the same situation.”

This award particularly highlights Chessington’s efforts in conservation and in maintaining high levels of animal welfare, and is a testament to the work done by the dedicated keepers at the Resort.

The BIAZA awards recognise outstanding contributions and achievements in the fields of wildlife conservation, advances in animal welfare and husbandry, marketing, PR, education, research, and enclosure design.

Dr Kirsten Pullen, CEO of BIAZA said: “The BIAZA awards highlight the vital work carried out in zoos and aquariums. All of this year’s award-winning projects show the exceptional contributions our members are making to wildlife conservation, animal husbandry and welfare, and public understanding for species both in the UK and overseas. We congratulate all the winners.”