Siamangs Move In!

 A siamang couple will live out their retirement at Hamilton Zoo, after relocating here from Auckland Zoo on the 1st July 2009. 

Thirty-year-old Iuri and 25-year-old Itam have resided at Auckland Zoo since the late 1980s and during this time have reared six offspring - many of whom now reside at other zoos throughout Australasia.

Now retired from breeding and on contraception, Iuri and Itam's move to Hamilton makes way at Auckland Zoo for their son Iwani to be paired with Kera, a female siamang from Mogo Zoo in New South Wales.

Siamangs are tailless, black furred gibbons that form monogamous pairs for life.  They are found in Sumatra and Malaysia, and can be twice the size of other gibbons, reaching up to 1 metre in height.

They have distinctive, large throat pouches (gular sac) that can be inflated to the size of their heads, allowing them to make loud 'song duets' that can be heard from up to 5km away!  Their resonating calls are also accompanied by branch swinging and shaking, so it's a wonderous sight if you're lucky enough to catch them mid-song.

"This is the first time we have housed siamangs here at Hamilton Zoo so it is great for our visitors to now be able to see these amazing animals firsthand," said Zoo Director Stephen Standley.  "One of our existing rainforest exhibits was renovated especially for their arrival, so we hope Iuri and Itam will make themselves at home."

Iuri and Itam's relocation to Hamilton Zoo was filmed by Greenstone Pictures and will feature on the next series of The Zoo television programme.