Rare sanctuary looks after baby bonobos away from poaching threat

Micheline Nzonzi cradled a small and sleepy bonobo, an orphan whose life she will try to save over the next three years or so. The 1-year-old’s chances are good, with motherly affection, milk from a bottle and frequent play with other babies. “Without me, without us, these bonobos cannot survive,” said Nzonzi, who has been a bonobo foster mother for 24 years. “They survive thanks to human affection.” This primate nursery on the forested outskirts of the Congolese capital of Kinshasa is the world’s only sanctuary for orphaned bonobos, usually rescued from poachers or found trapped in the homes of […]