Nashville, TN – The Nashville Zoo has announced the first successful Mexican spider monkey birth at the Zoo. The monkey was born on April 9th, 2022 to Molly (mom) and Sandy (dad) bringing the total number of spider monkeys in the Zoo’s care to five. The baby and mom are healthy and made their exhibit debut last Thursday.“Molly has been a great mom so far. She is calm, nurturing and gives the baby plenty of time to nurse,” said Nashville Zoo’s Primate Supervisor Brittany Canfield. “Each member occasionally gets to groom the baby too.”
Mexican spider monkeys have been at Nashville Zoo since 2016 and can be seen at their Spider Monkey: Treetop Passage habitat which opened in 2017. The current plan is for the baby to stay at Nashville Zoo in hopes of growing the numbers of this spider monkey family.
Mexican spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi vellerosus) are native to the rainforests of Central America and are listed as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature due to aggressive habitat loss and destruction. Nashville Zoo is part of the Mexican Spider Monkey Species Survival Plan® and financially contributes to the Rainforest Awareness Rescue Education Center, a wildlife rescue and rehabilitation center in the heart of the Peruvian Amazon.
Stop by Spider Monkey: Treetop Passage today to see the baby and the Zoo’s spider monkey troop! For more information, visit www.nashvillezoo.org.
About Nashville Zoo
Nashville Zoo is a nonprofit organization celebrating 25 years at Grassmere. The Zoo is an accredited member of the Associations of Zoos and Aquariums, exemplifying the highest standards of animal care and husbandry.
Nashville Zoo is actively engaged in conservation research, habitat protection, breeding programs, and education initiatives in our backyard as well as around the world. With support from the Nashville community, donors, and sponsors, the Zoo is ranked the number one tourist attraction in Middle Tennessee and welcomes more than one million guests annually. Nashville Zoo is located at 3777 Nolensville Pike just six miles south of downtown.
For more information about Nashville Zoo, visit nashvillezoo.org.
