Overview
- Trentham Monkey Forest in Staffordshire confirmed the treetop births Monday, with more infants expected during the seasonal baby period.
- The site keeps 140 free-roaming Barbary macaques in three social groups across a 60-acre woodland that lets them behave much like wild troops.
- Park staff call the new arrivals a small but important win for a species that has declined by more than half in 40 years, with fewer than about 8,000 left in the wild.
- Barbary macaques mate in winter and carry for about five and a half months, so late spring births are typical at the forest.
- The project began in 2005 and has recorded over 100 births, while also partnering with groups in Morocco and Algeria and teaching visitors about the monkeys’ endangered status.