Morning Play

This morning, Foxie was clearly feeling playful – stomping around the playroom and doing somersaults. Jamie noticed this, approached Foxie, and swiped one of Foxie’s beloved dolls. (Jamie knows this is a surefire strategy for initiating play with Foxie.) Jamie’s move kicked off a long game of wrestling and doll keep-away.)

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Confidence

I was going through today’s photos of the chimpanzees, and these two stood out to me. It’s not uncommon to see Jamie looking confident and relaxed; as the leader of the group, she has every reason to be confident. But I love that Annie, who’s at the bottom of the social hierarchy, looks just as…

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Today’s Highlights

Today is sunny but very cold in Cle Elum – tonight’s low is predicted to be 0 degrees Fahrenheit – and the chimpanzees are having a quiet afternoon in the warm playroom. Here are our favorite photos from the day; let us know which is your favorite! Negra in her nest: Missy checking out the…

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Possibilities

The chimpanzees access Young’s Hill, their two-acre outdoor habitat, through a doorway in the greenhouse. Missy is sitting in front of that door in this photo: During the day, the chimpanzees spend a lot of time in front of this doorway looking out toward the hill. I think as much as they like being outside,…

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Saving Dora

Foxie has an interesting relationship with her dolls. She almost always carries at least one with her, and we wouldn’t think of putting out the enrichment for the day and not including a handful (or several handfuls) of trolls and Doras. As much as Foxie likes having her dolls with her, she also doesn’t mind…

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Outtakes

Today Missy was combing her hair and I grabbed the camera and took a series of photos. They all turned out blurry and dark. Here are a few of the better ones: On a typical day, we take dozens of photos of the chimpanzees. The vast majority of these are deleted. Our photos have improved…

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Ever the Charmer

I know it’s best to avoid speaking in absolutes, but I believe it is actually impossible not to love Burrito. He’s a blustery, macho male chimpanzee with equal parts little boy charm. For all his swagger, he has a certain vulnerability that is so endearing.

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Keep-away

Jamie knows that the best way to get Foxie’s attention is to get between her and one of her beloved dolls.

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On The 3rd Day of Thanks

registration table

In this week leading up to Thanksgiving, we are giving Seven Days of Thanks. We have so many amazing primates (human and non-human) to celebrate! (Check out the first and second days of thanks if you missed them.) Today we want to thank our many volunteers – the incredible, selfless individuals who give their time…

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