Wellington zoo has welcomed a new baby chimp this week.
Sally gave birth to her baby in the early hours of Monday morning, the zoo said, announcing the news on social media.
"Our Keepers received a wonderful surprise this morning– Sally went into labour during the early hours and was already bonding with her baby when they arrived. The team have been monitoring mum and bubs this morning and both seem healthy and well so far," the post read .
"As we’re sure you can imagine, Sally is very protective of her baby at the moment and is keeping it close to her chest. Alexis, the father and alpha male in our community has been guarding them both and grooming Sally (which she definitely deserves)!
"The birth of an animal is always a special time at the Zoo, and it takes on a special significance when the species is classified as endangered. At Wellington Zoo, we are proud to be part of an international breeding programme to protect Chimpanzees for future generations.
"We expect baby Chimp to be hard to spot for visitors for the next few weeks as Sally will be keeping it closely guarded, and may be keeping to her bedroom a lot more as the baby is still young. However, she has been out in the habitat with the baby today, so you could be lucky and catch a glimpse of Sally’s bundle of joy the next time you visit us!"
Once the sex of the baby chimp is determined, zookeepers will choose a name.
1News went to check out the cute new arrival in the video above.
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