NC Zoo hosts 'Great Ape' Event
Posted on 09/16/10ASHEBORO, NC - It's time to go "ape" at the North Carolina Zoo. The zoo's third annual "Great Ape Weekend" is slated for Sept. 18 - 19 and dedicated to the park's chimpanzees and gorillas.
Kids and adults alike can enjoy a variety of activities including making a gorilla nest, "foraging" for food and talking one-on-one with chimpanzee and gorilla keepers. Visitors can learn about these endangered apes and ways to help their wild cousins during presentations from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at overlooks or on pathways near the gorilla, chimpanzee and lemur exhibits.
Other staff presentations will focus on apes in literature, comparing human strength to that of apes and the latest information on Nori, a new baby chimp born at the zoo in August. A new event for 2010 is "Termite Fishing," allowing kids to learn how chimps use twigs to probe termite mounds for the insects. Public feedings for the gorillas will be held at 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., while the chimps will be fed at 2 p.m.
All Great Ape Weekend activities are free with regular zoo admission of $10 for adults, $6 for children and $8 for seniors 62-plus. The zoo is located on Zoo Parkway (N.C. 159) six miles southeast of Asheboro off U.S. 64 and U.S. 220. Park hours from April through October are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. For information call 1-800-488-0444 or visit the zoo's Web site at www.nczoo.org.
The zoo is an agency of the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Dee Freeman, Secretary; Beverly Eaves Perdue, Governor.
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