Australasian Hippopotamus Population - Discussion, History and Research

[Zoofan15]

Discussion, History and Research

Introduction:

This thread is aimed at supporting the Australasian Hippopotamus Population thread by creating a space for discussion, as well as ongoing research into the origins of our regional hippopotamus population.

The population thread can be found here: Australasian Hippo Population
Ddd

 

[Zoofan15]

Resource One: Current Population

——————————————————————————

Common Hippopotamus

Taronga Western Plains Zoo:

0.1 Nile (15/05/1999) Ollie x Suzie
0.1 Cuddles (00/09/2002) Fonzie x Solucky
0.1 Kibibi (11/09/2014) Mana x Cuddles
0.1 Kendi (25/05/2017) Mana x Cuddles
1.0 Kani (15/04/2020) Mana x Cuddles

Werribee Open Range Zoo:

0.1 Primrose (01/12/1990) Harold x Unknown
0.1 Brindabella (09/12/1990) Harold x Unknown
0.1 Tulip (01/01/2003) Harold x Primrose
0.1 Lotus (28/03/2008) Harold x Primrose
0.1 Pansy (18/11/2013) Harold x Brindabella

Total regional population: 1.9

——————————————————————————

Pygmy Hippopotamus

Taronga Zoo:

1.0 Fergus (06/08/2009) Frank x Fluffy
0.1 Kambiri (26/06/2010) Timmy x Petre

Melbourne Zoo:

1.0 Felix (17/11/2006) Frank x Fluffy

Adelaide Zoo:

1.0 Obi (25/05/2015) Felix x Petre

Darling Downs Zoo:

0.1 Kamina (21/02/2017) Fergus x Kambiri

Total regional population: 3.2

——————————————————————————

 

[Zoofan15]

Resource Two: Auckland Zoo History

Common Hippopotamus

Auckland Zoo’s first pair of Common hippopotamus were named Chaka and Bella:

1.0 Chaka (1920) Imported 1925; Died 1937
0.1 Bella (1921) Imported 1923; Died 1954

Chaka and Bella produced six offspring together:

1.0 Unnamed (September 1926) Died 1926
1.0 Pondo (January 1929) Exported 1934 (Perth)
1.0 Unnamed (November 1930) Died 1930
1.0 Zulu (January 1932) Exported 1933 (Adelaide)
1.0 Unknown (November 1935) Died 1935
10 Dimazulu (February 1937) Died 1946

Dimazulu and Bella produced one offspring together:

1.0 Horatio (January 1944) Exported 1946 (Melbourne)

Nada was imported from Taronga Zoo in 1939 as a mate for Dimazulu:

0.1 Nada
Born at Taronga Zoo 01/01/1937
Arrived at Auckland Zoo 13/03/1939
Died at Auckland Zoo 12/12/1965

Dimazulu and Nada produced two calves:

1.0 En Zed
Born at Auckland Zoo 25/04/1944
Died at Auckland Zoo 09/11/1951
Sire: Dimazulu

1.0 Cetawayo
Born at Auckland Zoo 01/12/1946
Fate Unknown
Sire: Dimazulu

After Dimazulu died in 1946; Nada was paired with her son, En Zed.

En Zed and Nada produced one calf:

1.0 Khama
Born at Auckland Zoo 02/06/1950
Sent to Calcutta Zoo 01/02/1952
Sire: En Zed

After Kharma was exported to Calcutta Zoo, a new male named Kabete was imported from Kenya to be paired with Nada:

1.0 Kabete
Born in Kenya 01/01/1953
Arrived at Auckland Zoo 01/10/1956
Died at Auckland Zoo 20/05/1993

Kabete and Nada produced three calves:

0.1 Snorkel
Born at Auckland Zoo 14/10/1959
Died at Auckland Zoo 30/09/2010
Sire: Kabete

0.1 Kiboko
Born at Auckland Zoo 28/08/1961
Died at Auckland Zoo 02/09/1970
Sire: Kabete

1.0 Scuba
Born at Auckland Zoo 26/01/1964
Died at Auckland Zoo 03/07/1980
Sire: Kabete

Nada’s daughter, Kiboko, produced three calves:

1.0 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 20/08/1967
Died at Auckland Zoo 20/08/1967
Sire: Kabete

