I really liked the idea when Adelaide zoo gained a number of ultra rare tamarin species an endangered group that well suited a small zoo
Auckland Zoo Auckland Zoo News 2022
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It’s always great when zoos can dedicate the infrastructure to housing multiple pairs of a species. Both Auckland and Wellington have struggled with Golden Lion tamarins due to each holding a single breeding pair and one half of the pair dying before breeding could take place. Having multiple pairs on site allows for incompatible pairs to be mixed up and has a back up on site without needing to import.
As we’ve seen across many zoos, there’s a reluctance to dedicate multiple exhibits to one species; but a small monkey breeding facility (could expand this to Emperor tamarin and Pygmy marmoset) would take up minimal space and could be fascinating attraction.
I like the idea of zoos putting their breeding programs more on display like that, showing rather than telling the vistors the conservation work they do, plus being charismatic, would make a fun attraction
In regards to the Africa section remodel, I was thinking maybe splitting the elephant enclosure into a lion and a cheetah enclosure would be pretty cool and have the overhead tunnel idea everyone's so fond off, then maybe extending the rhino enclosure into the old cheetah one , adding the flamingo aviary over the pond they reside in now. as for south America, I imagine that the zoo may get more capybara in the future, either by imports or coming from other NZ zoos, but potentially having capuchins or more tamrains is a great idea for the left over areas
I'd think rotational enclosures for Cheetahs and Lions may be nice, including overhead passes and tunnels. This could be built in place of the current rhino, flamingo and cheetah enclosures. The flamingoes could then move into the former hippo enclosure; and the rhinos could move into the current elephant enclosure. That seems the best and most logical idea for me.
I think Capybaras may return in the future, but obviously the phase out seems to indicate they don't want them in the meantime. I'd like to see river otters, but of course that's a massive wish. Capuchins would be great, especially as a replacement for the Saimangs. Or, they could add some south american birds into the former Saimang enclosure, thats another option.
A mixed avairy with some south american birds does sound like a good idea too, though it would mostly be parrot species
I think expanding the current flamingo enclosure is probs the better idea, since the werid angle of the old hippo enclosure would make an awkward aviary imo.
That’s a good idea as it also addresses the Cheetah exhibit issue by demolishing an outdated, uninspiring exhibit and giving them a new enclosure more suited to their needs and behaviour. Potentially the larger space could include a long track of grass with a pulley system to demonstrate the Cheetah’s speed. It’s proved a great attraction at Orana Wildlife Park and is good enrichment for the cats.
The Hamadryas baboon exhibit is one African exhibit that’s stood the test of time. It opened in 1999 but due to housing a smaller baboon species than the Chacma it was designed for, it’s still reasonably spacious and suited to their needs.
I think an aviary with parrots and other south american birds would be the best option for the former saimang enclosure. It would best complement the rest of the south american collection which lacks bird species.
Would you expand the current flamingo enclosure into the former cheetah enclosure?
Well if you split the area evenly, each side would be a half acre or so, which is a good area for a cheetah pair. i think making it more like the orana one is a good idea
I dont think the baboon enclosure needs much of a change, just a bit of a makeover to make it fit a little more thematically with the rest of the zoo, like more plantings, climbing frames ect
Considering that we really cant import birds and what's around in aviculture it would really pretty much only be Macaws, Amazons and other south amercian parakeets, which are all wonderful addtions imo
Sure, it really wouldnt matter much either way imo, since its not that large of an area
Honestly, I do find the savanna expansions kind of redundant, and I'd rather see the African Forest/flamingo expansion that was proposed earlier in the thread. The return of hippos would also very much soften the blow of losing elephants and pinnipeds, especially with the prospect of underwater viewing. If it was possible to do a "Hagenbeck" style expansion of the lion habitat where the lions could look out at the hippos, that would also be amazing. The "African River Track" would be a good name for this section as well. Alas, a man can only dream.
