South Staffordshire College Welcomes New Primate to it’s Animal Zone

Animal keepers at South Staffordshire College are proud to introduce a new primate to the Animal Zone, a male pygmy Slow Loris. 

The new arrival, named Bao (which means ‘protection’ in Vietnamese) was born at London Zoo in 2001 and has been donated to the College from Paignton Zoo. He has settled in well to the reverse light nocturnal room at Rodbaston Campus and is a welcome and favourite addition to the Animal Zone, having completed his quarantine period.

The pygmy Slow Loris is a very rare species that is found in the tropical dry forests of Vietnam, Laos and parts of China and Cambodia. Their conservation status is vulnerable which means that the species in the wild are threatened through habitat destruction and the wildlife trade.

During the Vietnam War the Loris was nearly wiped out through extensive forestry removal and was on the verge of extinction but through controlled breeding programmes and conservation projects there is an objective to save this species.

Vicky Kirkman, Senior Keeper Primates at South Staffordshire College, hopes that the future will be bright for Bao, with the potential to locate a female for breeding purposes.

“The Slow Loris is rarely seen in zoos and our students will benefit greatly, getting actively involved in the day to day husbandry of the Loris and contributing to the scientific knowledge on the species through research observations. 

We are hoping to include Bao in a breeding programme which will allow students to observe the introductions to a female Loris, to watch the pregnancy develop and help with the youngsters diet formulation, diet preparation, and observations”, Vicky said.

David Riley, Animal Centre Manager, also added “This is a very exciting conservation project to be part of and it’s hoped that in the near future a suitable partner may be found for Bao”.

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