0.0.1 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 11/06/1968
Died at Auckland Zoo 11/06/1968
Sire: Kabete

0.1 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 09/04/1970
Died at Auckland Zoo 09/04/1970
Sire: Kabete

Nada’s daughter, Snorkle, produced nine calves:

0.1 Hope
Born at Auckland Zoo 23/01/1973
Died at Auckland Zoo 06/05/1983
Sire: Scuba

0.1 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 31/01/1978
Died at Auckland Zoo 31/01/1978
Sire: Kabete

0.0.1 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 02/02/1985
Died at Auckland Zoo 02/02/1985
Sire: Kabete

1.0 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 30/04/1986
Died at Auckland Zoo 30/04/1986
Sire: Kabete

0.1 Solucky
Born at Auckland Zoo 13/03/1987
Sent to Tipperary Station 10/03/1988
Sire: Kabete

1.0 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 16/10/1988
Died at Auckland Zoo 18/10/1988
Sire: Kabete

0.1 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 20/02/1990
Died at Auckland Zoo 20/02/1990
Sire: Kabete

0.0.1 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 11/02/1991
Died at Auckland Zoo 11/02/1991
Sire: Kabete

0.0.1 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 01/09/1991
Died at Auckland Zoo 01/09/1991
Sire: Kabete

Snorkle’s daughter, Hope, produced five calves:

1.0 Chad
Born at Auckland Zoo 13/11/1979
Died at Auckland Zoo 19/11/1979
Sire: Kabete

1.0 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 11/10/1980
Died at Auckland Zoo 11/10/1980
Sire: Kabete

0.1 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 30/06/1981
Died at Auckland Zoo 30/06/1981
Sire: Kabete

0.1 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 23/03/1982
Died at Auckland Zoo 23/03/1982
Sire: Kabete

1.0 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 05/05/1983
Died at Auckland Zoo 05/05/1983
Sire: Kabete

Bonnie was imported from Taronga Zoo in 1966 as a new breeding female, following the death of Nada the previous year:

0.1 Bonnie
Born at Taronga Zoo 17/11/1957
Arrived at Auckland Zoo 21/12/1966
Died at Auckland Zoo 31/05/1982

Bonnie produced eight calves:

0.1 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 01/03/1968
Died at Auckland Zoo 04/03/1968
Sire: Kabete

1.0 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 28/03/1969
Died at Auckland Zoo 02/04/1969
Sire: Scuba

1.0 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 28/11/1969
Died at Auckland Zoo 29/11/1969
Sire: Scuba

1.0 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 16/05/1971
Died at Auckland Zoo 19/05/1971
Sire: Scuba

1.0 Wahanui
Born at Auckland Zoo 20/06/1972
Died at Auckland Zoo 18/10/1972
Sire: Kabete

0.0.1 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 17/06/1973
Died at Auckland Zoo 17/06/1973
Sire: Kabete

0.1 Faith
Born at Auckland Zoo 05/01/1975
Died at Auckland Zoo 16/08/2016
Sire: Kabete

1.0 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 12/11/1977
Died at Auckland Zoo 12/11/1977
Sire: Scuba

Bonnie’s daughter, Faith, produced fourteen calves:

1.0 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 28/02/1978
Died at Auckland Zoo 28/02/1978
Sire: Scuba

1.0 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 05/04/1979
Died at Auckland Zoo 06/04/1979
Sire: Scuba

1.0 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 27/03/1980
Died at Auckland Zoo 28/03/1980
Sire: Scuba

1.0 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 25/10/1981
Died at Auckland Zoo 25/10/1981
Sire: Kabete

1.0 Floyd
Born at Auckland Zoo 13/09/1982
Died at Auckland Zoo 23/12/1987
Sire: Kabete

1.0 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 26/08/1984
Died at Auckland Zoo 26/08/1984
Sire: Kabete

1.0 Fonzie
Born at Auckland Zoo 26/04/1986
Sent to Tipperary Station 10/03/1988
Sire: Kabete

0.0.1 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 08/07/1987
Died at Auckland Zoo 08/07/1987
Sire: Kabete

