CHIBA (Japan News/ANN): Punch, the popular Japanese macaque at Ichikawa City Zoo in Ichikawa, Chiba prefecture, turned one on July 26.
The young monkey raised by zookeepers gained worldwide fame in 2025 when photos and videos of him clinging to a plush toy orang utan as a replacement for his mother went viral.
Punch’s fur, which used to be a darker hue, has become brown like other macaques at the zoo. He no longer holds on to the plush toy, and is blending in with the zoo’s monkeys nicely. He has been seen playing with and grooming fellow macaques.
More than 2,500 birthday cards for him were sent to the zoo from home and abroad. On July 26, a group of foreign visitors to the zoo were seen singing “Happy Birthday” to him.
"They all love him. I’m grateful that Punch has been able to reach his birthday in good health,” said Takashi Yasunaga, a section chief at the zoo. “I hope people will keep watching over him warmly.” THE JAPAN NEWS/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
