Critically-endangered monkey needs a name - can you help?

Credit: Natasha Jeffries

An animal park is appealing for help to name a special new arrival.

This critically endangered Sulawesi-crested baby macaque was born at Marwell Zoo to parents Drusilla and Douglas and becomes an important addition to the European Endangered Species Breeding Programme.

She's the first macaque to be born at the zoo for 10 years.

Sulawesi-crested macaques are the most endangered of the seven macaque species found on the island of Sulawesi.

In the wild they live in tropical rainforests and mangrove swamp areas on the Northern Peninsula of the Indonesian island. These animals face many threats in the wild; one of them is over hunting for food.

The primates team have chosen five suitable names for the little girl and they are asking the public to help them pick the best! Voters also have a chance to win a family ticket to Marwell Zoo.

The names chosen by the keepers are:

  • Kendari – place in Sulawesi

  • Melati – national flower for Indonesia

  • Nirmala – means pure in Indonesian

  • Indah – means beautiful in Indonesian

  • Berbulu – means fluffy in Indonesian

To place your vote and find out more, please don't contact us - but visit the Marwell Zoo website.