1.0 Fudge
Born at Auckland Zoo 16/03/1988
Died at Auckland Zoo 26/03/2016
Sire: Kabete

0.1 Fatima
Born at Auckland Zoo 16/03/1988
Died at Auckland Zoo 31/03/1988
Sire: Kabete

0.0.1 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 28/09/1989
Died at Auckland Zoo 28/09/1989
Sire: Kabete

0.0.1 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 28/09/1989
Died at Auckland Zoo 28/09/1989
Sire: Kabete

0.0.1 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 28/05/1990
Died at Auckland Zoo 28/05/1990
Sire: Kabete

0.0.1 Unnamed
Born at Auckland Zoo 17/03/1991
Died at Auckland Zoo 22/03/1991
Sire: Kabete

 

[Zoofan15]

Resource Three: Adelaide Zoo History

Common Hippopotamus

A female hippopotamus was imported from the wild 1900:

0.1 Lischin (00/00/1897) Died 09/06/1901

A male hippopotamus was transferred from Melbourne Zoo 1920:

1.0 Edward (16/03/1918) Died 28/10/1928

A male hippopotamus was imported from Auckland Zoo 1934:

1.0 Newsboy (00/01/1932) Died 11/08/1977

A pair of hippopotamus were transferred from Bacchus Marsh 1975:

1.0 Albert (18/05/1965) Died 07/05/2020
0.1 Victoria (30/12/1967) Died 20/07/2017

Albert and Victoria produced 17 calves together:

0.1 Unnamed (13/10/1976) Died 14/10/1976
0.1 Unnamed (13/07/1977) Died 23/07/1977
1.0 Unnamed (01/08/1978) Died 02/08/1978
0.1 Unnamed (24/04/1979) Died 27/04/1979
0.1 Alice (19/01/1980) Transferred 25/03/1981 (Werribee)
0.1 Beatrice (08/04/1981) Transferred 13/09/1982 (Werribee)
1.0 Unnamed (22/07/1983) Died 24/07/1983
0.1 Unnamed (07/08/1984) Died 18/08/1984
0.1 Unnamed (02/04/1985) Died 08/04/1985
0.1 Rumbin (22/02/1986) Transferred 19/10/1989 (Dubbo)
1.0 Unnamed (18/12/1987) Died 19/12/1987
0.1 Leopolda (21/04/1989) Transferred 28/11/1990 (Werribee)
0.1 Kibu (29/03/1991) Exported 22/10/1992 (Kuala Lumpur)
0.1 Unnamed (26/09/1996) Died 28/09/1996
1.0 Makoko (12/02/1998) Transferred 27/06/1999 (Werribee)
1.0 Unnamed (20/05/2007) Died 00/05/2007
0.1 Unnamed (00/00/2009) Died 00/00/2009

 

[Zoofan15]

Resource Four: Melbourne Zoo History

Common Hippopotamus

Thank you to @Jambo for providing this summary of Melbourne Zoo’s Common hippopotamus history:

Melbourne Zoo Hippo History:

I've completed further research on Melbourne's hippos and have found the following. Please note there are still some gaps, but hopefully this information may trigger someone to remember something.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Melbourne first imported 0.1 Rosamund (1909) in 1913. She was joined by 1.0 William (1908) later that year.

Together they produced eight offspring over a period of seventeen years:

0.0.1 Unamed (1916) died 1916 (eaten by William)
1.0 Edward (1918) sent to Adelaide 1920 (died there in 1928 after swallowing a tennis ball)
0.1 Belle (1921) sent to Auckland 1923 (died there in 1954)
0.0.1 Unamed (1924) died 1924 after drowning
0.0.1 Unamed (1925) died 1925 due to pneumonia
1.0 Bill / Nat (1927) sent to Perth (died there in 1930 after swallowing a tennis ball)
1.0 Ernie / Percy / Teenie / Billy (1930) sent to a Brisbane circus in 1932 (sent to Melbourne 1938)
0.1 Esmerelda (1933) died 1961 after swallowing a tennis ball

William died in 1933 after swallowing a tennis ball. An unfortunate fate he shared with three of his children.

In 1938, Billy returned from his travelling circus. He often fought with his mother and sister and was kept seperate. He died in 1944 after swallowing binder twine.

The same is for Rosamund; she died in 1945 after swallowing a....tennis ball.

