Virginia Zoo wants help naming critically endangered baby siamang

A zoo in Virginia is trying to identify considered one of its new arrivals. 

Final week, the Virginia Zoo in Norfolk introduced an public sale for somebody to decide on the identify of its new siamang toddler, which was born on June 26. 

Bidding is open till Friday, Aug. 19, at 5 p.m. EDT. Whoever wins the bid may have till Aug. 26 to ship their identify option to the zoo, in keeping with the announcement on the zoo web site.

For record-keeping functions, the child’s identify cannot be the identical as one other animal on the Virginia Zoo.

The zoo can also be requesting gender-neutral names as a result of the siamang’s gender has not but been decided. 

That’s as a result of the child continues to be bonding with its mother — a siamang named Malana. 

The infant’s dad is one other siamang named Bali who can also be on the Virginia zoo, in keeping with the announcement.

“The neonatal examination has not but been carried out as mother and child haven’t been separated within the curiosity of their pure bonding course of,” the Virginia Zoo defined on its web site.

As of Monday, the main bid was $625 by somebody named Bernard David, in keeping with the zoo’s public sale website. 

Cash raised from the public sale will profit the Virginia Zoo’s Act for Wildlife conservation fund, the public sale website mentioned. 

“A siamang start is a vital addition to this critically endangered lesser ape,” Greg Bockheim, the Virginia Zoo government director, mentioned in an announcement. 

“Watching a child develop and have interaction with its household is particular for all of us.”