Rare red howler monkey born at Yorkshire Wildlife Park in UK first

The baby, who has been named Pablo, was born two weeks ago and now can be seen being cradled by proud mum Tila in the new South America reserve. The birth is significant for the rare species as it is thought to be the first ever in the UK.

Mum Tila and dad Geronimo, both brightly coloured and vocal Venezuelan red howlers, only arrived at Yorkshire Wildlife Park this year.

Pablo will spend the next few months holding tight on to his mother while being kept under close supervision from staff. Red howler monkey males play a huge part in the rearing of young in their groups, and Pablo has already been seen interacting a lot with his father.

Primates team leader at the park, Greg Clifton, said: “This is an extremely important birth for this rare species of primate and could be the first time that this species has been bred in the UK.

“Yorkshire Wildlife Park is one of only six zoos in Europe to hold red howler monkeys and these are the only ones in England.

“He’s a very lucky baby as the primate team have seen him being carried by both females in our group. Our older female Namid has bred before in the past so has been showing our first time mum Tila how it’s done.”

It has set up a busy few weeks for staff at the zoo, who are preparing a number of events for half term and Halloween.Head of guest experience Chris White added: “It is great to be back this Halloween. We dearly missed our spooky Halloween adventures last year and are looking forward to thrilling our visitors again. They will be in for a lot of surprises. It is a Halloween Adventure to remember and like no other.”.

The park, which has a focus on conservation, offers visitors a walk through experience allowing them to come almost face to face to some of the world’s most rare and beautiful animals, including new arrival Pablo.