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Some Primate Milestones

1979-1989: The Zoo was honored with Association of Zoos
and Aquarium (AZA) certificates and awards for sustained
success in the breeding and conservation of Goeldi’s monkeys.

1982-1984: Tropic World opened as the largest indoor zoo
exhibit in the world.
1986: An AZA Propagator’s Certificate recognized the Zoo’s
sustained ex situ conservation of the golden lion tamarin.
Also that year, Beta, a female western lowland gorilla, received
the first bilateral hip replacement surgery for a gorilla performed
by human and veterinary surgeons in consultation with
the Zoo’s veterinarians.

1993: As part of a successful AZA initiative, a pair of zoo-born
golden lion tamarins were released into a wooded area near Swan
Lake and allowed to range freely to learn survival skills before
being introduced to their native habitat in Brazil.
1994: For the first time, brain surgery developed for humans
was performed on a great ape, Chicory, a silverback western
lowland gorilla. A team of Zoo veterinarians and Loyola
Medical Center neurosurgeons successfully removed a brain tumor.
1996-2006: The Zoo supported primate conservation efforts
as a Managing Member of the Madagascar Fauna Group (MFG).
Over the years, the Zoo dedicated more than $150,000 to support
the MFG’s mission to protect the rich biodiversity of eastern
Madagascar through conservation, research, education, and
capacity building.
2008: The Zoo received Top Honors in AZA’s prestigious
Edward H. Bean Award for our work with Goeldi’s monkeys.
2013: The iconic Baboon Island exhibit, which opened
in 1936 as Monkey Island, was closed. Since the late 1960s,
nearly 150 Guinea baboons had been born at the Zoo. It is
now the site of Hamill Family Nature Plaza.
2021: A group of generous donors brought King Nyani, an
Top: Goeldi’s monkey in Tropic World
Middle: Golden lion tamarins at Swan Lake interactive gorilla sculpture weighing more than 2 tons, to the Zoo.
Bottom: Chicory Western Lowland Gorilla It symbolizes the commitment of the Zoo and renowned artists—
Gillie and Marc Schattner—to raise public awareness about the
critically endangered animals.

2024: The Zoo partnered with AZA’s Saving Animals From
Extinction (SAFE) programs for gorillas and orangutans.
These multi-institution programs support species conservation
through on-the-ground protections, research, monitoring
in the wild, and education. The vision of the SAFE Orangutan
program, for example, is to protect and restore wild orangutan
populations and their habitats through public awareness, increased
funding, and field work focusing on the long-term protection
of orangutan populations.

BROOKFIELD ZOO CHICAGO | SPRING 2025