Zoo Partner Chimp Haven Receives Final Alamogordo Chimps

Nearly 10 years after chimpanzees were listed as endangered and research on chimpanzees became illegal, Chimp Haven—the national chimpanzee sanctuary and a Lincoln Park Zoo partner—has received the final six members of the primate group known familiarly as the Alamogordo chimps, the organization announced today.

“We are so happy to share that all chimps from the Alamogordo Primate Facility have arrived at Chimp Haven and are settling into their new home,” its Facebook page announced. “We look forward to sharing more as they begin new adventures, meet new friends, and become part of the Chimp Haven family.”

This development is welcome news for animal welfare groups and organizations like Lincoln Park Zoo, which provided research and welfare reports on the animals, advocated, and supported this effort all along. Together, these allies have been fighting to improve the conditions of chimpanzees, and specifically the group of chimps held at Alamogordo, for years. And in the last few months, 21 new arrivals have made their way to Chimp Haven.

Chimp Haven staff welcome the Alamogordo chimps. All images courtesy of Chimp Haven

The CHIMP Act and Alamogordo

The Chimpanzee Health Improvement, Maintenance and Protection Act was passed in 2000 to provide for a federal sanctuary system for “surplus federally owned chimpanzees that are no longer needed in research conducted or supported by the National Institutes for Health, the Food and Drug Administration, or other Federal agencies,” as the act reads. In 2002, Chimp Haven was awarded a federal contract to operate as a national chimpanzee sanctuary.

Meanwhile, dozens of chimpanzees have lived for a long time at the National Institutes of Health’s Alamogordo Primate Facility at Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico, even though they are no longer being used in research. NIH announced in 2015 that it would no longer support biomedical research on chimpanzees, saying, “All NIH-owned chimpanzees that reside outside of the Federal Sanctuary System operated by Chimp Haven, Keithville, Louisiana, are now eligible for retirement.”

Starting in 2017, an average of 36 NIH chimps a year were transferred to Chimp Haven, resulting in more than 200 primates relocating to the larger habitats at Chimp Haven.

Legal Battles With the National Institutes of Health

Then in 2019, NIH announced that 44 surviving chimpanzees at Alamogordo would not be sent to a sanctuary as required. NIH officials later said that the aging chimps remaining in government care either had health conditions that made them too fragile to move or were socially bonded with a sick chimp. However, chimp supporters pointed out that many chimps at the private, nonprofit Chimp Haven have conditions that require long-term care. In fact, more than 50% of Chimp Haven’s primate residents receive medications to manage different health conditions.

Animal Protection New Mexico, the Humane Society of the United States, and the Humane Society Legislative Fund filed a lawsuit charging NIH with violating federal law. In 2022, a federal judge determined that NIH violated the law when it decided the chimps would not move to Chimp Haven. Finally, in late 2024, NIH committed to sending the remaining chimpanzees to the sanctuary. In a New York Times article in which it announced the news, NIH officials noted that relocating the animals remains risky, but the agency was afraid it might face a staffing shortage of caretakers due to upcoming retirements and recruiting difficulties.

Wotoni and Al (who is also pictured in the featured photo above) engage in a grooming session. Images courtesy of Chimp Haven

The Future at Chimp Haven

Relocation, Chimp Haven officials noted, is very complicated and takes time. However, the news today confirms that 21 Alamogordo chimps have now arrived at the 200-acre refuge and will live out the rest of their lives with nutritious food, behavioral enrichment, nesting materials, expert medical care, and appropriate social groups.

Rana Smith, president and CEO of Chimp Haven, notes in the sanctuary’s official announcement that it recently broke ground on a new expansion that made it possible for the chimps to come there. She says, “It’s a historic moment, following years of effort by animal welfare groups, lawmakers, and supporters who tirelessly advocated for their retirement from their former research facility to sanctuary.”

Katie Cronin, director of Lincoln Park Zoo’s Animal Welfare Science Program, adds, “The move to our partner Chimp Haven should provide a substantial improvement in welfare for these chimps, allowing them to express a full range of natural behaviors and have a social environment that can support the needs of this long-lived, cognitively advanced species. We look forward to watching them live out their lives under thoughtful care that enhances their emotional and physical wellbeing.”