Baby gibbon adopted by surrogate moms Skittles and M&Ms at Cincinnati zoo

CINCINNATI, Ohio (WTVQ) — Sister gibbons Skittles and M&M have adopted Kip, the baby white-cheeked gibbon that arrived at the Cincinnati Zoo last month.

Kip’s parents at the Dallas Zoo “showed little interest in caring for him,” so the Association of Zoos and Aquariums Species Survival Program recommended trying to place him at Cincinnati Zoo.

“We observed positive interactions throughout the introduction process, so we were optimistic that the three would do well when we removed the mesh barrier for the full introduction,” said Zoological Manager Victoria McGee in a press release. “It went even better than expected! Both females have shown interest in Kip and they have spent the last two nights sleeping all together in one hammock.”

McGee said the zoo is already seeing grooming, cooperative feeding and play behaviors between Kip, Skittles and M&M.

The group will continue to bond behind the scenes while Kip builds his locomotion skills in the special gyms that the zoo’s volunteer enrichment team built for him.

In the meantime, you can look for updates on Kip’s progress and when/where to see him on the zoo’s social media pages.