Meet white-cheeked gibbon Harper, the playful primate joining Oregon Zoo family

PORTLAND, Ore. (KATU) — A new white-cheeked gibbon is swinging into the Oregon Zoo’s Red Ape Reserve.

Harper was born in 2015 at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. The Association of Zoos and Aquariums recommended she move to the Oregon Zoo based on its Species Survival Plan for gibbons.

Zookeepers said Harper is already bonding with fellow white-cheeked gibbon resident Duffy through grooming, playing, and swinging together.

They traveled around the habitat together, then took a break to groom each other,” said Kate Gilmore, who oversees the zoo’s primate area.

Gilmore predicts that Harper will also get along with the other neighbors living at the Red Ape Reserve – the Bornean orangutans like 1-year-old Jolene.

At 7 years old, Harper is young and full of energy, just like Jolene,” said Gilmore. “We call Duffy ‘Uncle Duffy’ because of how interested he is in Jolene, and I think Harper will make a very fun aunt.

The two white-cheeked gibbons will be easy to tell apart, Gilmore said.

“Male white-cheeked gibbons have black fur, but females like Harper turn white or tan in adulthood,” Gilmore said.

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White-cheeked gibbons are listed as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Their numbers have declined by at least 80% over the past 50 years because of poaching and habitat loss from illegal logging and agriculture.

As part of Metro, the Oregon Zoo helps make greater Portland a great place to call home. Committed to conservation, the zoo is working to save endangered California condors, northwestern pond turtles, Oregon silverspot and Taylor’s checkerspot butterflies, and northern leopard frogs.

Support from the Oregon Zoo Foundation enhances and expands the zoo’s efforts in conservation, education and animal welfare. Members, donors and corporate and foundation partners help the zoo make a difference across the region and around the world. To contribute, go to oregonzoo.org/give.