Story by Elizabeth Perkin
BRIDGEPORT — A pair of Black-handed Spider monkeys will be making their Beardsley Zoo debut this Saturday, June 29.
The monkeys came from the Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium in Omaha, Neb. The male Spider monkey, Gilligan, was born in 2014 and the female Spider monkey, T.T. (short for Tina Turner), was born in 2000.
They will be living in a spacious indoor/ outdoor habitat with multiple opportunities for climbing and engaging. There will be large viewing windows in both locations for guests.
Gregg Dancho the Zoo director said, “Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo continues to grow, allowing us to expand on our mission of animal conservation and education. The Black-handed Spider monkeys are another chapter in the story of diversity and richness of life in South America.”
Black-handed Spider monkeys are large, extremely agile monkeys that live in tropical rainforests. The Black-handed Spider monkey is endangered, with a decreasing population in the wild due to logging and deforestation.
