Kinah Moves Out
Posted at 12:00 pm April 2, 2007 by Janet HawesInstallment #6
(Read Installment #5, Kinah Moves Up)
The final piece of the puzzle was to introduce the male, Toad, into the social circle with the ladies. Male swamp monkeys are powerful creatures and while no one really thought Toad would harm Bunzi or Kinah, there was some element of risk. On March 20, Toad was admitted into the yard as we looked on. He confidently entered the scene and checked out the situation, exhibiting an impressive display of male dignity. He made no overt moves towards little Kinah. After several minutes, Kinah's curiosity got the better of her. She approached the stoic Toad with what we now recognize as her signature polite, but curious, manner. Neither animal was frightened or aggressive, nor was there much contact between the two. The rest of the day passed uneventfully as the animals adjusted to each other without incident.
Later that day, Kinah's keepers were counting their lucky stars. Things were going so well that we were hesitant to separate the newly formed family. This introduction could not have gone more smoothly, and Kinah seemed relaxed and happy in Bunzi's arms. We decided to let Kinah spend her first night with her swamp monkey family. There were only a few small details to work out that afternoon: we needed to arrange for delivery of Kinah's evening bottle. Since Kinah had been receiving bottle feedings during the daytime with her family for sometime, this would be no substantial hurdle for her. Kinah was now a pro at nursing her bottle from an opening in a small shift cage modified for the purpose. The night nursery crew was alerted and everything was set. That night when the nursery keeper came to feed her, Kinah accepted her evening bottle calmly. Afterwards she was relaxed and happy to return to the other animals.
The next morning keepers needed a flashlight to locate Kinah. What they saw were two bright, tiny eyeballs peeking out from the protective lap of Bunzi. Kinah had spent her first night away from her human caretakers, snug in the arms of her new custodian, Bunzi.
Bottle feedings will continue until little Kinah is weaned. She is active and adjusted and is gaining weight every week. As we wind down on the care needed to sustain Kinah in these final weeks, we reflect on her history. We were the lucky ones to see Kinah through the difficult days of her recovery and the reintroduction to her family. We thank Kinah for the many sweet memories and special times she leaves behind. To us, Kinah will always be a tiny fighter who managed to win all of the battles put before her.
Janet Hawes is a senior keeper in the primate nursery of the Children's Zoo at the San Diego Zoo.
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April 2nd, 2007 at 12:40 pm
I'm glad Kinah is doing well but I feel bad for her mom. Is she ok?
April 2nd, 2007 at 1:11 pm
Kinah is a very special package of tiny fighter with attitude! She has fought and overcome huge obstacles with guidance and assistance from her human " family." She is a very blessed little monkey. All of you have been given an opportunity of a lifetime as well, to literally hold in the palm of your hand a helpless little life that needed your body heat to survive.
Many thanks on behalf of Kinah, and her new family.
Will you ever reintroduce Kinah and Marbelina once Kinah is fully weaned, grown, and healthy? It would be interesting to see Marbelina and Kinah's reactions as Kinah has been adopted by Bunzi and Dixie.
April 3rd, 2007 at 6:15 am
Margaret-
Thank you for reading about Kinah. At the time of this writing, there is no plan to reintroduce Kinah to the group that Marbelina currently resides in. Now that Kinah has successfully integrated to her cagemates, it is doubtful that she will again be separated out, but what may happen is Kinah's current group could be introduced to another smaller group in future. If this happens, I will write more about it.
Janet
April 3rd, 2007 at 7:10 am
Michelle-
Marbelina is doing well in her troop at Ituri forrest. She is back in her " comfortable zone" with the other monkeys. Her body has recovered and she felt strong enough to mate with the male Koni, who is little Kinah's father. She is probably pregnant again. We are hoping for another baby from Marbelina in early spring.
Thanks,
Janet
April 3rd, 2007 at 9:30 am
Janet - Thank you for this wonderful series of articles. You all saved Kinah and then Kinah " paid it forward" and saved Bunzi from being lonely and feeling like an outcast. I can't think of a happier ending to this story!!!
