Center for Great Apes facts for kids
| Date opened | 1993 |
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| Location | Wauchula, Florida |
| No. of animals | 71 |
| No. of species | 27 Orangutans 44 Chimpanzees |
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Revenue (2015)
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$1,956,713 |
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The Center for Great Apes is a special place for great apes located in Wauchula, Florida. It's an animal sanctuary, which means it's a safe home for animals. This center was started in 1993 as a nonprofit organization. A nonprofit group uses its money to help a cause, not to make a profit.
Today, the sanctuary cares for about 70 orangutans and chimpanzees. These apes used to work in entertainment, like movies or shows. Some were part of scientific research, and others were kept as exotic pets. The sanctuary is huge, covering 100 acres of land in the countryside of Florida.
The Center for Great Apes is a founding member of the North American Primate Sanctuary Alliance (NAPSA). It is also approved by the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries. Because it's a sanctuary, it's not open to the public like a regular zoo. This helps keep the apes safe and happy in their quiet home.
In 2021, six chimpanzees came to the sanctuary. Their story was shown in a TV series called Chimp Crazy. The Center for Great Apes is the only approved orangutan sanctuary in the United States.
Meet the Apes: Famous Residents
Many apes at the Center for Great Apes have interesting stories. They come from different backgrounds and now live a peaceful life at the sanctuary.
- Bubbles was a chimpanzee who used to live with singer Michael Jackson.
- Bella was a star in a big TV advertisement for CareerBuilder during the Super Bowl in 2004.
- Sam "Sammy" acted in the 1996 movie Dunston Checks In.
- Sandra is an orangutan who was declared a "non-human person" in Argentina. She lived at the Buenos Aires Zoo for 20 years before coming to the sanctuary.
- Sunshine was born in the United Kingdom. Her mother was owned by the manager of singer Tom Jones.
- Bo and Joe were chimpanzees who appeared in the Netflix series Tiger King.
- Marco is the oldest and smallest chimpanzee living at the Center for Great Apes.
- Jonah and Jacob are twin chimpanzees. Jonah acted with Mark Wahlberg in the 2001 movie Planet of the Apes. Both twins were also in the original "Trunk Monkey" commercials.
- Mari is an orangutan with special needs. She lost both of her arms when she was a baby before she arrived at the sanctuary.
- Knuckles was a chimpanzee who had cerebral palsy, a condition that affects movement.
- Allie has a condition called Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy (CIDP). This condition makes it hard for her to use her legs or feet.
