Update: May 9
Subsequent to the initial press statements from the JGI and MTPA, an attampt to save the chimps was announced. Read about this here.
NELSPRUIT – The two chimpanzees at the Jane Goodall Institute (JGI) SA Chimpanzee Eden that attacked and severely injured an American research student in 2012, were involved in another attack on a human. After careful consideration, it has been decided to have them euthanised.
The chimps, Nikki and Amadeus, attacked Mr Andrew Oberle in June 2012. Oberle had apparently ignored protocol and climbed over a safety fence that served as a barrier to the main electrified fence, when he saw a chimp trying to drag a rock through the main fence.
Nikki and Amadeus probably saw this as a challenge to their territory, grabbed his feet and pulled him through the fence. They mauled him and caused serious injuries to his face, arm and groin. He was rushed to Mediclinic Nelspruit and was hospitalised for several months.
The chimps struck again on April 25.
Ms Margi Brocklehurst, managing executive of JGI SA, said a team had been busy inspecting the fence line at the time of the incident. Nikki charged the electric fence and despite being shocked by a 1 200 volt electric current, he managed to scale two fences and attacked Mr Andrew Frances. Amadeus also tried to climb over the fence, but was held back by the electrical current. Both returned to their enclosure after warning shots were fired. Frances sustained minor injuries.
“Every possible option from relocation to a more secure environment, to building a special stainless steel cage to house Nikki and Amadeus were investigated.
“However, keeping primates and other wild animals locked up in small cages is against everything that JGI and the founder Dr Jane Goodall stands for,” Brocklehurst explained.
The JGI SA ethics committee, comprising the Wildlife Protection Unit, Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency, a veterinarian, as well as executives and management of JGI SA convened on Tuesday to discuss the chimps’ future.
“The committee unfortunately recommended euthanasia as the only possible solution,” Brocklehurst said.
Goodall added it is tragic when situations such as these arise, but given the trauma that some chimpanzees suffer, there will unfortunately be instances where this outcome is unavoidable.
“The work being done by Chimp Eden is too important to jeopardise.
“There are 34 chimps at the sanctuary and many others that are out there in need of refuge. We need to ensure the sustainability of Chimp Eden so that every rescud chimp will continue to be affored a second chance at life.
Mr Dries Pienaar, head of CITES at the MTPA, agreed they had reviewed the incident very carefully. “The first attack might have been attributed to some error on Oberle’s part, but this time, the victim had done nothing wrong. These chimps are not being deterred by a fence anymore and are not afraid of humans,” Pienaar explained.
“Anything could have triggered the attack. These primates were raised by humans and the employee might have reminded them of someone who had treated them badly in the past.” The option to relocate them to a zoo elsewhere in the country was considered, but none of these establishments were suitable. “These zoos also have to accommodate members of the public and employ humans who take care of the animals. Relocating them would have meant simply transferring the problem,” he further explained.
It is not clear yet when the apes will be put down, but it has been decided to donate their carcasses for research.
Pienaar said it was a very sad moment when the decision was taken to have them euthanised. “Nikki and Amadeus proved that rehabilitation does take place at Chimp Eden. They became wild again, to an extent. That is probably also why they had attacked, in an attempt to protect their territory.”
Amadeus (1991)
Amadeus was kept chained up outside a petrol station in Luanda, Angola to attract customers. When he arrived in South Africa in 1996, he was transferred to the Johannesburg Zoo and lived there for 10 years, some of it with Nikki.
Nikki (1994)
Nikki was kept as a pet and humanised in Liberia. He was totally shaved apart from having a little boys’ hairstyle, learnt to eat at the table with cutlery, wiped his mouth with a serviette, wore specifically designed chimp costumes and a gold watch, was bathed regularly and even slept in a bed. He was transferred to the Johannesburg Zoo in 1996 and lived there for 10 years.
Source: www.chimpeden.com
