Rarest animals seen in a zoo or aquarium

gentle lemur said:
Mountain gorilla (Cologne) - not a very happy memory
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What do you mean?
gentle lemur said:
A few creatures that stick in my memory - some from 40 years ago :eek:

Angwantibo (ZSL)
Bald uakari (Cologne)
Black saki (Cologne) & white nosed saki too
Cape clawless otter (Basle)
Haitian solenodon (Frankfurt)
Hairy nosed wombat (Basle)
Lear's macaw (Birdland)
Monkey eating (Philippine) eagle (Frankfurt)
Mountain gorilla (Cologne) - not a very happy memory
Pacarana (Zurich & Bristol)
Pesquet's parrot (Chester & Wassenaar)
Philippine tarsier (Frankfurt & Bristol)
Picathartes (both species at Frankfurt, white headed at other zoos too)
Siberian white crane (Olney)
St Vincent amazon (Jersey)

It's fair to add that I never dreamt that I would ever see some of the species that we almost take for granted now - lion tamarins, aye aye, sifaka, gentle lemurs, howler monkeys, Somali wild ass etc,

Alan
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EVERYTHING ON THIS LIST IS BURNING ME WITH ENVY!!! (need to see angwantibos some day!)

Tim Brown said:
Missed both the Grey Whale at San Diego Seaworld
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They had grey whales??????
 
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ThylacineAlive said:
Grey Whales aren't too difficult to spot off the coast of California at the right time of year anyway. A whale watching tour during the winter months should do the trick.

~Thylo
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I've seen a couple Grays from shore during peak migration, they're not to difficult to find if you're keeping an eye out.
 
Great Argus said:
I've seen a couple Grays from shore during peak migration, they're not to difficult to find if you're keeping an eye out.
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I did a bit of research into this for my California trip and apparently they sometimes travel in groups exceeding 30 individuals for safety (generally from orcas). I don't understand why great white sharks don't do that as well because they are even more afraid of orcas.
 
amur leopard said:
I did a bit of research into this for my California trip and apparently they sometimes travel in groups exceeding 30 individuals for safety (generally from orcas). I don't understand why great white sharks don't do that as well because they are even more afraid of orcas.
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Great whites are top predators that would compete for the same (not so common) food, whereas grey whales feed on krill, which is abundant.
 
Also, why are great whites not commonly seen on the Californian coast? I know the ocean is full of kelp around there, making navigation more difficult for sharks, but there are thousands of sea lions around there just waiting to be eaten. I suppose the orcas are also quite common in the vicinity, but if they were to slip into the harbours and grab a few sea lions and then skedaddle they probably would get away with it. Shouldn't Pier 39 theoretically be a shark's paradise?
 
amur leopard said:
Also, why are great whites not commonly seen on the Californian coast? I know the ocean is full of kelp around there, making navigation more difficult for sharks, but there are thousands of sea lions around there just waiting to be eaten. I suppose the orcas are also quite common in the vicinity, but if they were to slip into the harbours and grab a few sea lions and then skedaddle they probably would get away with it. Shouldn't Pier 39 theoretically be a shark's paradise?
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The Californian Pacific is somewhat cooler than the species prefers - however, populations in the area *are* steadily increasing, both due to trends of oceanic warming and population increases further south off Baja California.
 
amur leopard said:
Also, why are great whites not commonly seen on the Californian coast? I know the ocean is full of kelp around there, making navigation more difficult for sharks, but there are thousands of sea lions around there just waiting to be eaten. I suppose the orcas are also quite common in the vicinity, but if they were to slip into the harbours and grab a few sea lions and then skedaddle they probably would get away with it. Shouldn't Pier 39 theoretically be a shark's paradise?
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The Great Whites are also less commonly seen because they need not come to the surface to breathe like whales do. Indeed, they are almost never seen from shore, even though helicopter surveys over LA beaches have spotted a half dozen or more off the beach at times. Also, as TLD noted, the Pacific coast is colder than their liking, and they are relatively rare by the time you reach Monterey Bay. They generally are not found farther north than that, with the exception of the Farallon Islands, which sit well off the coast of San Francisco. I am not aware of Great Whites being found in either San Francisco or San Diego bay, and I've never heard of them reported from a harbor either. Open water without heavy boat traffic definitely does appear to be their preference. Small Great Whites have been caught on occasion from the Southern California piers, but uncommonly enough it usually makes local news.
Orca are not as common as you suppose either, most pods seen off California and Oregon are transient pods that move around a great deal. They usually have distinct arrivals and departures, and are generally only present for a certain part of the year.
 
