Authorities at the National Zoological Park in Delhi celebrated the 59th birthday of 'Rita' chimpanzee on Thursday. 'Rita' is Asia's oldest chimpanzee in captivation. On occasion, school children were invited as a Zoo Education Programmer and awareness about the role of Chimpanzee in the ecosystem was shared. The birthday girl, was given various varieties of fruits, dry fruits, and a special woollen blanket for the winters. A birthday cake was also cut by the school children soon after the rally which commenced outside the chimpanzee enclosure. The party was held two days early as Rita's birthday falls on a Saturday, and the zoo remains closed on Friday and Saturday. "She is very friendly and a pride to the zoo," said Renu Singh, Director, National Zoological Park. Rita's parents were from the wild and she was born at Amsterdam zoo on 15 December 1960. She was brought to Delhi on 27 February 1964 in exchange for domestic cranes. She was paired with Max, a male chimpanzee brought from the London zoo. Together, they had four children but none survived. From April 5, 1985, to November 7, 2006, she was loaned to Chattbir zoo in Punjab for a breeding programme, but she didn't have any success there. Chimps only live up to about 40 years in the wild but have a much longer life expectancy in captivity. The oldest living chimpanzee on record, Little Mama, died in a US safari park last year at the age of 79. The programme was concluded by a vote of thanks and distributed refreshment to the students, staff & visitors. There was huge excitement among students, visitors and it created massive awareness especially among youths. HAPPY OCCASION

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