Another one of the older females of the troop, T.M. is thought to have been born in the wild in Central Africa in 1971. She is distinguishable from the other members of the troop by the gray hair around her chin, making it appear that she has a beard. She is also one of the taller and more lean females of the troop.
One of the adult females, AM is characterized by her somewhat pink and spotted face and her tubby and short stature. She is the daughter of BT & KO and was born at the NC Zoo on 12/24/83.
H.N. is easily distinguishable by his gray "beard" and light skin coloring on his chin. Born in the wild, his estimated year of birth is 1975. He is the Alpha male of the chimpanzee troop.
Probably the easiest chimp to pick out of the group, T.R. is the oldest member of the troop, and the oldest adult female. With an estimated birth date of 1969, T.R. came to the Zoo in 1980. She is characterized by her bear chest and head that makes her ears seem larger than the other chimps. T.R. is one of the higher ranking females and can often be seen patrolling the exhibit making sure that the troop is safe. She also likes to lounge around the exhibit by lying on her back and holding her feet up in the air.
One of the large adult females and the Alpha female of the troop, M.G. is distinguishable by her gray beard and hunched posture. Although her exact birth date and birthplace is unknown, she came to the Zoo in 1980 and is estimated to have been born in 1973, making her 33 years old and one of the oldest females of the troop.
The chimpanzee family is a made up of eleven members. Each chimpanzee has been given a name and responds to his or her name being called by their keepers. In the past, keepers and volunteers have shared the individual chimps names with visitors to the exhibit. At times, visitors would yell or scream the names of the chimps, which irritated and stressed them, causing them to throw rocks, sticks, or even charge the glass walls of their exhibit. For this reason, keepers now refer to each chimp by their initials.
While it is not known just where B.T. was born, it is known that she was born in the wild. With an estimated birth date of 1974, she 32 years of age and is the smallest of the adult females in the troop . She has a smaller frame than the other females and has grayish skin around her nose and mouth. She arrived at the Zoo in 1979.
Born at the Zoo in 1996, R.B. is the smallest female in the troop. The daughter of K.O. and R.T., she is distinguishable by her dark face and long dark-black fur and is often observed making a "kissing" face and bouncing up and down.
Born at the NC Zoo in 1987, B.A. is the daughter of K.O. and M.G. She is characterized by her somewhat triangular shaped face and having little hair on her head and face. She is an adult female, and has been reintroduced to the troop after a skirmish with another chimpanzee.
R.T. arrived at the NC Zoo in 1980. Although the location is not known, she was born in the wild, and has an estimated birth year of 1971. She is the largest of the adult females and has a bare spot on her back between her shoulders. She also is characterized by the fact that the hair on her head stands up straight.
M.K was born at the Zoo in 1994 and is the daughter of T.M. and K.O. or R.D. One of the adolescent females of the troop, she is distinguished by her extremely dark fur. She is smaller in size than the adult females and has distinguishable markings around her nose.
J.O is the youngest and smallest of the males in the troop. He was born in Atlanta at Emory University on 12/7/96. He is characterized by having very light skin on his face.
LN arrived at the NC Zoo in February of 2007 along with his half brother SK, from the Miami Metro Zoo. LN was born on 10/13/01. His mother Binti, and father Hondo, still reside at the Miami Metro Zoo.
LN is also easy to pick out from the other members of his NC Zoo family. Because of his young age, he is smaller in stature, has pink skin around his face and is often playing with SK or hanging out with RB & RT and seems to be a bit more shy than SK.
SK arrived at the NC Zoo in February of 2007 along with his half brother LN, from the Miami Metro Zoo. SK was born on 6/21/01. His mother Samantha, and father Hondo, still reside at the Miami Metro Zoo.
SK is easy to distinguish from the other members of his NC Zoo family. Because of his young age, he is smaller in stature, has pink skin around his face and is often playing with LN. Sk seems to take every opportunity to play with anyone who is willing to play with him, and seems to have an outgoing personality.
