ROD THOMPSON / RTHOMPSON@STARBULLETIN.COM Three squirrel monkeys, recent arrivals from the Blue Tropix Nightclub on Oahu, get familiar with their new, temporary home in a quarantined area of Hilo's Panaewa Rainforest Zoo. After undergoing health tests in the next few weeks, they will be united with four other squirrel monkeys in the public part of the zoo.

Monkeys surprised
by new home

After four years at the Blue Tropix nightclub,
the animals get a kick out of seeing the sky

HILO » Three squirrel monkeys once featured in a glass enclosure at the Blue Tropix Restaurant & Nightclub in Honolulu were flown to their new home in Hilo on Wednesday night and appeared to be surprised at the night sky, said Dick Mortemore, director of Hilo's Panaewa Rainforest Zoo.

Their reactions seemed to be, "Oh my gosh, there's sky up there," Mortemore said. They appeared to be curious about the new experience, he said.

The Hawaii Department of Agriculture, which administers permits for the animals, announced yesterday that Blue Tropix had voluntarily turned over the monkeys, two females and a male, to the department.

That appeared to end four years of controversy in which animal rights groups in Honolulu had contended that the animals were being held under conditions they described as "psychological torture" because of the loud music at the nightclub, limited living space for the animals and the lack of a place where the monkeys could escape from prying human eyes.

Linda Vannatta and Betty Kamida of Free the Monkeys said they were "elated" by the monkeys' move to the Hilo zoo. Blue Tropix could not be reached for comment.

Mortemore said the monkeys arrived in two animal carriers, and they were placed in a large walk-in cage in an area of the zoo not open to the public.

The monkeys scampered around their cage yesterday, spending more time standing on top of the carriers than sitting inside.

The three newcomers, who have not been given names yet, have to be kept apart from the zoo's four resident squirrel monkeys until an appointment with veterinarians can be scheduled to be sure they are in good health, Mortemore said.

The newcomers eat "monkey chow" and love bananas but are a little fussy about peanuts. They don't like peanuts with the shell removed, but they don't know how to remove the shells themselves unless someone first cracks them open for them, Mortemore said.

The newcomers will join "Mike Little-Man," an offspring of the Blue Tropix monkeys who was transferred to the zoo a few months ago. Mike's mother is thought to be one of the new females.

Mike was recovered last October after police Specialized Services Division officers searched a Makiki house. The occupant was fined $1,000 for possession of an animal without a permit.

Initially shy for a brief period, Mike has since started giving signs of becoming the leader of the monkey troop, which has the run of a half-acre, open-air enclosure, said zoo worker Patti Carnie. "He's all man," she said.

On the other hand, the lone male among the newcomers is a bit older than Mike, so he might contend for leadership, she said.

Carnie loves them all. "I will spoil them all rotten," she said, with bananas and peanuts.