Rotational exhibits for lions and cheetahs are a no-go. Cheetahs are incredibly flighty animals, and get spooked by the presence of larger predators. Unless Auckland decided to get wild dogs or hyenas, I doubt this plan would work. Other than that, I've always been underwhelmed by the idea of moving the rhinos into the old elephant enclosure, as more creative stuff can be done with the space and the rhinos have a massive space already.
Your Hagenbeck concept sounds phenomenal @StoppableSan - even if it is a little out of reach.
The return of hippos would require an import health standard and the zoo have so far shown no interest in completing one. I believe hippos were a species they were happy to phase out; and pinnipeds will soon follow suit, though this has yet to be publicly announced.
Spotted hyena are a popular species and combined with adjacent exhibits for African lion, could make for a crowd pulling complex. The African precinct was opened as Pridelands in 1998 - capitalising on the popularity of the Lion King movies, a franchise that remains popular to this day through spin off series. These species could be the stars of a carnivore complex (Carnivore Gorge, Carnivore Hill etc). that could easily fit the African precinct theme with a wide variety of African species available. Space dependant, African wild dog could be added to the complex or replace hyena.
Are there many tamarin species in the region other than the three currently housed at Auckland?
I think they are popular, cheap and robust enough to be a good choice for better representation in NZ.
Those are the only species of tamiran the region focuses on. Auckland is one of the only zoos is not the only that has all three.
There’s actually four species of tamarin held in the region:
Golden lion tamarin Leontopithecus rosalia
Emperor tamarin Saguinus imperator
Cotton-top tamarin Saguinus oedipus
Red-handed Tamarin Saguinus midas
Darling Downs Zoo imported three pairs of Red-handed tamarin in 2018, with one pair transferred to Hunter Valley Zoo. They’re currently the only two holders in the region and Darling Downs Zoo is the only zoo in the region to hold all four species.
Auckland Zoo holds the first three; as do Adelaide Zoo, Perth Zoo, Mogo Zoo and Wildlife HQ.
if we are thinking the more conservation route, breeding cotton tops and golden lions would be the best options, since they are both endangered, and cottontops being one of the rarest primates in the world.
Agreed - in fact Cotton top tamarins are critically endangered. This surprised me given they’re such a common animal in zoos and breed easily. Auckland Zoo have a thriving troop of 1.7 adults (breeding pair and their six daughters) and on my latest visit I saw multiple infants, so I’m not sure if some of the daughters mated with the father as can sometimes happen.
It’s a decent sized outdoor exhibit which is apparently suitable versus Hamilton and Wellington Zoo which are you situated in colder climates and keep their tamarins in glass houses. Such a set up would be more suitable for managing multiple pairs, so my desire would be to see a tamarin house built in the rainforest zone (possibly where the old Siamang exhibit is).
I think there would be plenty of space for that, and having a more layered enclosure would be more space effecent, with having agouti/capybaras on the ground and monkeys/birds in the canopy
Much like the previous Capybara/Squirrel Monkey mix, which worked well. I'm not sure how Tamirans would be able to do in a mixed species enclosure with those larger animals.
0.1 Green iguana has arrived from Wellington Zoo:
From socials:
We’ve welcomed a female green iguana into our zoo whānau! Arriving from our friends at Wellington, she has fulfilled her 30-day quarantine period and has been introduced as a companion for our male iguana Iggy.
While these iguanas are currently in one of our back of house areas, you can visit the green iguana in our South American Rainforest Track to see how fascinating this species is up close.
From socials:
We’ve welcomed a female green iguana into our zoo whānau! Arriving from our friends at Wellington, she has fulfilled her 30-day quarantine period and has been introduced as a companion for our male iguana Iggy.
While these iguanas are currently in one of our back of house areas, you can visit the green iguana in our South American Rainforest Track to see how fascinating this species is up close.
Do you know how many Auckland hold in total of this species now? There seems to be a few males but very few females in the country currently.