Auckland Zoo Auckland Zoo News 2020

WhistlingKite24 said:
Come and see the progress we've made AND visit our completed high canopy habitat for primates this weekend!
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Great to hear the high canopy habitat for the apes is now compete! It'll be exciting to see them on the high ropes. I've seen photos of the orangutans in what was initially the Siamang exhibit for this precinct, suggesting they now rotate use of these two main exhibit spaces. Access to the high ropes will allow even more permutations. Down the line, there could even be opportunities for Siamang and orang-utan to share exhibit space, though I don't believe that's the plan at this stage.
 
It has now been properly confirmed by the zoo - the aerial ropes and pathways are now officially completed and the orangutans have full access to them now. In early 2021, the siamangs will also be introduced to this aerial network.
Our orangutans are living the high life – 25 metres off the ground!

We’re excited to announce that our incredible primates have started to use the innovative network of aerial pathways that has been designed and created for them – enabling them to move as they would in the wild.

Creating the aerial pathways are over 2km of three-tiered vine-like ropes that link up to nine trunk-like cylindrical poles. Via three of these (remotely managed by our primate keepers) our primates can climb in and up these poles and onto the ropes that extend from the habitat right out over the Zoo’s lake.

Primate team leader Amy says, “As we predicted, our very brave and confident female Melur was the first to go up, followed by Charlie and Wanita. It was incredible to see the natural instincts of all three so quickly kick in. We all felt so proud of them! We’ve taken the best of all that we’ve seen overseas, and I believe what we have is the best habitat in a zoo for orangutans and siamangs anywhere in the world.”

On your next visit you could be sitting on Te Puna café’s deck enjoying lunch and see the orangutans ranging across the lake or viewing them from elsewhere in the zoo, but as it is a choice for them, you won’t see them on these pathways all the time.

Learn more - www.aucklandzoo.co.nz/news/auckland-zoo-orangutans-now-living-the-high-life
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Additional video showing the orangs using the high ropes:
 
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WhistlingKite24 said:
A fantastic end-of-year video summarising the key events/milestones of 2020 at Auckland Zoo:

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2020 Recap

It's certainly been an eventful year for the zoo. Here's a summary of the key events:

Births:

Janaury - 1.1 Cape porcupines (first birth of this species at the zoo)
March - Emperor tamarin (first birth of this species at the zoo)
May - 1.0 Capybara pup
July - 1.1 Golden lion tamarins successfully (a New Zealand first)
August - 0.1 Southern white rhinoceros (Nyah)
September - 3.2 Oriental small-clawed otters (third litter to breeding pair)
September - 0.1 Hamadryas baboon infant (first in five years)

Other births include several Chevron skinks, Cobble skinks, Brown teal, Orange-fronted kakarikis, Bolivian squirrel monkeys and nyala.

Arrivals:

February - 1.0 giraffe (Billy) from Australia Zoo
November - 1.1 Brolga from Hamilton Zoo

Other arrivals include a female Emu and four Waterbuck.

Deaths:

February - female Brolga and chick
March - New Zealand fur seal (Kaioko) - the last of his species at the zoo
March - Plains zebra colt (euthanised)

Other notable events:

Opening of Phase 1 of the South East Asia precinct (The Canopy)

Zoo announces their decision to phase out their elephants after 97 years

Zoo closes for an extended period during the COVID-19 pandemic
 
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