In 1946, Melbourne imported 1.0 male (1944) from Auckland. He was renamed Rangi.

He was paired with Esmeralda to produce three known offspring:

1.0 Junior (1954) died 1954 due to unknown illness
0.1 Genevieve (1955)
0.1 Henrietta (1961)

In 1961, Esmeralda died after swallowing a tennis ball. She was the fourth hippo at Melbourne to succumb to this fate. She left her two daughters and her mate, Rangi.

In 1966, a new male was imported. I have no details of where from or his name. He was imported as a partner for Henrietta.

In 1968, Rangi died aged 24. Yes. He swallowed a tennis ball.

In 1969, 0.1 Millie was born to the unknown male and Henrietta. Millie died later that year, after being rejected by her mother and handraised.

As of 1980, Melbourne had three hippos who shared the same pool; the unknown male, Genevieve and Henrietta.

All three were exported to Werribee in 1982.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Some additional notes:

Genevieve mothered Primrose, as Henrietta was incapable of raising a hippo calf (she wasn't used for breeding following Millie's birth).

 

[Zoofan15]

Resource Five: Taronga/Dubbo Zoo History

Common Hippopotamus

The following information was researched by @Zoofan15 and @Jambo and summarised by @Jambo in the below articles; supplemented by additional research by @Zoofan15, @Jambo and @RhinoHippoElephantGiraffe.

Since @Zoofan15 has already made a family tree post, I figured I’d make a variation of it; just post a compilation of the information we've discovered:

Starting with Taronga.

What we know thus far...

Taronga Zoo:

1916- 1.0 Dizzie (1898) arrived from the Moore Park Campus. He died 1951/1952.
1932- 0.1 Fatima (1928) arrived from the Cairo Zoo. Died in 1943.
1937- 0.1 Puddles/Nada was born to Dizzie and Fatima. She was sent to Auckland in 1939.
1939- 0.1 Sheba was born to Dizzie and Fatima. Fate unknown.
1941- 0.1 Bardia was born to Dizzie and Fatima. Assumed to die early on, considering a calf was born just over a year later.
1942- 1.0 Nero was born to Dizzie and Fatima. Died in 1943.
1946- 0.1 hippo was imported from Africa. She died between 1951/1952.
1951- 0.1 Hilda (unknown) and 0.1 Henrietta (unknown) arrived from Kenya joining Dizzie. Both fates unknown.
1954- 1.0 Billy (1950) and 0.1 Elizabeth (1954) arrived from Africa. Billy was sent to Dubbo in 1992, he died there soon after. Elizabeth's fate is unknown.
- 0.1 Lindy born to Billy and Hilda/Henrietta. She was sent to Dubbo in 1992 where she later died.
1956- 0.1 Heather was born to Billy and Hilda/Henrietta. She may have been sent to Dubbo and then to Werribee, where she may have had future calves.
1957- 0.1 Bonnie was born to Billy and Hilda/Henrietta. She was later sent to Auckland in 1966.
1965- 1.0 Albert was born to Billy and Mumsy. He was sent to Bacchus Marsh in the early 70s.
1967- 0.1 Victoria was born to Billy and Lindy. She was sent to Bacchus Marsh in the early 70s.
1970- 0.1 Suzie was born to Billy and Lindy. She was sent to Dubbo in 1976.
1977- 1.0 Happy was born to Billy and Lindy. He died prior to 1980.
1980- 0.1 Lousie was born to Billy and Lindy. She died prior to 1992.

By 1992, Taronga had two hippos, Billy and Lindy. They were relocated to Dubbo that year,

Dizzie and Fatima's offspring

0.1 Puddles/Nada (1937)
0.1 Sheba (1939)
0.1 Bardia (1941)
1.0 Nero (1942)

Billy's known offspring

0.1 Lindy (1954)
0.1 Heather (1956)
0.1 Bonnie (1957)
1.0 Albert (1965)
0.1 Victoria (1967)
0.1 Suzie (1970)
1.0 Happy (1977)
0.1 Louise (1980)

Possible offspring

1.0 Toby (1960's and 70's)

Lindy's offspring

0.1 Victoria (1967)
0.1 Suzie (1970)
1.0 Happy (1977)
0.1 Louise (1980)

Hilda + Henrietta's offspring

0.1 Lindy (1954)
0.1 Heather (1956)
0.1 Bonnie (1957)

Mumsy's offspring

1.0 Albert (1965)

Part II:

Refer to post #261 of this thread for Part I, what we know thus far regarding Taronga's hippos.

