The first group of vervet monkeys are acclimating nicely to their new home, and the wonderful Spring weather has brought them out of their night house and into the trees. Vervets are semi-arboreal monkeys so they are often spotted in the trees of their new enclosure when they are not foraging for food on the ground.
We have some exciting news to share with you about the inhabitants of this enclosure. Two individuals, Sheva and Shani the patas monkeys, have joined this group of vervet monkeys. The two species would naturally occupy the same habitat in the wild, just different areas of the habitat, so we decided to carefully introduce the two groups. Unlike vervets, who are semi-arboreal, patas are ground-dwelling monkeys. Pictured above you will see the vervet monkeys in the trees, and pictured below you will see the patas leaving their night house for the first time to explore their new, spacious enclosure. We are thrilled to have additional monkeys enjoying the benefits of this wonderful enclosure.
Our staff, along with volunteers from Masa Israel, have been hard at work laying the foundation for the additional enclosures that will house three more groups of vervet monkeys. As mentioned before, all of these vervet monkeys were rescued from the exotic pet trade, research laboratories, and petting zoos. In addition, we have the group that was rehomed from the Gaza zoo late last year. Our staff and volunteers worked together to lift and secure these large poles (pictured below), which will act as the foundation for the remaining vervet enclosures.
We are overwhelmingly grateful for these three men who spent the day assisting our staff with this project. Their strength, patience, and enthusiasm enabled us to complete in only a couple of hours a project that would have taken our staff alone several days. We are now well on our way to completing the additional three enclosures and to moving three more groups of monkeys from rehabilitation into permanent, state-of-art habitats!
We have one final update to share with you: the Israeli Primate Sanctuary Foundation Facebook page has officially been launched! If you are on Facebook, be sure to check out the amazing photos of the numerous species living at IPSF, read about their rescue stories, and learn about what is happening in the primate world. We will begin posting our GlobalGiving Updates for this project there as well.
Links:
The construction of the new residence for our vervet population is progressing steadily, and the first group of vervets are already busily exploring their new home !!
Because it is winter, the monkeys are spending much of their time in the newly-constructed night house, a picture of which is attached, and their open-air enclosure is undergoing extensive landscaping that will surely make their new home the envy of monkeys everywhere !!
The Sanctuary is currently home to three different groups of vervet monkeys. Because the three groups arrived at the Sanctuary at different times and are at different stages of their rehabilitation, their new living environment needs to initially allow them to be housed in a way that can provide visual, but not physical contact. The design for the new vervet enclosure, therefore, includes three separate but interconnected sections that the monkeys from the different groups will inhabit as they come to know each other. Our goal is to introduce the groups to each other in appropriate stages and, over time, to integrate them as one combined group.
We also want to take this opportunity to share some wonderful news about our latest arrivals from the Gaza zoo.This new population is acclimating quickly and smoothly to their new surroundings at the Sanctuary, and their rehabilitation is progressing beautifully. In addition, one of the females was pregnant upon arrival and has now given birth to a healthy baby ! We are sending along pictures of this happy family for you to enjoy !!
We are also pleased to announce that the Sanctuary is working to increase its social media presence. In an effort to expand our network of supporters here in Israel and overseas and to place education at the forefront of our mission, the Israeli Primate Sanctuary Foundation Facebook page will be a platform to provide education on the plight of primates in the exotic pet trade and research laboratories here in Israel and to draw more supporters for our current fundraising endeavors. Stay tuned !
The work on the new enclosure for our rescued vervets is progressing well. Our staff has worked tirelessly in the heat of the Israeli summer to try an make sure this new home for our rescued vervets is completed as soon as possible !
As seen in the attached pictures, the enclosure now has its foundation and siding in place,
complete with a safeguard barrier at the top of the enclosure to keep predators out and the monkeys
safely in !!
The development of the enclosure has become even more critical over the past month because the
Sanctuary has been chosen to be the new home for four vervets and a Barary macaque who were rescued
from the now-closed zoo in Gaza. This zoo, which was rated as one of the worst in the world, was
closed because the owners were no longer able to feed and care for them. Many animals died of
starvation and malnutrition. The non-profit Four Paws worked with the zoo owners to help find sanctuaries
for the resuced animals and selected the Israel Primate Sanctuary Foundation as the best placement for
the five rescued monkeys. These monkeys are now safely in our Sanctuary and are receiving professional medical
supervision and care, as well as other needed forms of rehabilitation.
Once our new vervet enclosure is completed, these rescued animals, who have literally been snatched from the jaws of
death, will be able to begin a new, quality life in the refuge of the Sanctuary.
We will continue to explore all avenues available to raise the addtional needed funds for the project and encourage potential donors to read more on the Gaza zoo animal relocation to better understand the background and plight of the monkeys we rescue.
Links are listed below.
Links:
Thanks to the generous support of our Global Giving donors, the IPSF has begun construction of
the new home for our rescued vervets. The funds raised to date have enabled us to build a foundation
around the perimeter of the enclosure, to lay the foundation for the night house (sleeping quarters)
within the site and to erect stanchions for the open wire mesh which will form the enclosure's walls.
The vervet's new home is on a beautiful 240 sq. meter site overlooking the scenic Ben Shemen national forest.
The site is located next to an open enclosure of colobus monkeys, which will
provide the vervets with a truly naturalized living experience in an environment near other primates.
The construction was accomplished by members of our dedicated staff, who
were assisted by ten amazingly dedicated volunteers from around Israel.
As the attached pictures show, they, worked tirelessly and
were successful in completing the complete infrastructure for the vervet's new home.
Our vervet population is happily anticipating the move to their new home and the beginning of their new
life in the Sanctuary. We are hopeful that we will be able to raise the remaining funds necessary for this project
in the near future so that we will be able to provide these special creatures with that opportunity.
We are looking forward to the Global Giving Bonus Day on the 15th of June and the Recurring Donor campaign
at the end of the month to help us meet our funding goal.
Project Reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.
If you donate to this project or have donated to this project, you will get an e-mail when this project posts a report. You can also subscribe for reports via e-mail without donating.
We'll only email you new reports and updates about this project.
