Baby monkey born at London Zoo named after astronaut Buzz Aldrin

A baby monkey born at ZSL London Zoo has been named after astronaut Buzz Aldrin, in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Moon landing.

The three-week-old white-naped mangabey was born to mother Achimoto and father Lucky, and has increased the zoo’s population of the endangered species to eight.

Announcing the new arrival on Twitter, the zoo said: “One small step for man, one huge leap for man-gabey kind!”

Team leader Daniel Simmonds said: “Buzz is an important new arrival here at the zoo, and we hope his future is as prosperous as that of his namesake!

“Up until now, Buzz has been tightly snuggled on mum’s chest, but visitors to the zoo over the next few days are likely to see Buzz testing out his own voice and foraging skills, as he ventures small distances away from mum’s arms to mimic the rest of the adults and youngsters in the troop.”

The United States’ Apollo 11 landed on the Moon on July 20 1969, with Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin becoming the first two people to step on to the lunar surface.