Help name the newest member of the Rockhampton Zoo family
Published on 19 January 2022
Rockhampton Regional Council is calling on the community to help name the newest member of the chimpanzee family at Rockhampton Zoo.
The Zoo welcomed a baby girl to the troop on December 8 and have been keeping a close eye on mum, Leakey, and bub since the birth.
Parks, Sport and Public Spaces Councillor, Cherie Rutherford said it’s now time to give the newest addition a name and that the community are invited to help with this exciting decision.
“We were overwhelmed with the support from the community throughout Leakey’s pregnancy and the kind words and joy shared by so many when the baby was born early last month,” Cr Rutherford said.
“We know that our Zoo and each of the animals that call it home are very near and dear to the community and given this, we want to involve the community in the naming of our newest member of the chimpanzee family.”
Cr Rutherford said that from today and until January 27, the public will be able to vote on one of four names.
“As of this morning, there is a voting poll on Rockhampton Zoo’s Facebook page and this will remain open until 8am next Thursday,” Cr Rutherford said.
“There are four names to vote on, with each chosen by our Zoo keepers.
“In choosing the names, the keepers have taken the opportunity to pay tribute to the origins of the species.
“From the list, you’ll also see each have a special meaning - one of the names means beautiful, another means flower and there is also one that means victory.
“There is also a name which means corn – which was chosen as a way to represent our local area – when paired with her big sister’s name Capri, you get Capricorn.
“We can’t wait to see what the most preferred name is and absolutely can’t wait to give our beautiful baby girl a name.”
To vote, simply head to Rockhampton Zoo’s Facebook page and select your favourite.
The four names to vote on include:
- Nasara (Na-sa-ra) - from the Hausa language, meaning victory
- Mahindi (Ma-hin-di) – from the Swahili language, meaning corn
- Mzuri (Mu-zu-ri) – from the Swahili language, meaning beautiful
- Imbali (Im-ba-li) – from the Zulu language, meaning flower