Happy 30th Birthday Maui!
Animal Stories from All-Creatures.org

FROM IPPL International Primate Protection League
December 2020

When Maui reached maturity he was paired with Michelle, a gibbon born here at IPPL, and much to our surprise they had a baby that we named Courtney, even though Maui had had a vasectomy!

Gibbon Maui

Maui was born at the Maui Zoo and lived there with his parents Jade and Palu-Palu until he was 6 years old. Unfortunately, the zoo was shut down due to violations of the Animal Welfare Act after they had several run-ins with the U.S. Department of Agriculture over their substandard animal housing. So in March of 1996 Maui and his parents made the long trip from Hawaii to their new home here in South Carolina. They were sent with a crate of fresh Hawaiian pineapples which to this day is still a favorite food of all three gibbons!

When Maui reached maturity he was paired with Michelle, a gibbon born here at IPPL, and much to our surprise they had a baby that we named Courtney, even though Maui had had a vasectomy!

Sadly Michelle couldn't care for Courtney so she was hand-raised by the staff here at IPPL and eventually Maui and Michelle were split apart after Michelle became aggressive towards Maui which resulted in Maui being injured. Maui was then paired with Speedy, another gibbon born at IPPL, but their union wasn't meant to be either after the staff noticed tension between them. So Maui is now living the life of a bachelor and he seems to be enjoying it.

Maui is an extremely easy-going gibbon who loves hanging upside down while swinging on the ropes and firehoses in his enclosure. His favorite activities are engaging with the puzzle feeders the staff hand out as enrichment and rolling around balls and other puzzle toys in his enclosure.

Maui is very food motivated and loves when the Animal Care staff hide treats such as nuts and dried fruit in the pockets of their clothing and he has to dig through them to find his snack! He is one smart gibbon and we are constantly trying to create new puzzles and enrichment activities that challenge him, or that he can't find a way to take apart!

So join us in wishing this highly entertaining gibbon a Happy Birthday!


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