Endangered gibbon born at Twycross Zoo

The pileated gibbon species is listed as “Endangered” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

A pileated gibbon infant has been born at Twycross zoo.

The female infant, who is yet to be named, was born to mother Valentina, who is 25-years-old and 43-year-old father Helmut.

Both Helmut and Valentina are very important individuals within a programme aimed at conserving healthy populations of animals in captivity because of their genetics. 

Twycross Zoo’s pileated gibbons live with three other gibbon species in their Forest habitat. 

Lynsey Bugg, Curator at Twycross Zoo and the EAZA Ex-situ Programme (EEP) coordinator for the pileated gibbon, said: “We’re delighted to announce the birth of a pileated gibbon at Twycross Zoo. It’s always a special moment when we welcome any new arrival and this birth is incredibly important as part of the pileated gibbon EEP, which is dedicated to protecting future populations of the species, who continue to face severe threats in the wild. 

"As a conservation charity, our overarching aim is to help save the species with whom we share our planet through conservation action. We recently unveiled our ambitious new Conservation Strategy, and supporting healthy ex-situ populations of species is one of our six core conservation goals that will help maximise our impact in the fight against extinction.”  

The pileated gibbon species is listed as “Endangered” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and is native to Cambodia, Thailand and Laos.