Baby Maisie Embraced By New Chimp Family At Maryland Zoo

BALTIMORE, MD — What a difference a year makes. A baby chimpanzee that did not receive proper care from her own mother has been embraced and welcomed with open arms by a new chimp family at The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore.

"We couldn’t be happier with how much Maisie has grown, both in confidence and in relationships with her troopmates," The Maryland Zoo said on its official Facebook page.

Maisie is being community-raised by the adult chimps at the zoo and continues to form a close relationship with fellow infants, Lola and Violet, according to the zoo.

"We can’t wait to continue watching her progress," zoo officials said.

According to The Maryland Zoo, Maisie was born at the Oklahoma City Zoo on Aug. 28, 2020, to first-time mother Nia, a 12-year-old chimpanzee.

“The birth seemed to be without complication and the baby appeared to be healthy,” stated Pace Frank, lead primate caretaker at the Oklahoma City Zoo. “However, it was quickly apparent that Nia was not adapting to motherhood appropriately and we made the difficult decision to remove and hand-rear the baby while searching for a suitable home with a nurturing surrogate.”

Officials said Maisie was ultimately moved to The Maryland Zoo to be hand-reared and paired with a surrogate chimp. It was around the same time last year that she was preparing to meet her new chimp family — or troopmates — for the first time.

"After being hand-raised since she arrived, this was a delicate process that took a lot of thought and strategy from our chimp care team," zoo officials said.

And that careful planning appears to have paid off. Maisie's new adoptive chimp family has welcomed her into the fold.