News

14 October 2009

Rare primates making themselves at home at Woburn Safari Park

Visitors to Woburn Safari Park can now see a collection of one of Africa’s rarest mammals in the drive-through African Forest.

Drill2

The arrival of five Drills (Mandrillus leucophaeus) marks Woburn Safari Park as one of only three other collections in Great Britain to have these critically endangered primates. Woburn is also the first collection in the world to introduce Drills into a mixed species enclosure. They join 28 Barbary Macaque, 15 Patas Monkeys and nine Eastern Bongo.

Originally from Hanover Zoo, the Drills arrived from Germany back in February and following six months in quarantine and a period of acclimatisation, all five can now be seen enjoying their new home.
Numbers of these primates have been steadily declining for several decades due to game and meat hunting, habitat destruction and human development. There are now thought to be fewer than 3000 left in their native habitat of Nigeria and Cameroon. Across the world there are only 75 in captivity across 20 collections.

Woburn Safari Park intends to exchange three of its males for females within 12 months in order to begin its own captive breeding programme.

Senior Keeper Ross Brown commented; “We’re extremely pleased with the progress that our Drills are making since their release into the African Forest here at Woburn Safari Park. They have acclimatised well and we look forward to introducing some females to the group in the future so that we can begin the very important work of breeding these extremely rare animals.”