Monarto Safari Park may be closed to the public during the COVID-19 pandemic but the Easter Bilby was still allowed to visit. Assisted by a team of wonderful keepers, the bilby placed an array of egg-cellent enrichment in the chimps dayroom, decorated their window with colourful pictures and hid decorated boiled eggs around their outdoor habitat.
Primate Keeper Nicky Tomkinson said: “Our chimps have a very healthy diet so instead of chocolates they had Easter bags stuffed with tissue paper and ‘healthy treats’ such as feijoas and carrots. We also dyed some wood wool with watered-down food colouring for them to play in.
“Outside, the chimps had an egg hunt using decorated boiled eggs and there were paper mache Easter bilbies (made by Zoos SA’s BEEZA volunteers) stuffed with carrots, strawberries and grapes.
“Enzi, our four-year-old male, had so much fun. He was running about with a paper bag on his head and interacting with keepers through the window as they showed him the cuddly Easter Bunny toy.
“One-year-old Hope and seven-month-old Zola also had a lot of fun playing with the colourful wood wool. It was very special for all the chimps,” finished Nicky.
Monarto’s keepers regularly incorporate varied and engaging enrichment programs into each of their animal’s daily routines alongside their regular nutrition and health care.
Monarto Safari Park began Easter celebrations early this year. On Wednesday, they hosted a Facebook Live (viewable on Monarto Safari Park’s Facebook page) about bilbies and the conservation program to save them.
Although Monarto Safari Park remains closed during the COVID-19 pandemic, visitors can get a regular dose of chimpanzee action through the 24/7 live stream web cams. Cameras are also streaming from Ibutho, the Southern White Rhino and Adelaide Zoo’s Giant Pandas’ habitats. For regular live streams, videos, photos and updates on the animals, people can head to their Facebook and Instagram pages, as well as their website.
LATEST NEWS
- Book Review: Crooked Seeds, by Karen JenningsTHRILLER: Crooked Seeds is a singularly powerful novel, in exquisitely spare prose, about the ways we become trapped in prisons of our own making.
- New Southeast Asian inspired wine bar Makan opens in Adelaide’s CBDThe new Makan Southeast Asian inspired wine bar on Flinders Street is by two friends from popular restaurant Paper Tiger.
- Adelaide Beer & BBQ Festival unveils epic brewer lineup for this JulyAdelaide Beer & BBQ Festival has unveiled its lineup of 67 brewers, distillers and winemakers from Australia and across the globe.
- Your Guide to What’s On and What’s Open on Anzac DayNot sure what’s what open on ANZAC Day? Here is your ultimate guide to what cafes, restaurants, wineries, and more are open this public holiday.
- Arkaba Hotel officially reopens doors following extensive $12M overhaulAfter a $12M renovation, the Arkaba Hotel has completed its 12-month transformation, marking the venue’s full re-opening for the first time to the public.
More News
