Yahoo – AFP,
Zoom Dosso, 12 July 2015
Monkey
Island (Liberia) (AFP) - A speedboat laden with fruit approaches and four
chimpanzees come bounding over from the dense forest, screeching excitedly as
volunteers throw them pineapple and mango chunks.
The apes
are part of a colony of former research lab captives enjoying retirement
uncaged on an atoll deep in the jungle of southern Liberia, known as Monkey
Island.
The only
significant inhabitants of the six islets, the chimps have been living an
idyllic existence, fed by human volunteers on their very own 'Planet of the
Apes' -- a nickname given to the archipelago by local media.
Chimpanzees
are fed on Monkey Island, a
celebrated colony of former research lab
captives
on an atoll deep in the jungle of
southern Liberia, n June 29, 2015 (AFP
Photo/Zoom Dosso)
|
The New
York Blood Center (NYBC), which carried out about 30 years of biomedical
research on the animals, had publicly committed to their lifelong care after
they were retired in 2005.
The Humane
Society of the United States (HSUS) is supporting the colony through emergency
fundraising as the Liberian government and the blood bank lock horns over who
should be responsible for their care.
"NYBC
may believe that people will forget and that this will go away, but I can
assure you that it won't," HSUS vice-president Kathleen Conlee told AFP in
an email from Washington DC.
"They
are absolutely responsible for the long-term care of these chimpanzees."
Conlee
described the chimps' care costs -- estimated at $30,000 (27,000 euros) a month
-- as "a mere drop in the bucket for this organisation that has hundreds
of millions in revenue annually".
'Moral
obligation'
The Liberia
Biomedical Research Institute (LBRI) entered into an agreement with the NYBC in
1974 to carry out research in a lab about 65 kilometres (40 miles) southeast of
Monrovia, capturing or buying the chimpanzees.
The
research project had gained a world class reputation in the field of viral
infections, particularly hepatitis, by the time it ended and the NYBC appeared
to make a commitment to the chimps in retirement as a reward for their
contribution.
NYBC director
Alfred Prince wrote in the American Society of Primatologists Bulletin in 2005
that Monkey Island was to become "a dedicated full-time sanctuary".
"NYBC
recognises its responsibility to provide an endowment to fund the sanctuary for
the lifetime care of the chimpanzees," he wrote.
The chimps
are entirely reliant on humans for their survival, as there is no year-round
fresh water supply or enough food on their islets.
LBRI head
Fatorma Bolay said initial emergency funding from the HSUS, pooled with cash
from other sources, had probably saved the animals from dehydration and
starvation.
World-renowned
chimpanzee expert Jane Goodall sent an open letter to the NYBC in May urging
the organisation to consider its "moral obligation" to continue
funding the chimps' care.
"I
find it completely shocking and unacceptable that NYBC would abandon these
chimpanzees and discontinue support for even their basic needs," she
wrote.
AFP emailed
and telephoned the NYBC but the centre did not respond to requests for comment.
'No
different from humans'
John
Abayomi Zeonyuway, a volunteer at the institute, showed AFP the animals' care
routine on a recent visit to Monkey Island, a 25-minute speedboat ride up the
John River from Roberts International Airport.
As the boat
approached the first of the islets, a nine square-kilometre patch of jungle
known as Island Five, a welcoming party of four chimps began screeching and
jumping up and down excitedly.
"This
is their way of saying that the food is here," Zeonyuway explained as he
threw pawpaws, bananas and other fruit for the animals.
Zeonyuway
visits the colony every second day, and each time he does a mental roll call to
ensure all are present and in good health.
"I
can't see Samanta. Bullet is here -- he's already eating," he called out
to his crew as the rest of the residents came to join the feast.
The boat
then proceeded to Island Four, 15 minutes away, where the clan of 10 apes
included four unplanned babies, the result of failed vasectomies, according to
the HSUS.
Birth
control efforts have since been stepped up so that the population doesn't grow
further.
At all six
of the islands the routine was the same: an excited greeting and a feast for
the animals.
"The
chimps are part of me. I am glued to them because I see them every other
day," Zeonyuway told AFP.
"They
are no different from humans. They fight and they make peace. They need help,
they need attention. We cannot afford to lose these animals to hunger and
sickness."
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