Next up is Dubbo or Taronga Western Plains Zoo:

What we know..

1976 - The following individuals arrived from Taronga:
1.0 Toby (unknown)- He died in the 90’s
0.1 Suzie (1970) Billy x Lindy- died in 2016
0.1 Mumsy (1954) died prior to 1985

1978 - 1.0 Harry was born to Toby and Suzie. He was sent to Werribee in 1984.
- 0.0.1 calf was born to Toby and Mumsy. It died two months after its birth.

1979 - 1.0 Unknown arrived from Taronga. He was most likely a son of Billy’s and was sent to the Tipperary station in 1982.

1982 - 0.1 Daisy was born to Toby and Suzie. She was sent to Tipperary in 1989.

1985 - 1.0 Happy was born to Toby and Suzie. He died in 2018.

1988 - 1.0 Ollie was born to Toby and Daisy/Suzie. He died prior to 2005.

1989 - 0.1 Rumbin (1986) arrived from Adelaide Zoo. She died in 2011.

1990 - 0.0.1 stillborn calf was born to Toby and Suzie.

1991 - 0.1 Mafuta was born to Happy and Rumbin. She died sometime between 2007 and 2009.

1992 - 1.0 Billy and 0.1 Lindy arrived from Taronga Zoo. Both died in the 90’s.

1993 - 0.0.1 calf was born to Ollie and Suzie. It was found dead next morning in Happy’s yard.
- 1.0 Obay born to Billy and Lindy. Died two months after birth; killed by an exhibit mate.

1996 - 1.0 Mana was born to Ollie and Suzie. He died in 2021.
- 0.1 Kariba was born to Happy and Rumbin. She died two days after birth.

1998 - 0.0.1 calf was born to Happy and Rumbin. Killed at eighteen days old by an exhibit mate.
- 0.0.1 calf was born to Ollie and Suzie. It was killed at two days old by an exhibit mate.

1999 - 1.0 Timbuktu was born to Happy and Rumbin. He died from behavioural issues two days after his birth.
- 0.1 Nile was born to Ollie and Suzie.

2012 - 0.1 Cuddles (2002) arrives from Cairns Wildlife Safari.

2013 - 0.0.1 calf was born to Mana and Cuddles. It died soon after its birth.

2014 - 0.1 Kibibi was born to Mana and Cuddles.

2017 - 0.1 Kendi was born to Mana and Cuddles.

2020 - 1.0 Kani was born to Mana and Cuddles.


Dubbo currently have 1.4 Hippos (Kani, Nile, Cuddles, Kibibi, Kendi).

Suzie's offspring

1.0 Harold (1978) x Toby
0.1 Daisy (1982) x Toby
1.0 Happy (1985) x Toby
0.0.1 Stillborn (1990) x Toby
0.0.1 Unamed (1993) x Ollie
1.0 Mana (1996) x Ollie
0.1 Nile (1999) x Ollie

she could also be the mother of

1.0 Ollie (1988) x Toby

Rumbin's offspring

0.1 Mafuta (1991) x Happy
0.1 Kariba (1996) x Happy
0.0.1 Unamed (1998) x Happy
1.0 Timbuktu (1999) x Happy

Cuddle's offspring

0.0.1 Unamed (2013)
0.1 Kibibi (2014)
0.1 Kendi (2017)
1.0 Kani (2020)


Further notes:

• Dubbo has experienced 19 births over the years, 9 (4.5) of which were successful. Cuddles has three successful calves, Suzie had four, and Rumbin the one. Only the youngest four surviving calves are alive today.
• Rumbin's last calf, Timbuktu died from behavioural conditions which led to Rumbin acquiring health problems associated with birth process and became weak on back legs. This may have prevented her from breeding again, although many attempts were made to breed from her in her final years.
• We can assume Toby died sometime in the early 90's, as starting from 1993, Suzie's next calves were sired by Ollie, who was either her son or her grandson.
• Suzie stopped breeding following the birth of Nile in 1999, which means we can make the assumption, Ollie died soon afterwards.
• Otherwise, as of 2005, Dubbo had 2.4 Hippos and were holding them across four groups; Suzie and Nile; Rumbin and Mafuta; Happy; and then Mana.

