Summer 2003

NEWS FROM SIGLO XXI
By Rachel Hevesi

I officially skipped summer this year and am now welcoming a third consecutive winter. That is to say I have just spent six months in Chile, during their winter, which is not so bad. I am certainly not complaining as we had some lovely sunny days and, more importantly, I had the honour of getting to know some wonderful primate characters.

My aim was simply to make myself as useful as possible. I had hoped to raise funds among the English speaking community in Chile, but after many phone calls, emails and letters I admit that I did not do too well. However, the vast majority of my time was spent caring for the monkeys at Siglo XXI’s new site, helping to construct new territory and looking after the land and house where my daughter, Rowan, and I were living. (I must not forget the dogs – there were 11 when we left – all rescued from the street and now loyal companions).

Most of the monkeys in my care were capuchins. A day did not go by that I did not marvel at these characters. All wild born, they have such sad histories and yet their determination to make the most of their situation is astounding. For some it is more difficult, and it was heartbreaking to see two monkeys die. One of these was Crispin, a gentle character, who often seemed overwhelmed by the intense social complexities and demands of group living and preferred to be with just a couple of quiet females. Perhaps the traumas of his life in a laboratory were just too much for him.

Every monkey deserves to have his or her story told but with limited space I have to pick just a few. Manjar is a male woolly who challenged every scrap of knowledge I have learnt in my 20 years of woolly caring. I hope that eventually he could appreciate that I meant well in spite of being a woman. (He trusts men far more… another story, perhaps?).

Truly humbling was getting to know Darwin, Socrates and Aristotle, the three capuchins rescued from a university laboratory where they had suffered gross cruelty. All had had the tops of their skulls removed and metal plates implanted so that brain experiments could be carried out while they were conscious. The video evidence that helped to free them is awful to see. (The Monkey Sanctuary Trust contributed evidence to the court case against the man responsible for these experiments). Having spent years watching each other suffer from their separate box cages, it was marvellous to see them enjoy each others company, grooming and playing with such trust, as well as climbing and foraging in their new enclosure.

Toto’s is another extraordinary story. Larger than life, all who meet Toto remember him forever. For six months, Toto patiently listened to and understood my attempts at Spanish. He cooperated and forgave us when we had to take blood tests or send him for dental treatment and he laughed when we left our belongings within his reach and he was able to try out some face cream or examine our wallets. Safe return of these was only guaranteed by offering a correspondingly worthy treat – on Toto’s terms only. An adult chimp has the cognitive intelligence of a five-year-old human, and this five-year-old was very clever.

Toto’s rescue and rehabilitation is a true validation of Siglo XXI’s dedication to our fellow primates. In Chimfunshi he will be ‘Uncle’ Toto to the many orphans who need the willing and comforting embrace of an adult.

TERMITES & EARTHQUAKES!
By Keri Cairns

This year I was given an amazing opportunity to help a project in deepest darkest Peru. Since 1998 Carlos and Helene Palomino have been looking after rescued animals at their home in Moyobamba, in the San Martin region of Peru. One day they were given an unidentifiable bald monkey, he was badly malnourished and covered in engine oil. After weeks of intensive care Taysu turned out to be a brown woolly monkey. He is now about four and a half and full of life, he has since been joined at his home by 8 other rescued woollies. At the moment they share an enclosure in Helene and Carlos` back garden. They come out during the day accompanied by their keepers, Gardel and Amerio, and enjoy the freedom of the ravine at the bottom of the garden. Here they forage for insects and leaves and enjoy the seasonal bounty of fruits that the trees have to offer.

In the last few years Carlos and Helene have managed to buy 44 hectares of land along the banks of the Rio Mayo. Working with the local Agaruna Indian community they have begun to regenerate the land with various wild fruiting trees. My job was to design and build some enclosures on the new land that would be suitable for the monkeys to sleep in but also be large enough for the monkeys to spend time in during the rainy season. This seemed simple enough until I found out that they had to be Earthquake and termite proof!

After researching various building methods around Moyobamba I decided on a wooden frame that had a gap between the wood and the concrete support. I had some special metal plates made up called platinas to give us a gap of 3cm. The gap should prevent the wood from becoming permanently damp which is when termites become a problem. I was assisted by a local carpenter called Manuel and a few of his friends, I kept them well amused because my Spanish was a bit ropey and I kept calling the metal plates, platanos. This means bananas in Spanish!

Before the monkeys can go to the new land there needs to be a Tambo built for the keepers to live in. This is a house made of locally grown canes and the plan is now to use platinas for the main posts as the last tambo is already being destroyed by the termites. As for earthquakes, the site that we picked is on the highest point on the land and away from the river. So without using lots of concrete to join the posts there is not much else that we could do. I have added lots of supports to the plans and I believe that the whole structure should survive anything but a giant meteor strike. Unfortunately I had to return home to England before the main building work could be finished but I have left it in capable hands.

The plan is now to move the monkeys to the new site in April or May next year after the rainy season. If possible I would love to return and help move the monkeys, I had an amazing adventure and for me it was a dream come true to be in the Amazon. To top it off I know that this project is going to make a difference to a lot of monkeys, both wild and rescued.