DUDLEY Zoo is celebrating a very special birthday today, as one of its rarest species marks her first birthday.

Endangered Bornean orang utan, Sprout, is set to spend the day with treats from keepers and plenty of cuddles from her mum, Jazz.

Upper Primates Team Leader, Pat Stevens, said: “We can’t believe where all that time has gone. She is developing well, is right on target with her milestones, and is having fun exploring, much like a human infant.”

Sprout is the first orang baby to be born at the Castle Hill attraction for 19 years, since mum Jazz.

She has recently begun climbing the enclosures wooden frames and zipping around the webbing on her own, but will remain dependent on her 20 year-old mum, until she is at least six years of age, when she will be integrated with dad, Jerong.