L.A. CHIMPS TO GET PENTHOUSE WITH A VIEW.

Byline: Amy Collins Daily News Staff Writer

The Clapper turns the lights on. Logs wobble in the pond at the bottom of the waterfall. The radio stations switch on and off by sensor. The fireman's pole leads to the sun-drenched day room.

Welcome to the view of the world from the third floor of the Los Angeles Zoo's chimpanzee penthouse.

It's the centerpiece of the first major new exhibit in nine years - and a major turning point - at the L.A. Zoo.

Soon, the rest of the chimp exhibit will open, followed by all-new exhibits for the gorillas and orangutans.

Dr. Jane Goodall has endorsed the entire project. Support has also come from the San Fernando Valley-based animal protection group, The Ark Trust Inc.

When the zoo's previous administrator planned to use funds for things such as improving tram service and the entrance, The Ark Trust began lobbying to have the chimpanzee exhibit moved to the top of the list.

``I don't think it would have happened, I don't think it ever would have happened without us,'' said Gretchen Wyler, the founder of The Ark Trust.

Gracie, Nan, Toto, Pandora and the nine other chimps at the zoo are about to reap the rewards. Next month they'll move into a new three-story holding area so their concrete jungle can be torn down and rebuilt into new quarters, complete with the penthouse.

It will be five times bigger, allowing a more natural setting with loads of diversions for the curious chimps.

``They'll be able to have all the things they can't have now,'' said Vicki Bingaman, the chimpanzees' primary keeper. ``It's a lot more work, but it's a lot better for them.''

The $4.75 million Chimpanzees of the Mahale Mountains exhibit, inspired by an abandoned logging camp in Tanzania, will be a natural setting, but the soon-to-open holding area will offer the chimps the bizarre benefits of civilization.

``Just this holding area is better than what they have now (in the exhibit),'' said Jennie McNary, the zoo's principal animal keeper. ``We can only do so much to keep them occupied now.''

The chimpanzees now spend most their time on a concrete island in the exhibit - leaving them with dry skin, callouses and bald spots.

The new holding area will replace a windowless cell of floor-to-ceiling concrete, with two adjacent cages enclosed with steel bars. It's a lifeless

room with only minimal playthings in the cages.

The chimps spend two to three hours each day in the holding cell while the exhibit is cleaned, Bingaman said.

``We do what we can. There's not a lot we can do,'' Bingaman said. ``It's too small. It's too cramped up, and it's too stressful.''

It's worst for Nan.

Although she's 18 years old and has two sons of her own, she gets picked on a lot and hates being confined to the small holding cell. Bingaman said Nan will find great relief in the multiple entrances to the new area, the divided rooms and extra space.

``It'll be more relaxed,'' Bingaman said. ``She'll have so much more space to get away.''

In the new digs, the chimps will have hay, blankets, carpet and other plush decor upstairs. On the second floor, four rooms are linked by tunnels and doors, intentionally odd-shaped. Across from the chimps' quarters will be Bingaman's office and a kitchen with a refrigerator, microwave and food-storage areas - all unheard of luxuries in the current setup.

``This is probably larger than most chimpanzee exhibits in the U.S.,'' McNary said.

The move will be special for Bingaman as well. She's been at the zoo 13 years, 11 of them as ``chimp mom.''

``I'm actually a part of this group. They are like family to me, and they trust me, and I respect them,'' she said. ``I can check boo-boos or squeeze abscesses.''

They even take to grooming her - brushing away dirt, picking her scabs.

The first floor of the holding area will have a small veterinary room where the chimps can be weighed and examined, and urine samples can be collected. Now, the chimps must be anesthetized and carted to the zoo's health center for such minor treatments.

The procedures carry health risks, and the chimps are shunned each time they're reintroduced to the group after an absence, Bingaman said.

``It's a horrible thing,'' she said.

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3 Photos

PHOTO (1) Vicki Bingaman, the chimpanzees' keeper, looks at their new interior quarters being completed at the Los Angeles Zoo.

(2) Chimpanzees sit in their concrete jungle while part of their new home is built behind them.

(3) Two curious chimpanzees keep a careful watch on construction of their new habitat at the Los Angeles Zoo.

Myung J. Chun/Daily News