Further info on Taronga's hippos:

• I've found out Elizabeth, the calf imported with Billy in 1954, was never sold to Taronga. Taronga turned her down, as they already had two fully grown cows.

• Hilda and Henrietta were the two breeders at Dubbo. One of the females was renamed Mumsy soon after. Henrietta likely died in the late 50's, due to a hippo at Melbourne being given the same name in 1961. We can assume Lindy was Henrietta's daughter as she was retained.

• The birth in 1957 (of Bonnie) was the first since Lindy's in 1954. The article indicates they were born to different mothers, so I believe Hilda (Mumsy) mothered Bonnie.

• 'Heather' delivered a calf in 1968. Although 'Heather' was apparently twelve at the time (putting her birth in 1956); it didn't make sense as there were no calves born at that time. Since, they also had Billy's birthdate wrong, i'm assuming Heather was in fact 'Mumsy'. A calf in 1968 perfectly follows 'Brutus' in 1965.

• Lindy mothered seven total calves at Taronga: Victoria (1967), Suzie (1970), (two unamed calves were born between 1973 and 1976), Happy (1977), Louise (1980) and Lucas (1982). An article following Lucas's birth details he would be Lindy's last calf; although she later gave birth at Dubbo so it's not unreasonable to assume she may have had some calves born after 1982.

• As of Feb 1979, Taronga had three hippos. I think we can assume this was; the male that was sent to Dubbo later that year, Billy and Lindy. This means Happy didn't survive much longer than a year. It was a similar situation with Louise, who wasn't alive at the time of Lucas's birth in 1982.

• The specific male, may have been a previous son of Lindy's; born between Suzie (1970) and Happy (1977). He disappeared off records in the early 80's. There's been some mention here of him being sent to Tipperary, but the specific studbook number listed is Daisy's who sent from Dubbo to Tipperary in 1989. It leads me to believe the studbook has just got her year of transfer wrong.

• An article also mentions Harry (1978) being inbred which means Toby wasn't wildborn. He was related to Suzie; likely sharing a same sire in Toby, but different parents. Toby's dam has to be Mumsy.

• There's also mention of a dam mating with her son and producing a dead calf in 2009. Ultimately, i've ruled it down to Suzie and Mana at Dubbo, and Tippi and Solucky at Cairns. I think it's highly likely Tippi and Solucky are the pair referred to here, as they previous had another calf in 2007 that didn't survive.

• It was noted Happy (1977) was Taronga's 12th hippo calf. We know Dizzie and Fatima produced four calves together. That leaves seven calves. We can be sure these were Lindy (1954), Bonnie (1957), Albert (1965), Victoria (1967) and Suzie (1970). The other seems to be Toby who was seemingly born to Mumsy. Possibly her 1968 calf? Other than that, the only other hippo who isn't mentioned is the male who was at Taronga and later sent to Dubbo in 1979. He would've made it 13..

Taronga Founders

Thus, Taronga in the end only had three founders; Billy, Hilda (Mumsy), and Henrietta.

*Note i've only included calves that survived and have contributed to the population (there's likely many that didn't survive.

Hilda (Mumsy) mothered:
Bonnie (1957)
Albert (1965)
Toby (possibly born in 1968? or sometime prior to 1972)

Henrietta mothered:
Lindy (1954)

Lindy then went on to mother:
Victoria (1967)
Suzie (1970)

Bonnie was sent on to Auckland, and had a daughter there, Faith (1975). Faith went on to have Fudge (1988), who were two of Auckland's three hippos for more than two decades. She also mothered Fonzee (1987), who went on to sire Cuddles (2002) meaning Bonnie has great great grandchildren at Dubbo.

