Neglected bushbaby treated to some TLC [VIDEO]
DOUGLASDALE – Gremlin the bushbaby may have had a hard start to life, but now he's being cared for by Irene McKenzie of Care Douglasdale.
Gremlin is a young, male lesser bushbaby who was found defenceless and alone on a plot in Honeydew at the end of February by residents who lived on the property. Although the pair tried to reunite the animal with his mother, their efforts were unsuccessful and so they decided to bring him to a rehabilitator.
Gremlin was brought to Irene McKenzie of the Wildlife Centre for Rehabilitation and Education (Care), who has been caring for the animal for the past few weeks.
“We were on the patio when we saw the mom bushbaby with a baby being held in her mouth,” Lee Douglas, who is a former biology teacher and who found Gremlin, explained. “We think there might have been a rat bothering them or something, because as mom jumped from our roof to a nearby tree, Gremlin fell off of her back.
“We climbed a ladder to put him back on the roof, and we left him there for a while as we figured mom would come back to get him. Unfortunately, she did not so we brought him to Irene.”
Although it is hard to say how old Gremlin is when he was found he still had an umbilical cord, indicating that he was probably only a few days old at the time.
“I didn’t think he would survive the night,” McKenzie told the Fourways Review. “But he did, and now he’s thriving. He was 12 grams when we found him, but I weighed him yesterday and he is up to 42 grams now.”
Gremlin is young enough to still need milk formula but managed to eat his first mealworm on 27 March. He is still being kept in an incubator in order to maintain his body temperature and keep him healthy.
Lesser bushbabies survive on a diet of insects and the sap from acacia trees, and it is McKenzie’s hope that he will one day be returned to the wild.
“Currently I’m doing research on bushbaby colonies in South Africa where he can be released, as I want him to go somewhere where he will be accepted. Bushbabies live in social groups and it’s important that he’s with others of his kind. I’m not sure when he will be released – that depends on when he’s ready.”
Gremlin will be set free in a so-called ‘soft release’, which means he will be kept in an enclosure with fresh food and water in a place where the wild colony can get used to him and his presence. Once it is clear that he will be accepted by them, he will be let out of the enclosure.
Bushbabies have become more important to the people of Fourways in the last few years, as residents of the Waterford Estate and surrounds have protested against the development of houses on a stretch of land near the estate which is currently home to a colony of the animals.
It is hoped that Gremlin will draw more attention to that situation.
“I think he is an ambassador for his species. Wildlife is being impacted by development, and the plots in Honeydew are being divided up which is sad.”
The centre cares for a number of smaller wildlife, including snakes, tortoises, birds and Gremlin. McKenzie would like the public to know that volunteers are welcome, and donations of acacia branches, eucalyptus and tortoise food (cucumber, tomato and other fresh vegetables) are always needed.
“We accept youngsters who need to do their community service [for school], but only animal lovers need apply,” she concluded.
Details: Irene McKenzie 083 659 3727.
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