Ice pops cool down monkeys in Brazil at a Rio zoo during a rare winter heat wave

Upon spotting a zookeeper laden with a bucket full of fruit-flavoured ice pops, black spider monkeys in Rio de Janeiro's BioParque gracefully swung their way towards him on Friday, chattering excitedly.

Upon spotting a zookeeper laden with a bucket full of fruit-flavoured ice pops, black spider monkeys in Rio de Janeiro's BioParque gracefully swung their way towards him on Friday, chattering excitedly.

While it's technically still winter in Brazil, with spring due to start on Saturday, a heat wave has engulfed the country since the beginning of the week, causing humans and animals alike to eagerly greet any chance of cooling down.

"Normally they get a break from the heat in the winter, but it's been so hot. They have even shed their winter layer of fur," said zookeeper Tadeu Cabral, who handed out some treats, while others were scattered around.

The ice pops are part of the monkeys' well-being program. They provide thermal comfort, and dispersing the popsicles in different locations also stimulates their behavioural need for foraging.

   For the monkeys, the ice pops are watermelon, pineapple or grape flavoured. But for Simba, the zoo's lion, the ice treat is made up of blood or minced meat.

Koala the elephant, now more than 60 years old, was rescued from a Sao Paulo circus in the 1990s. She wrapped her trunk around the block of frozen fruit, placed it under her foot and squashed the treat, before slurping it up.