When did Omaha try to obtain Platypus, and why were they unable to be obtained?
San Diego Zoo Safari Park Platypus at San Diego Zoo Safari Park
- Thread starter Chlidonias
- Start date
When did Omaha try to obtain Platypus, and why were they unable to be obtained?
Nobody has been able to obtain platypus outside of Australia (until San Diego did it apparently) since the 1940s when the Bronx Zoo did it.
Omaha wanted to get platypus for their nocturnal house opening, so it would have been in the early 2000s.
The late 1950s surely, given there was a brief interval of time between the death of the animals imported in 1946 and the import of (very short-lived) new animals in 1958?
I didn’t know Omaha tried to get them. Now to come to think of it. Has any other zoo tried to obtain platypus? Also one does wonder how on Earth did San Diego manage to get platypus in the first place?
Rotterdam, Frankfurt and Leipzig all allegedly held the species briefly in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, but otherwise the only serious attempt was the near-miss by London during WWII.
To cut a long story short, the import of a single individual for the purposes of propaganda and war morale was negotiated by Winston Churchill, and the import was approved. After over a month at sea - crossing the Indian and Atlantic Oceans at the height of the war - the ship carrying the animal entered the Irish Sea and (only a dozen miles from port at Birkenhead) had to drop depth charges to fend off U-Boat attacks.... the sound of which is presumed to be the reason why the platypus promptly expired!
In his book The Zoological Gardens of Europe (1903) C. V. A. Peel records that Leipzig Zoo had a duck-billed platypus in 1899; the same book also lists a duck-billed platypus in Frankfurt.
I know that there is considerable doubt about these statements so I am only repeating what is mentioned in Peel's book; I am not vouching for their accuracy.
Indeed - I recalled previous discussion of this source and the doubt cast on the claims, hence my insertion of the "allegedly" caveat
For others, these claims were discussed in the following thread (posts on this particular topic being scattered through the thread): Why no platypus in zoos outside Australia?Indeed - I recalled previous discussion of this source and the doubt cast on the claims, hence my insertion of the "allegedly" caveat
Because it's the San Diego Zoo! (edit - ok it's the Safari Park, not the zoo, but same organization).
The_UltimateBea
Well-Known Member
Is anyone from here planning on being there?
I just Googled around a bit, and searching for "san diego zoo platypus" yields this page - and nothing else helpful. It seems a bit odd to me that San Diego would open a platypus exhibit and not make that information more accessible to the public - though I guess we'll know in a few hours.
Nothing to be seen so far news-wise... not from the zoo or via Google... Anybody going to be visiting the safari park soon?
Looks to be a broken link?
Here’s what it says:
‘San Diego Zoo Global was recently given two platypuses from the Taronga Zoo Sydney. These two animals are the first platypuses that are on display outside of Australia.
The two will live in a new habitat at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. The Walkabout Australia habitat will officially open on November 22 with a special ceremony.
The park received an 8-year-old male and a 15-year-old female. They were flown from Australia to San Diego in specially designed platypus transport crates, accompanied by their keeper from Taronga Zoo Sydney. The animals did very well on their long journey to San Diego and have been acclimating to their specially built new home at the Safari Park.
Platypuses are semi-aquatic mammals who live in freshwater habitats. They have a very unusual appearance with a duck-bill and beaver-like tail. They are one of two mammals who lay eggs rather than giving birth.’
Well, I can see at least two errors in that press release 
I braved the cold and rain to be greeted by a closed barricade at the entrance to the exhibit and turned away at the Zuest Station where a private party was happening. I was told there is a chance it could be open tomorrow afternoon after the media event or Saturday morning. I will be on a plane then, so no photos from me. I hope someone gets some.