Great Argus said:
The Great Whites are also less commonly seen because they need not come to the surface to breathe like whales do. Indeed, they are almost never seen from shore, even though helicopter surveys over LA beaches have spotted a half dozen or more off the beach at times. Also, as TLD noted, the Pacific coast is colder than their liking, and they are relatively rare by the time you reach Monterey Bay. They generally are not found farther north than that, with the exception of the Farallon Islands, which sit well off the coast of San Francisco. I am not aware of Great Whites being found in either San Francisco or San Diego bay, and I've never heard of them reported from a harbor either. Open water without heavy boat traffic definitely does appear to be their preference. Small Great Whites have been caught on occasion from the Southern California piers, but uncommonly enough it usually makes local news.
Orca are not as common as you suppose either, most pods seen off California and Oregon are transient pods that move around a great deal. They usually have distinct arrivals and departures, and are generally only present for a certain part of the year.
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Thanks, that gives us all a lot of information
 
Luke da Zoo nerd said:
What do you mean?

EVERYTHING ON THIS LIST IS BURNING ME WITH ENVY!!! (need to see angwantibos some day!)


They had grey whales??????
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The Cologne Mountain Gorillas may be an 'unhappy memory' because of the way they were acquired, and the apparent fact that they lived neither very well or very long.
 
FBBird said:
The Cologne Mountain Gorillas may be an 'unhappy memory' because of the way they were acquired, and the apparent fact that they lived neither very well or very long.
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Indeed, It's a shame I will probably never see them. Zoos need to take action on the conservation of the mountain gorilla, It is a precious species that will not survive if zoos do not take their part in protecting this species.
 
If going from a "rare in captivity standpoint", for me it would have to be the Bank Cormorant, Phalacrocorax neglectus (2.0) at Living Coasts in the UK. With no hope of further exports, once these boys pass, there will none left in captivity :(
 
Luke da Zoo nerd said:
Indeed, It's a shame I will probably never see them. Zoos need to take action on the conservation of the mountain gorilla, It is a precious species that will not survive if zoos do not take their part in protecting this species.
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I couldn't disagree more p:
1/ There isn't room for another gorilla taxon in zoos
2/ The Mountain Gorilla population does not need the likely deaths that would accompany the attempted collection of animals for zoos
3/ As a conservation flagship species, they are actually increasing in the wild
So, let's concentrate on maintaining Western Lowlands, which are well established!
 
FBBird said:
I couldn't disagree more p:
1/ There isn't room for another gorilla taxon in zoos
2/ The Mountain Gorilla population does not need the likely deaths that would accompany the attempted collection of animals for zoos
3/ As a conservation flagship species, they are actually increasing in the wild
So, let's concentrate on maintaining Western Lowlands, which are well established!
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And I couldn't agree more with you @FBBird . The EEP/SSP are both struggling to accommodate the surplus Western males, so any additional holders are needed for bachelor groups... not another species.
I would also love to see a Mountain gorilla @Luke da Zoo nerd , but in-situ efforts are best for this species... Their numbers are ever increasing, so why fix something that isn't broken?
 
ThomasNotTom said:
And I couldn't agree more with you @FBBird . The EEP/SSP are both struggling to accommodate the surplus Western males, so any additional holders are needed for bachelor groups... not another species.
I would also love to see a Mountain gorilla @Luke da Zoo nerd , but in-situ efforts are best for this species... Their numbers are ever increasing, so why fix something that isn't broken?
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Mountain Gorillas are easy enough to see. All you need is the money and physical fitness to go and see them in the wild. Unfortunately I have neither, but continue to enjoy Western Lowlands in zoos. I hope to see the single captive graueri one day.
 
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