Man Hurries to Rescue Apes

Maybe it is because of their believed common ancestral roots, but the fact is man and ape usually share a warm relationship.

This is most evident nowadays at Simón Bolívar Zoo, downtown San José, where 76 scientists meet to seek ways to rescue monkeys from the brink of extinction.

At a workshop that begins today and continues through June 29, researchers, biologists, and veterinarians from the United States, Cuba, Mexico, the Dominican Republic and Central America analyze the predicament of primates, in order to launch a regional program to preserve their habitat.

``The idea is to establish a specific plan of action for the Mesoamerican zone, because the problems here differ from those in other areas,'' Foundation pro Zoo Parks (FUNDAZOO in Spanish) general director Yolanda Matamoros said, citing South America as an example.

She pointed out that because of the desire to accomplish as much work as possible scientists attending the workshop will work from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily.

Jacobo Arauz from Panama; Mexicans Epigmeo Cruz, Domingo Canales and Ernesto Rodríguez; and Jorge Porras from El Salvador are among the speakers at the workshop, the first of its kind to be organized in the region.

``We aim to establish a network with the workers from the different zoos, in order to learn from one-another,'' said Annei Baker, from the Syracuse Zoo in New York, one of the conference organizers. ``One of the major problems we have had is the fact that we have been working in an isolated and individual fashion.''

Mexican biologist Ernesto Rodríguez, from Veracruzana University, explained that 23 species and subspecies of monkeys have their habitat in the middle area of the Americas; however, he said that 13 of them are threatened and three are on the brink of extinction.

Workshop participants agree that the leading problem threatening primate survival is habitat destruction, resulting from pollution and deforestation.

FUNDAZOO is developing a vast conservation program, not only for monkeys but also for nature in general, director Matamoros pointed out. Just three months ago, they organized a special course on felines and they are planning a workshop for zoo veterinarians in the near future.