April 3rd, 2007 at 10:33 am
Angie-
Thank you so much for your comment. We too are delighted for Bunzi. I wish you all could see them together. When we feed Kinah her bottle, we have to shift her over to a little corridor so we can fit her bottle through a space. This is only a brief separation for maybe 3 or 4 minutes while she nurses her milk. During this time, Bunzi waits anxiously at the door for " her baby" to come back to her. Their reunion is really something to see. We are also pleased that this nuturing relationship she is having with Kinah is giving Bunzi experience in mothering, something we hope she will benefit from with her own baby in the future.
Thanks,
Janet
April 3rd, 2007 at 12:31 pm
Janet thanks for sharing such a truely wonder-full series of events. Bunzi and Kinah are both benefiting from sharing and learning skills they will need in the future when it is their turn to become mothers. The nurturing Kinah received from human keepers and Bunzi will help her know how to nurture her own young. It will be interesting to see how she treats Bunzi's young when they are born, and how Bunzi will treat Kinah's young. They have a special bond, and other primates tend to " adopt" each other's young so we wait for the next chapter in coming years.
Please keep us posted on Marbelina's pregnancy and eventual birth of a new youngster.
I am fascinated by the stories all of you tell at SDZ and WAP. Although you are primarily scientisits and behaviorists, you are remarkably great writers. To those of us who have to visit the zoo and WAP from thousands of miles away via photos and written pictures, we are very grateful for all the details you share. It makes us feel as if we are right there sharing these experiences and these fantastic animals with you.
THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Please share with the keepers of all other animals who have blogs too. You are all tremendous advocates and ambassadors for conservation and the animals who need it.
April 4th, 2007 at 11:33 am
Janet, how old is Bunzi? When will she be sexually mature and ready to have a family of her own? Is it unusual for adolescent swamp monkeys to be so maternal toward youngsters? It is great training and she must be much happier with someone to play with.
April 5th, 2007 at 2:03 pm
Hi Margaret-
Thank you for your questions. Bunzi is four years old. She has just cycled for the first time, so she could be considered just reaching maturity age now. I would imagiane that if little Kinah was being cared for by a conservative and careful mother that little Bunzi would not be given the opportunity to have so much time with a youngster of Kinah's age. In this situation however, I think both animals have turned towards each other for companionship. Auntie behavior is common among primates. Young females will practice their mothering skills when allowed using youngsters from their troop. This is why it is so advantageous that Bunzi is able to have this experience with Kinah. I know that Kinah for her part is very bonded to Bunzi, although she does still go to her grandma Dixie often also.
Janet
April 5th, 2007 at 5:18 pm
Is there anyway you could post a photo of Kinah and Bunzi together? Thanks.
April 6th, 2007 at 1:33 pm
Thank you for a great series of blogs about Kinah - with the perfect ending. With the heartbreaking article about the passing of Mandisa, it's heartwarming to hear about a wonderful success story that is little Kinah's survival. Thanks again and give little Kinah a tickle and a kiss for me.
April 6th, 2007 at 1:55 pm
How we have enjoyed this wonderful account of little Kinah. We are so happy that she has a warm and loving family. Must see her and Bunzi on our next trip to the zoo.
Moderator's note: Kinah and Bunzi are currently in an off-exhibit area. Hopefully Janet will let us know the new family can be seen!
April 6th, 2007 at 2:08 pm
Janet, is it likely that Bunzi and Toad will mate at her next cycle? If they were not yet introduced in this first cycle, will she be more receptive in the second? Since animal instincts are all about reproduction and survival, it would seem that he would breed with her ASAP. Is Dixie still of reproductive age, and how likely are she and Toad to breed? Just curious, because this tiny group could be enlarging rather quickly if both of them are of reproductive age and are receptive. How far apart are cycles in Swamp Monkeys?
