A baby this age which is scrambling around on/near its mother should be relatively easy to sex- you just need to make a mental note to look so after a while it becomes automatic. Its much more difficult with newborn primates that are still held tightly by their mothers though.
There is also the problem of the fact that in many primates the females can have an extnded clitoris that looks as if it could be a penis. It wouldn't be the first time a primate has been incorrectly sexed. Just as an example a supposed "male" yellow breasted cappuchin was correctly sexed after it gave birth! The you buff cheeked gibbon born May 2010 still hasn't been sexed yet either. Edinburgh Zoo wait until they run a blood test on the animal if there is any doubt but they won't knock an animal out purely for a blood test unless there is some other health reason. It can be problematic, admittedly, but is certainly less stressful for all concerned! Incidentally, Nora's 'little un' is hyper and it might help as well if it would just stay still for more than half a second!
No way is that the male. Compare its size with the infant, it is half the size of a male, has no pink on the lower lip and wouldn't be holding the baby.
There is also the problem of the fact that in many primates the females can have an extnded clitoris that looks as if it could be a penis. It wouldn't be the first time a primate has been incorrectly sexed.
Incidentally, Nora's 'little un' is hyper and it might help as well if it would just stay still for more than half a second!
It can be confusing in some South American species, e.g. Spider and Woolly Monkeys, but not IMO in most other larger primates e.g. baboons, drill/mandrill, mangabeys, macaques etc. where the(male) sex is very obvious as being just that. I do know a number of Gorillas which have been miss-sexed too as infants, though admittedly they are less easy than many Monkeys. One classic clue, but only useful for someone spending a long time around the animals, e.g. a keeper, is which direction an older baby urinates in- forward or backward/vertical.
I presume the staff do know this baby's sex already, and if I had a few minutes in front of that Drill cage I think I'd soon know it too..
