Jan. 28 (UPI) -- A chimpanzee at an Australian zoo escaped from its enclosure early Thursday morning, but it returned to the exhibit without any intervention, officials said.
The Taronga Zoo in Sydney said a contractor doing work at the facility spotted the male chimpanzee sitting calmly outside of its enclosure at 5:47 a.m. Thursday and alerted officials.
The zoo's emergency response unit was activated, but ended up not being needed, as the chimp returned to its enclosure on its own a few minutes after it was seen by the contractor.
"The chimp is safe and well and is being monitored by our specialist keepers and vets," the zoo said in a statement.
Officials said the chimpanzee troop will remain off public display until conclusion of an investigation into how the primate managed to escape.
