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Posted: 13th March 2013

Unique lemur twins celebrate
Milestone birthday for Whipsnade's ring-tailed lemurs

Twin ring-tailed lemurs, who are thought to be the oldest lemur twins in the world, are celebrating their 25th birthday at the Zoological Society of London's (ZSL) Whipsnade Zoo.

Billy and Taffy will be treated to a special birthday cake made of fruit, along with some of their favourite treats wrapped up as presents. They will also be given piñatas in the shape of the number 25.

Though lemurs very rarely live beyond 20 years, the oldest ring-tailed lemur on record reached 27. The zoo keepers believe a laid-back lifestyle has allowed the twins to reach such a ripe old age.

"We're thrilled to be celebrating Billy and Taffy's 25th birthday," said senior keeper Steve Perry. "Reaching 25 is a fantastic achievement, and for the twins to reach that milestone together is something really special and unique."

Mr Perry commented that the pair have slowed down slightly in recent years, but still love nothing more than sunbathing in the sunshine next to their waterfall.

"They're still very inquisitive by nature and love investigating new things, so not only will our gifts give them the chance to use their natural curiosity, they'll enjoy them too," he added.

"We hope there are many more birthdays to come."

Though ring-tailed lemurs originate from southern and south-western Madagascar, Billy and Taffy have lived at Whipsnade Zoo for 15 years.

The pair share their island enclosure with seven other ring-tailed lemurs, and are part of ZSL's conservation work, as the species is listed as "near threatened" on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's (IUCN) red list.



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