NEW DELHI: The only female Hoolock Gibbon at the Delhi zoo may finally get a mate after waiting for over a decade. The ape was brought to the Delhi zoo in a pair from Dhaka in late 1980s but the male hoolock died after a few years. Since then this 25-year-old ape is alone, waiting for a mate. But now, said the zoo officials, they are flying in a male for her from the zoo in Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh so that the "endangered species'' can breed in Delhi.
The female hoolock had been showing signs of distress of late, by sending out loud calls in the morning and longing for a mate. "We have been trying to get a mate for the hoolock for more than five years. Finally, officials at the zoo in Itanagar have agreed to send one of their male adult hoolocks to us this monsoon season for the purpose of conservational breeding,'' said D N Singh, director of Delhi Zoo.
Hoolock gibbons are tree-dwelling apes found in North-East India. It is the only ape found in the Indian subcontinent, and has been listed under the endangered species schedule I under the Wild Life Protection Act 1972.
Officials said hoolocks are threatened because of habitat fragmentation and poaching. Their forest habitats are severely fragmented in North-East India. Hunting, slash and burn cultivation and timber felling are all threats to the Hoolock Gibbon, they said. They are also caught as pets and their parts are used in oriental medicines.
" A single animal is in stress and hoolocks are social animals who like staying in groups and pairs. We are also planning to get two lions from the Hyderabad zoo for breeding as well soon,'' said Singh.
Best time for mating for gibbons is during rain. After a seven-month gestation, female hoolock gives birth to single offspring. Young hoolocks have white fur that in six months turns black. After eight to nine years, they are fully mature and their fur reaches its final coloration. Hoolocks' life expectancy in the wild is about 25 years.
"Only 8 out of the 180 zoos in the country have hoolock gibbons. The zoo in Itanagar has been quite successful in breeding this endangered species and Central Zoo Authority has selected it as a centre for conservation breeding of hoolock gibbon. We are extremely pleased that we are getting a adult male gibbon from there,'' said Singh.