site.btaGrivet Monkey Born at Stara Zagora Zoo

A grivet monkey was born at Stara Zagora Zoo, the local administration’s press office said Wednesday. In the first days of its life, the newborn stays close to its mother, who cares for it - nursing it, cleaning it, and watching over it carefully, the administration added.

Dr. Nayden Ilinov, director of Bulgaria’s first zoo outside the capital said that every new addition to Stara Zagora Zoo is a source of joy and pride for the entire team. "It is the result of the daily care and dedication we show to the animals in our care,” he added.

The grivet (Chlorocebus aethiops), also known as African green monkey, is uniquely native to Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan, Djibouti, and Eritrea. Though listed as least concern in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, the grivet population is decreasing.

Newborns have dark fur and pink faces, which over the first three to four months of their lives change into the adults' green-tinged fur and black faces. Infants cling to their mother’s belly for at least the first week of their lives, then begin interacting with other troop members.