British zoo playing cupid for orangutan

Officials at the Paignton Zoo in the British county of Devon are attempting to find a mate for Chinta, their depressed orangutan, from area animal parks.

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By sending out a lonely-hearts advertisement to the parks, Paignton Zoo staff attempted to find a mate for the 6-foot-5 orangutan, who has been brooding of late, the Telegraph reported.

Zoo spokesman Phil Knowling said the advertisement, which petitions for a mate to help propagate the species, will lead to a renewed love life for the 16-year-old female.

"Orangutans aren't the most expressive of creatures because they don't have many face muscles," he said. "But even by their standards she looks down in the dumps. We have been looking for over a year now but the deals keep going wrong."

Not to lose out on a chance to hype his locale's prized orangutan, Knowling also offered a quick bio to any interested parties with a male orangutan of their own.

"She's the perfect breeding age and could live for another 20 years yet," he told the paper. "But at the moment she has a whole island and only two females to share it with."