How soon do you plan to start introductions with the other small group? Since this group seems to have fit naturally together, how likely are they to take to additional members? Will the larger size of the group once expanded affect Bunzi's ability (permission) to be custodian of Kinah? Does Dixie ever show any adverse reaction to the bonding between Bunzi and Kinah, or attempt to keep Bunzi away from Kinah? If not, she must have accepted Bunzi as Kinah's adopted " mother." What a great situation to have, and for everyone to be content is an extra plus.
April 11th, 2007 at 8:09 am
Janet, how is the new " family" doing? I imagine that Kinah and Bunzi are thriving and blossoming now that they have companionship. Is Kinah's appetite increasing because of her new situation? She is likely to be less stressed, and possibly more active because of the new surroundings and other monkeys to interact with.
What types of enrichment do you provide for the group, and for Bunzi and Kinah in particular to help them socialize and become accustomed to " normal" life in a group?
Is Bunzi cuddling Kinah as much, especially at night, as they both become accustomed to sleeping in the exhibit with two adult monkeys to protect and share their space with?
April 13th, 2007 at 10:18 am
Margaret-
Thank you for your questions. The " family" is doing really well. About the only challenge we have now is that Bunzi is occasionally reluctant to allow little Kinah to come into the chute to receive her bottles. The bond between the two is strengthening, which is a very good thing. The bottle really isn't a problem, since Kinah will find her way to separate from Bunzi if she is hungry enough. Her weight is climbing weekly. We are collecting weights every other day. Right now Kinah gets two bottle feedings daily, morning and night. You are right, Kinah is less stressed and more active since she has been reintroduced.
The enrichment provided for this group is given by the keepers in the area. They do an awsome job of finding new and interesting things to stimulate the monkey mind. Some of the things I see are barrels filled with hay or leaves with treats inside, boxes with treats, big leafy pieces of browse, mirrors, toys, balls, etc. Providing daily enrichment is required and it helps to stimulate natural behaviors all over the zoo.
Thanks again
Janet
April 13th, 2007 at 10:20 am
Beth-
I will see if we can get a nice photo of Bunzi and Kinah for you. We have been somewhat reluctant to disturb our newly formed group with a " big scary man with a camera" too soon.
Janet
April 13th, 2007 at 1:21 pm
Margaret-
Thanks for your questions. Bunzi and Toad have been observed breeding but will not reproduce. Currently Bunzi is on birth control because the two are distantly related. Dixie has had a hysterectomy. The swamp monkey cycles are approximately 30 days apart. At the time of this writing there is no time line for introducing the Kinah group to the smaller group at Ituri Forest. We don't expect that introducing more animals would jeopardize Bunzi and Kinah's bond. More animals would be beneficial because more playmates means more options, but Kinah will likely return to Bunzi for reasurrance and comfort. Incidentally, we have very little information about the natural behavior of swamp monkeys in the wild. There have been limited sightings of up to 40 animals together, but we don't know if they were congregated around a food source or if the groups can actually grow to that size. We are never sure how two groups of animals will relate to each other. When the time comes we will allow both groups to see and hear each other for an extended period of time before putting them together so we can make a more informed guess. I don't know that Dixie has felt " left out" because of the close bond between Bunzi and Kinah. Rather, Dixie is enjoying the increased stimulation of having females in her group. We have noticed that Kinah goes to Dixie often too, and observations of Dixie being gentle and sharing food with Kinah are increasing. I hope I got everything!
Janet
April 18th, 2007 at 10:42 am
Thanks, Janet. Sounds like a tremendous win-win for everyone. Dixie can have female company, Bunzi can have adopted motherhood and a sex life without her own babies, and Kinah has the companionship of both Dixie and Bunzi. She is getting the mothering/nurturing she needs as a youngster from Bunzi, and the older behavior guidance from Dixie. Toad gets to have his sex life without more baby monkeys in the mix. Do you have any plans to introduce another male into the mix that is unrelated to Bunzi? Or since these were brought to the zoo as a result of a rescue, do you not plan to breed them for conservation? Since not much is known about them in the wild, my guess is that they are not in a highly endangered status, so there is not the urgency to breed them as there is with pandas, et al.