Taronga Zoo staff are celebrating the birth of a bright orange,
endangered Francois Langur, the first to be raised by its mother in
Australia. The male infant, named ‘Gan Ju’ meaning orange in Mandarin was born to
mother, ‘Saigon’, and father, ‘Hanoi’ and discovered in the early
morning of Thursday 22 April by the Zoo’s dedicated keeping staff who
had been monitoring the pregnancy.

Photo Credit: Lorinda Taylor / Taronga Zoo

A bequest left by the late Jacqueline Crookston, enabled the Taronga
Wildlife Hospital to purchase a much needed digital x-ray machine, and
when the Zoo's veterinary team tested out the new equipment they were
delighted to see an astonishingly clear image of the unborn ‘Gan Ju’ steadily growing inside its mother.

A rare image of an endangered Francois Langur growing in the womb of its
mother was first seen thanks to a bequest made to the Taronga
Foundation.

The Zoo's Senior Veterinarian, Larry Vogelnest, said: "The image was
extraordinarily clear. We were all completely amazed at the incredible
view we had of the foetus. It completely surpassed our expectations."

The Zoo would not have been able to purchase the state-of the art
technology without the bequest which was received by the Taronga
Foundation. 

The new equipment will now make it possible to radiograph any creature
from the world's smallest gliding mammal to our large and rather
muscular Red Kangaroos. Providing amazing detail and flexibility, the
new system will make veterinary diagnosis easier and speedier, limiting
the amount of time animals need to be under anaesthetic.

"Just as digital cameras have changed the face of photography, this new
system eliminates the need for film and chemicals and offers us much
more sophisticated imaging tools. It will help us to be much more
efficient and save time with faster diagnosis," said Larry.

The late Miss Crookston's bequest comes at a time when the Taronga
Foundation, the fundraising arm of Taronga Zoo is celebrating its 10th
Anniversary.

The Foundation is celebrating by showcasing 10 important projects the
average Zoo visitor may not know about. This includes the remarkable
work of the Zoo's veterinary team and Wildlife Hospital which cares for
not only the Zoo's resident animals but also treat up to 1000 injured or
orphaned native animals annually, many which are released back into the
wild.

Ms Crookston, who was well known in the Camden area, had been a
long-time supporter of the Zoo and its efforts for wildlife.