Des Moines, Iowa – September 3, 2010 – Four orangutans have been transferred successfully from Great Ape Trust to their new home at the Indianapolis Zoo. The orangutans, Azy, Knobi, Katy and Rocky, were relocated on August 29, by a team of veterinarians and ape caretakers from Great Ape Trust and Indianapolis. The apes have been reunited with Dr. Robert Shumaker, the former director of orangutan research at Great Ape Trust. Shumaker joined the Indianapolis Zoo in February as vice president of life sciences.
“Two orangutans, Allie and Popi will remain at Great Ape Trust due to special circumstances – Allie because of the neurological issues she had prior to her arrival in Des Moines and Popi with her treatment many years ago in the entertainment industry,” said William M. Fields, scientific director at Great Ape Trust. “Caretakers at The Trust have had great success in the care of Allie and Popi and we believe remaining in Des Moines is best for the welfare of these two special orangutans.
It was announced in November 2009 that the orangutans would leave Des Moines after The Trust and Blank Park Zoo were unable to reach an agreement on a transfer of the orangutans from the scientific research center. Great Ape Trust needed to relocate the colony of orangutans because their population had outgrown the facilities and the Floods of 2008 precluded future construction or expansion of ape buildings. Following the floods, Great Ape Trust officials restructured the organization to focus on two priority areas – language research with a colony of seven bonobos and a landmark effort to conserve chimpanzee habitat in Rwanda.
Background Information
Great Ape Trust is a scientific research facility in Des Moines, Iowa, dedicated to understanding the origins and future of culture, language, tools and intelligence, and to the preservation of endangered great apes in their natural habitats. Announced in 2002 and receiving its first ape residents in 2004, Great Ape Trust is home to a colony of seven bonobos involved in noninvasive interdisciplinary studies of their cognitive and communicative capabilities, and to two orangutans. To learn more about Great Ape Trust, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, go to GreatApeTrust.org
