A troop of cheeky capuchin monkeys is set to enjoy a larger, more natural environment at Nelson’s Natureland Zoo after local civil construction companies banded together to donate their time, machinery and materials to build them a new enclosure.

The zoo is managed by a not-for-profit conservation charity called the Natureland Wildlife Trust and its ability to upgrade its enclosures over the past eight years has been limited due to a reduction in funding.

Downer Acting Regional Manager for Transport and Infrastructure Drew Hayes spearheaded the charge as he had a special connection to the animal sanctuary.

“My kids love it there, I got involved with the board, one thing led to another and 12 months later I’m suddenly the wildlife trust’s chair,” Hayes said.

Hayes also happens to be on the committee of the Nelson/Marlborough branch of Civil Contractors New Zealand (CCNZ), which is the national association for civil construction, and was ideally placed to marshal local members to assist with the project, with members Donaldson Civil, Edridge Contracting, Nelmac Ltd, Higgins Fencing, Independent Kerb and Concrete, Elliot Sinclair, Pumps and Filters all offering their services for free, alongside Downer and Mitre 10 Mega Nelson, which will supply timber for the fencing.

“We identified that this was a project that CCNZ could get involved with, because it’s predominantly civil and a lot of the materials we need are civil supplies,” Hayes said.

The project will provide Natureland’s six tufted capuchin monkeys with a 425-square-metre open enclosure, seven-times larger than their previous fifty-year-old caged area and with its own heated den to keep them warm overnight in the winter.

Natureland Manager Leah Foster said the new modern enclosure would be a significant upgrade and would offer the tree-dwelling primates 5m-tall posts to climb and sit on top of, which they really enjoy.

“We’re excited to move our capuchins into a place we know they’re going to thrive in. Creating a more engaging environment for them is really important and it will be a much more natural setting than where they are currently residing.”

Foster said monkeys are intelligent primates, like humans, and capuchin monkeys are considered one of the smartest monkey species, capable of using tools to crack nuts and rocks as projectile weapons. One ingenious capuchin monkey is famous for escaping from its enclosure at another New Zealand zoo after hollowing out a pumpkin and using it to float across the moat that encircled it.

To prevent similar escapes at Natureland, he said the enclosure will be surrounded by a 3.5m moat of water to keep the aquaphobic monkeys inside, with an electrified perimeter fence to back things up in case of any similar monkey business from the Nelson troop.

Hayes started planning the project in March and hopes to complete work by the end of September, so the troop can get settled in their new home in time for summer.

Once the project is completed, local contractors working on the project plan to create an animated storyboard depicting the construction process of the capuchin enclosure to highlight the variety of exciting projects and different roles available in the civil construction industry, along with the pathways for school leavers and careers seekers to get into them.

The storyboard will thank all the local heroes flying the flag for CCNZ that volunteered to assist with the project.

Hayes said once the capuchin enclosure was done, Natureland’s native bird aviary, housing red crown kākāriki, pāteke (brown teal), kererū and tūī, was next on the list for a revamp and he has already mobilised local companies to start the design process. Downer has also stepped in to offer Natureland financial support for that project, with $9,000 allocated from the Downer Donate scheme, which provides $15,000 per month towards community initiatives across New Zealand.