A male Coquerel’s sifaka lemur was born at the Duke Lemur Center during the snowstorm Saturday.
Staffers stayed at the center overnight amid the inclement weather to care for the lemurs and to support first-time mother Gisela. Gisela is the daughter of Zoboomafoo—whose real name was Jovian—the beloved star of a PBS children’s show who passed away in 2014. His new grandson is “bright and happy” and in a healthy state, weighing in at 98 grams, the center confirmed Wednesday.
“It’s great that the legacy lives on,” said Anne Yoder, biology professor and director of the Lemur Center. “Jovian was near and dear to many in the country.”
Despite the snow, staffers soldiered on to provide care for the nearly 250 lemurs at the center, ensuring their cages were cleaned and food was provided. After discovering that her car was snowed in and that her brakes had frozen, veterinary technician Megan Davison walked two miles in the sleet to reach the new baby for the scheduled post-birth check-up. She added that she did not mind the detour.
“It gave me a chance an opportunity to check out the trails of the Duke forest,” Davison said.
Yoder praised the devotion of the staffers and of Davison in particular during the storm.
“She never hesitated—when we knew the infant had been born, she made sure she did her job,” Yoder said. “Come wind, hail and dark of night, the staffers are there.”
The new baby does not yet have a name, but a Roman name will be chosen, according to a statement by Janice Kalin, the center’s community and foundation relations coordinator. The center’s technicians and staffers have returned to their normal schedule and will continue to monitor the baby lemur for healthy weight gain over the next few days.
Jovian’s grandson is not the only celebrity lemur baby born recently. Last May, the Lemur Center welcomed two female lemur babies, both named Princess Julien after the popular Dreamworks character King Julien, the star of the “Madagascar” franchise.
The Duke Lemur Center is the world’s largest collection of the endangered lemurs outside of their native Madagascar. Tours are offered year-round via appointment for those interested in learning about the 21 species of lemurs housed on the 80-acre conservation.
“We do all of this for the love of lemurs,” Kalin said.
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