Care staff at Primarily Primates recently made a shocking yet heartwarming discovery.

Chimpanzees Norma and Selena, who were rescued by the sanctuary in 2019, along with Mighty Fine, from Wildlife Waystation after it closed for financial reasons, are the daughters of Shu Shu, who arrived at PPI in 1996.

The revelation was made after a visit from a former laboratory veterinarian who knew Norma, Selena and Mighty Fine when they were born at the now defunct Laboratory for Experimental Medicine and Surgery in Primates at New York University. The lab housed some 300 chimpanzees and nearly 300 monkeys, including Shu Shu.

“We don’t know when Norma and Selena were taken away from Shu Shu, but Norma was born in 1992 and Selena was born in 1993, so it seems like they didn’t stay with their mom for long,” said Krystal Mathis, executive director of Primarily Primates.

Once the connection was made, Primarily Primates started a process to slowly bring together Norma, Selena and Mighty Fine, who were in a habitat in the Outback section of the sanctuary, with Shu Shu and Cheetah, who were living in an enclosure in a section known as The Hill.

Only visual contact is allowed at first when combining groups of chimps. Then tactile contact through a barrier is allowed while the chimps are continuously observed by staff.  Eventually, tactile contact is allowed without staff present. When all signs indicate that a full physical contact introduction is likely to be successful, care staff arranges for veterinary staff to be present, and the chimps are allowed to be together.

Overall, the five chimps have been very receptive to each other. Cheetah likes having younger chimps to play with, and Shu Shu likes having other female chimps to groom and adore her.

“When we first introduced Selena and Shu Shu, they ran to each other and hugged. It is tempting to feel like maybe they remembered that infant/mother bond from long ago,” Mathis said. “However, it took Shu Shu longer to warm up to Norma. Maybe it was a situation where she had more time with Selena as an infant, or maybe they don’t remember each other at all. It’s impossible to say.

“But overall this group of chimps has been amenable to expanding their community, and that’s inspiring on its own.”