Remy the Siamang ape will debut at the Point Defiance Zoo this weekend

Remy, a 6-year-old Siamang ape, will make his debut at the Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium on Saturday.

Remy was born at the Los Angeles Zoo and will be a companion for the Point Defiance Zoo’s Dudlee.

Dudlee, a female Siamang, lost her companion Cho Cho to old age. Cho Cho was the oldest Siamang in the United States, said the zoo. Since Cho Cho’s passing, Dudlee has been sharing an exhibit with Baby Bean, a lowland anoa buffalo, and Whitie, an Indian crested porcupine.

“With Remy’s arrival, Dudlee is showing him the ropes, literally and figuratively,” said Assistant Curator Erin. “Dudlee is making sure Remy respects the hierarchy that siamangs have within their pairs.”

The zoo said it’s typical for females to be the more dominant ones among Siamangs.

“Remy is already getting comfortable exploring his new home,” said the zoo. “He’s young, rambunctious, and eager to test his limits.”

Tickets are available to see Remy and Dudlee on Saturday and Sunday. The Siamang’s keepers will also be there at 11 a.m. to ask questions in the Asian Forest Sanctuary.

“Siamangs are the largest species of gibbon in the primate family,” said the zoo. “In the wild, they live in the treetops of tropical rainforests in Sumatra and on the Malay Peninsula.”

Although they are the largest, Siamangs are endangered due to logging and agriculture, explained the zoo. Southeast Asia’s rainforest is being stripped to make room for palm oil plantations.

To help Siamangs, the zoo recommends checking products for sustainable palm oil and encouraging companies to switch.