Tubman the chimp rescued from labs dies at the age of 52

By GNNLiberia On Feb 9, 2019 231

By Sam Corbishley | Metro Online |

The son of a worker at the park recalled Tubman’s mischievous sense of humour (Picture: Ape and Monkey Sanctuary/SWNS.com)A chimp whose ‘zest for life’ inspired thousands of wildlife park visitors after its owners rescued him from science labs when he was just an infant has died aged 52. Tubman was snatched from his mother as a baby in Liberia not long after his birth in around 1966. He was named after the country’s then president William Tubman and started life as a pet to the Liberian Royal Family.

At the age of two the young chimp was shipped to the Netherlands to be used in animal testing trials – a controversial practice now banned in the UK and across the EU. Tubman was eventually rescued by the Johnstone family who own the Mole Hall Wildlife Park in Saffron Waldon, Essex. thumbnail for post ID 8488221Plane abandons landing as Storm Erik batters Heathrow Airport with ferocious winds They brought him back to the UK where, apart from two years in the 1980s, he resided at the park until its closure in 2009.

Tubman lived out the rest of his days entertaining thousands of guests at the Wales Ape and Monkey Sanctuary in Swansea, thrilling them with his ‘zest for life’. The sanctuary shared the news of Tubby’s death in a Facebook post in which they hailed the beloved chimp as a ‘wonderful ambassador for his species’.

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