Jamala Wildlife Lodge has a beautiful (and very cute) new addition, Amara, a black-and-white colobus monkey.

She was born at the zoo on 24 January 2025.

Amara’s name means eternal life.

She joins mum and dad Halle and Colin, and older sister Aida.

National Zoo and Aquarium small primate team lead Courtney Hawkins said that while zookeepers knew Halle was pregnant, they didn’t know when the baby would arrive.

“We were lucky for Halle to have Aida a year ago, now Colin and Halle have been together since then, and we probably found out a couple of months ago now that she potentially could be pregnant,” Ms Hawkins said.

“But the day she (Amara) arrived was quite a surprise for us.”

Ms Hawkins said keepers made the discovery during their morning checks in January.

“She was just sitting there with a little baby, which is really exciting,” she said.

“We had a bit of a week or two-week window; we weren’t sure when she was going to come but it was a great surprise.”

Amara is only able to be viewed at the Jamala section at the National Zoo.

“If people book into Jamala, these guys are front and centre in our main area so they’re always on display,” Ms Hawkins said.

“Just come and sit and watch, especially with little Aida – she’s a bit of a toddler right now so she’s jumping all over the place.

She said Amara had brought some calmness to her family.

“As much calm as you can have with a toddler (Aida) running around at the same time,” Ms Hawkins said.

“But they’re really settled, baby’s doing really great as well. (She’s) starting to explore, which is very lovely.

“These guys are what we call an insurance population, and they’re also incredible ambassadors for their species out in the wild, black-and-white colobus’ are doing okay in the wild at the moment, but there’s a lot of other primate species they act as ambassadors for that are struggling.

“These guys really help bring awareness to the public about the plight of primates in the wild.”

Ms Hawkins said this meant they were on display to showcase primate species as well as through educational talks.

She said Amara would cling to her mother for about 20 weeks before going off on her own.

“But she’ll stay with the family her whole life,” Ms Hawkins said.

“We’re really lucky that with colobus families, the females stay together, and they help raise each other’s young, so we’re really hoping that little baby will get to stay with us her whole life.”

Jamala general manager and National Zoo director Amanda Mead said a baby was always an exciting addition for guests at Jamala.

“Being able to see these gorgeous monkeys as a family unit is really, really special,” she said.

“This is what Jamala is all about, this immersive experience as well as having the beautiful food and tours and accommodation.

“It’s about these guys and being able to see a brand new baby that one wasn’t here the next day, and not being able to see those experiences out in the wild, most of the time, is really special for sure.”

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