Last month, the Assiniboine Park Zoo said hello to a new addition: a baby white-handed gibbon, born to parents Maya and Samson.
With warm weather in the forecast and the primate family expected to spend more time outdoors, the zoo is asking the public to help choose a name for the new arrival, which zoo staff believe to be male.
Zoo staff have come up with a list of potential ‘M’ names for the baby, in honour of both his mother Maya and grandfather Mel, who also lived at the Assiniboine Park Zoo.
Two of the options, the zoo said, are based on the animals’ musical style of vocalizing, which is often described as ‘singing.’
Winnipeggers can choose between the names Mozart (after the composer), Merrick (meaning “fame,” “power” or “ruler”), Mele (a Hawaiian song or chant) or Manas (meaning “intelligence” or “mind”).
Voters have until midnight on Sunday to cast their ballot in the zoo’s online poll.
The gibbon family continues to thrive after Samson and Maya were connected through a species survival plan via the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. The new gibbon has an older sibling, Salju, who was born at the zoo in 2019.