A Chimp Who Has Been Abandoned On An Island Makes A Special Friend


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He may be the world’s most lonely monkey, but he’s made a new companion.

Ponso is a 40-year-old chimp that was left to die on a desolate island off the coast of Ivory Coast after being exploited in medical experiments. For years, he was kept alive by a local named Germain, who sent bananas and bread to the aged chimp because the island lacked natural food sources.

Last week, Germain and a buddy, Mohamed, came by to deliver Ponso’s daily lunch, and they also brought a special gift: a brand new teddy bear.

Credit: JEFF TOPHAM

“Ponso was very interested by the teddy bear we bought,” SOS Ponso, a group dedicated to helping him, wrote on Facebook. “He took it and brought it on the island, far from Germain and Mohamed.”

A video shows Germain and Mohamed calling to Ponso as they row up to the island. He runs out to greet them, climbing up a nearby tree. Once they land and he sees the teddy bear, he rushes down and grabs it, carrying it a few yards away before sitting down to play with it.

The video also shows the men handing food to Ponso, who inspects each item carefully before laying it aside. SOS Ponso says his lack of immediate interest in food is a good sign, as it indicates he’s well-fed.

After receiving the food, Ponso reaches out to grab Germain’s hand, seemingly in thanks.

In another video, Ponso can be seen playing with Germain, laughing out loud when his human friend makes noises and tickles him. While roughhousing with a chimp generally isn’t a good idea, it’s clear the two have a special relationship.

After all, for the past several years years, Germain was all he had.

Ponso was one of dozens of chimps who were abandoned on a string of islands off the Ivory Coast and Liberia by the New York Blood Center (NYBC), which had used them for years in often painful medical testing.

There were 20 chimps in Ponso’s group when he was left on the islands more than 30 years ago. Within months, half of them were dead or missing in what one aid group called a “veritable massacre;” the animals were completely unprepared to live on their own after lifetimes in tiny cages.

Credit: JEFF TOPHAM

They kept dying off, and Ponso, his partner, and their two offspring were the only ones left for years. NYBC ceased bringing food and medical treatment at some point, purposefully abandoning them to perish. Germain began stopping by to feed them, despite his meager finances, since he couldn’t stand watching them hunger.

Ponso’s whole family died within days of each other in 2013. Ponso, according to Germain, assisted him in burying them by strewing soil on their graves.

Ponso’s condition was unknown for years, and the guy who came to feed him was his only source of food and comfort.

Credit: JEFF TOPHAM

Last March, however, NYBC declared that it would no longer subsidize a well-known chimp colony off the coast of Liberia, a move that primatologist Jane Goodall described as “totally shocking and outrageous.”

Animal protection organizations raced to one of Liberia’s islands, where they discovered the chimpanzees without access to fresh water. Since then, a team led by the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) has spearheaded efforts to feed and care for the Liberian chimpanzees, powered by public donations, while urging NYBC to take on the obligation of caring for them.

If there’s one silver lining, it’s that the tale of Ponso, the chimp who was let to die in a far more covert manner, has come to light. SOS Ponso was founded by a group of fans to gather funds for the old chimp, who, despite his sociable inclination, spends his days alone on the island, and to ensure that he receives a daily cargo of fresh food.

The Humane Society of the United States aims to transform the Liberian island into a refuge for the chimpanzees that live there, allowing them to live out their days in safety and peace, but Ponso’s fate remains uncertain.

“The ‘SOS Ponso’ coalition is currently in discussion with the Ivorian authorities and several sanctuaries in Africa to work on the best issue for Ponso,” the group reported on Facebook. “We all hope that a solution will be found quickly.”

In the meantime, Ponso will continue to rely on Germain and his other friends to get by. And there’s plenty of love to go around.

If you’d like to help feed Ponso and give him the future he deserves, you can make a donation to his care team here.


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