Farewell Kumang, Denda, and Bella.
The trio of orangutans who live at the Seneca Park Zoo are leaving Rochester soon for more modern habitats.
The 87 year old main building which houses primates will be demolished as part of the zoo's multi-year renovation and expansion.
Seneca Park Zoo director Larry Sorel won't identify the zoos the orangutans will be going to - he wants to leave the announcements to those communities - but one of the orangutans is expected to return to Rochester in a few years.
"Denda is prime breeding age, so he'll be going to a zoo and start another family. Kumang and Bella will be going somewhere where they can stay together for another few years. If all the stars align and everything works out the way we want it to, Bella will be returning to Rochester to start her new family in a new exhibit."
The new primate habitat is expected to open in 2022 or 2023. The state-of-the-art tropics complex will also include gorillas and lemurs.
Meanwhile, the zoo is inviting visitors to come and say good bye to the orangutans this month. Special zoo keeper chats are scheduled each weekend in March and every day during spring break, March 30 to April 8.
Keepers and other oo staff develop close bonds with the animals they care for. Sorel said there are mixed emotions surrounding the orangutans’ departure. Especially for the matriarch of the group, 40 year old Kumang, who arrived at the zoo in 1991.
"But at the same time (we are) very happy that she's going to a wonderful place,” said Sorel. “She'll be able to live the rest of her life in a modern habitat for orangutans. That's very, very pleasing."
Bella was born to Kumang at the Seneca Park Zoo in 2013. Denda, born in 2002, came to Rochester in 2011 from the Brookfield Zoo in Chicago, Illinois.
Many of the other primates whose habitats were located in the main zoo building will go to other zoos. Some will be moved to the new Animals of the Savanna building next summer.
The Seneca Park Zoo is planning two new openings this year: the first phase of its Cold Asia exhibit in May, featuring red pandas and snow leopards. Later this summer, the Step into Africa space will be expanded to include giraffes, zebras, and other African species.