Honolulu Zoo welcomes birth of ring-tailed lemur

The Honolulu Zoo recently welcomed a baby ring-tailed lemur, the product of a captive breeding program to help boost the primate’s numbers.

The animal was born June 10 to Remi, its 4-year-old mother, and Finn, its 3-year-old father. When both parents arrived at the Waikiki zoo last fall, officials hoped they would bear offspring.

All three are on display at the zoo’s Primate Islands, although Finn is currently separated from the baby and its mother.

“The Honolulu Zoo is very excited to have a newborn lemur, as the parents are part of a captive breeding program and help further one of the zoo’s main missions — conservation,” said Honolulu Zoo director Linda Santos in a news release. “Baby and mother are doing well and are currently separated from the father as Remi is very protective of her baby. The family will be reunited when Remi is ready,” she said.

Ring-tailed lemurs, recognizable by their black-and-white-banded tails, live in the wild only in Madagascar. The animals are listed as endangered by the Inter­national Union for Conserv­ation of Nature. Their gestation period is approximately 4-1/2 months.

The Honolulu Zoo worked with the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ Ring-Tailed Lemur Species Survival Plan to bring the breeding pair to the zoo. This is their first offspring.