BLOOMINGTON Ill (WMBD) — Miller Park Zoo is celebrating Nation Lemur Day following the capture of a ring tailed lemur earlier this year.
The zoo had arts and crafts as well as, presentations teaching kids about the endangered species. The zoo has a ringed tailed lemur, named king Julian. They acquired the primate after he was mysteriously found in a garage in Bloomington.
The zoo’s General Curator Pearl Yusuf said lemurs are found in Africa and finding one in Bloomington leads her to believe that King Julian was a pet.
“It was apparent that he was kept as a pet just from his behavior and what we know about lemur behavior. It’s not legal in Illinois to own an exotic pet like a ring tailed lemur so they are doing there investigation on that we are just giving king Julian a nice place to stay while everything get sorted out,” said Yusuf.
It’s currently too cold for the lemurs to be out right now but Miller Park Zoo is adding an indoor enclosure for them that will be open by the start of 2024.
More information on why exotic animals are not to be domesticated can be found Not a Pet.
