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'Spiderman,' longtime Seneca Park Zoo spider monkey has died

The Seneca Park Zoo says ‘Spiderman,’ the Rochester zoo’s 43 year old male, black-handed spider monkey has died.

At the age of 43, Spiderman was known to be among the oldest black-handed spider monkeys in conservation care. He had cancer.

The spider monkey came to the Seneca Park Zoo from Fort Rickey Game Farm in Rome, NY in 1977. The Seneca Park Zoo is also home to a female spider monkey, Lucy, who was born in 1975.

Spider monkeys have a life expectancy of about 25 years.  ‘Spiderman’ was the father of 9 offspring, who eventually went to other zoos to start their own families.

Seneca Park Zoo officials say that spider monkeys, which are native to Central and South America, face many threats including illegal hunting and habitat loss and they are rated as being critically endangered.

Randy Gorbman is WXXI's director of news and public affairs. Randy manages the day-to-day operations of WXXI News on radio, television, and online.