Dancing lemur: Chester Zoo celebrates Coquerel’s sifaka birth

According to a zoo, a critically endangered monkey known as the dancing lemur was successfully bred for the first time in Europe.

The birth of the infant Coquerel’s sifaka was a “landmark moment for the species,” according to Chester Zoo. A spokesman claimed that 18 months after Beatrice and Elliot were relocated from the US, their “wonderful small child” was delivered to them.

Mark Brayshaw, curator of mammals, reported that mother and foetus were “doing excellent.”

The species had had an 80% reduction in the previous 30 years due to massive deforestation, and it is only found in the wild in the treetops of north-west Madagascar.

Because they retain an upright stance while moving and spring side to side along the floor on their back legs, they can be distinguished from other lemurs.

The Coquerel’s sifaka family trio in Chester made up over half of the seven of these extremely endangered monkeys being cared for in Europe, according to the zoo official.

They estimated that the newborn, who weighed 4 oz (119 g), would initially cling to its mother’s abdomen for “a few weeks, before riding on her back like a backpack until about six months old.”

Director of animals and plants at the zoo Mike Jordan called the birth “a true landmark moment for conservation.”

He claimed that it had “kickstarted” a breeding programme for the species in Europe, which could be “the lifeboat that keeps them from being completely wiped out.”

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