The National Zoo Welcomes a Baby Howler Monkey

Zoo visitors will note that the ambiance in the Small Mammal House is a bit noisier; we welcomed a black howler monkey baby March 22! It is the first surviving howler baby in the Zoo's history of exhibiting this species. Keepers are watching first-time parents Chula (mother) and Pele (father) from a distance, allowing the family to bond. The baby—a boy—grows more independent every day. Zoo visitors can see the howler family on exhibit in the Small Mammal House.

Their thick necks house a unique voice box, including an enlarged hyoid bone, that enables male howler monkeys to penetrate three miles of dense forest with a single rumbling growl. These booming territorial calls have earned the primates, which are native to Central and South America, the title of loudest animal in the New World (North, Central and South America). The International Union for Conservation of Nature lists the black howler monkey as least concern.

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  Pets & Animals