Masaya the first ever Roloway monkey to undergo surgery in captivity

Chester Zoo is one of only two places in the UK that Roloway monkeys can be found, a spokesman said, and the breeding population there supports the animal as conservationists ponder what to do to ensure it can survive in its West African home. The monkey named Masaya, the 15-year-old primate gave birth to daughter named Lagertha, was the first ever Roloway monkey to undergo surgery in captivity to remove a golf-ball sized abscess from her foot. Masaya had to have one toe amputated during the procedure, which was done at the University of Liverpool’s Small Animal Teaching Hospital.

Roloway monkeys originate from West Africa and are listed as Critically-Endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Once common in the lush rainforests of Ghana and the Ivory Coast, the Roloway monkey now survives only in isolated pockets of old-growth forest.