Spider Monkey Captured After Brief Escape

A spider monkey's brief escape from its enclosure Monday morning ended after about a half hour.

The spider monkey got out of its enclosure and was on top of its cage according to Dallas Zoo deputy director Sean Greene.

To further explain what happened, and to re-enforce that the primate was never in the public area of the exhibit, Greene said the animal basically "got out of his bedroom, but was still in the house."

The zoo said about 10 staff members worked to capture the primate.

Human error appears to be the reason the spider monkey escaped, according to Dallas Zoo executive director Gregg Hudson.

Two weeks ago a chimpanzee at the zoo had to be sedated after escaping from her room. Zoo workers tranquilized her in an area not open to visitors.

The Dallas Zoo said after the chimp's escape it asked the Association of Zoos and Aquariums to look into its primate protocols to avoid any future escapes. They will visit in December as part of the zoo's routine re-accreditation process.

In 2004, Jabari the gorilla escaped into a public area, he injured four people before police shot him.

No injuries were reported in Monday's incident and the Dallas Zoo remained open to visitors.