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Wednesday July 25 8:19 AM ET

Going Ape Over Chimp's Phone Calls

LONDON (Reuters) - Staff at a Scottish safari park were shocked to discover the identity of a prankster who bombarded their mobile phones with mysterious calls -- a chimpanzee.

The Blair Drummond Safari Park in central Scotland has been inundated with visitors curious to see ``Chippy,'' who stole a mobile phone and quickly learned to use it.

``He picked my pocket when I was cleaning out the cages and later that day I noticed my mobile phone was missing,'' park staff member Gary Gilmour told Reuters on Wednesday.

``Some of the wardens started getting mysterious phone calls the next morning...one worker heard the chimp's shrieks and that's when the penny dropped,'' he said.

Gilmour said 11-year-old Chippy, one of four chimpanzees at the park, dialed into the phone's stored numbers and started making random calls.

``He was a bit depressed when we took the phone away, but everybody comes in wanting to see him...I haven't been able to do my work,'' said the keeper.

-- (a@monkey's.uncle), July 26, 2001

Answers

LONDON (Reuters)- Marjorie Thomas-Jones was hospitalized with nervous exhaustion after receiving thousands of anonymous phone calls. "The caller never said anything but emmitted the most blood curdling shreiks and obscene heavy breating" sobbed Ms Thomas-Jones, 87.

-- (Anthony Lloyd-George@BBC.sniff), July 26, 2001.

WASHINGTON D.C. (AP) The office of Rep. Gary Conduit (D-Modesto) has announced that ‘Chippy’ has joined the staff as lead PR Manager. Rumor has it that Rep. Conduit has been romantically linked with this 11-year old primate but no confirmation as of yet.

-- Scary (Gary@goes.ape), July 26, 2001.