L.A. Zoo Says It Isn't Changing Its Baby Chimp Policy After Brutal Attack For Now [Updated]

There's an investigation into why a baby chimp was brutally killed by an older, apparently aggro male at the L.A. Zoo yesterday.

But zoo spokesman Jason Jacobs told the Los Angeles Times that for right now there was no plan to change the way the zoo integrates baby chimps with the rest of the population.

Update 6/29:
In an e-mail to LAist, Jacobs clarified that they were still evaluating their policy for introducing chimp offspring into the broader group of chimps. Of course making changes to the policy isn't a pressing concern for two reasons. First, the most immediate concern is calming down the chimps and helping the mother grieve her loss. Second, there aren't any other baby chimpanzees right now.

The baby chimp had been born this March and was gradually being introduced to the broader chimp population at the zoo.

"Chimpanzees exhibit a wide variety of behaviors," Jacobs said. "Some of these behaviors...are aggression and violence. And similar incidents have been scientifically documented among wild chimpanzees."

That's just the way that chimp life goes. It's brutal and painful (just see this Planet Earth segment for proof).