THE two juvenile Chacma Baboons that were rescued in Durban last week are in good spirits and could be released back into the wild once DNA tests are completed to determine where they come from.

The baboons were trapped and rescued in Umbilo and Malvern and were thought to be stowaways on a ship, however there’s been no confirmation of that.

It is unclear how the young male and female baboons arrived in Durban.

Clint Halkett-Siddall, operations director for the Centre for Rehabilitation of Wildlife (Crow), said the pair were eating well and are estimated to be around 18 months old.

The baboons, Willie and Nonna, named after Springbok player Willie le Roux and the song by Afrikaans musician Apple respectively, were eating well and quarantined in the primate sanctuary at Crow HQ in Yellowwood Park.

“They did visit the vet for a check-up and the plan is to use their blood samples for DNA testings to see where they originated from. There are baboon populations in the Western Cape, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and in KZN in the Zululand region. If the DNA samples come back and they are from the Cape area, if it is possible that we can locate which troop they come from, there might be a possibility to release them back to the troop and reunite them.

“All the information up until now, in terms of their origins, is speculative. If the DNA samples come from a different province then they will be sent to a baboon specific rehabilitation centre. They will be joined into a troop undergoing rehab and eventually released there,” he said.

There have been no other sightings of baboons in the eThekwini region,  confirmed Halkett-Siddal.

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