Albert was paired up with Victoria at Adelaide. Initially they weren't to be a breeding pair, but well, plans change, and Adelaide elected to breed the half brother and sister. They went on to produce two notable calves, Rumbin (1985), who went on to live at Dubbo and produced a daughter, named Mafuta. Unfortunately neither are still alive today. They also produced a daughter, Beatrice, who was born in the early 80's, who was sent to Werribee and mothered Brindabella (1990). Brindabella has seen given birth to a daughter, Pansy (2013).

Toby went to live at Dubbo were he sired four successful calves with Suzie, his half sister. Their four offspring were; Harry (1978), Daisy (1982), Happy (1985) and Ollie (1988). Harry was sent to Werribee were he's since fathered all five of Werribee's current girls. Daisy died en route to Tipperary station in 1989, and Happy has since died, but did sire a calf, Mafuta.

Suzie also had two other calves, Mana (1996) and Nile (1999) with her son, Ollie. Mana has since fathered three calves with Cuddles; Kibibi (2014), Kendi (2017) and Kani (2020).

Taronga history:

There hasn't been as much as I hoped on Tierdetails, but this is what I found:

Billy and Lindy are confirmed as the parents of Victoia (1967) and Susie (1970).

Billy was estimated to be born 1948, though I read he was approximately four years old upon import, which would make his birth year 1950.

A cow of name unknown bred with Billy to produce Albert in 1965. It's noted the cow came from the USA and may be the same animal as Jessie. Her estimated DOB was 1948. I don't know who Jessie is, but Adelaide said this cow was called Mumsy. This confirms Mumsy was a founder.

Ollie's DOB was 09.09.1988. His parents were Suzie and Toby. No further details on Toby sadly, though we identified Billy as his sire.

Mumsy was probably born on June 1st, 1959, in Washington D.C (and would have been Arusha and Joe Smith's first calf). I think she was originally named "Jessie" when she lived in Washington D.C, then was renamed "Mumsy" when she was moved to an unknown location (probably Sydney) on May 15th, 1961. It also clearly states in both that they may be identical to each other. Mumsy only ever had one calf (Albert/Brutus in 1965), when she was not six yet, so she could have died as young as six years old.
Tierdetails
Tierdetails

 

[Zoofan15]

Resource Six: Pygmy Hippopotamus History

——————————————————

Taronga Zoo

Taronga Zoo's first Pygmy hippopotamus were 1.1 from the United States:

1.0 Happy
Born at the Smithsonian National Zoo 01/01/1949
Arrived at Taronga Zoo 19/11/1954
Died at Taronga Zoo 17/06/1975

0.1 Sneezy
Born at Smithsonian National Zoo 20/12/1949
Arrived at Taronga Zoo 11/02/1952
Died at Taronga Zoo 01/01/1978

Sneezy gave birth to ten calves at Taronga Zoo:

0.1 Unnamed
Born at Taronga Zoo 19/05/1957
Died at Taronga Zoo 26/07/1957
Sire: Happy; Dam: Sneezy

0.0.1 Unnamed
Born at Taronga Zoo 18/11/1958
Died at Taronga Zoo 18/11/1958
Sire: Happy; Dam: Sneezy

0.0.1 Unnamed
Born at Taronga Zoo 03/02/1960
Died at Taronga Zoo 03/02/1960
Sire: Happy; Dam: Sneezy

0.0.1 Unnamed
Born at Taronga Zoo 31/10/1961
Died at Taronga Zoo 05/11/1961
Sire: Happy; Dam: Sneezy

0.1 Unnamed
Born at Taronga Zoo 31/05/1967
Died at Taronga Zoo 28/06/1967
Sire: Happy; Dam: Sneezy

0.1 Cleo
Born at Taronga Zoo 13/06/1968
Died at Taronga Zoo 07/10/2005
Sire: Happy; Dam: Sneezy

0.1 Unnamed
Born at Taronga Zoo 18/02/1970
Died at Taronga Zoo 23/04/1970
Sire: Happy; Dam: Sneezy

0.1 Unnamed
Born at Taronga Zoo 26/11/1970
Died at Taronga Zoo 28/11/1970
Sire: Happy; Dam: Sneezy

1.0 Anthony
Born at Taronga Zoo 23/07/1972
Died at Taronga Zoo 13/11/1979
Sire: Happy; Dam: Sneezy

0.1 Unnamed
Born at Taronga Zoo 28/09/1973
Died at Taronga Zoo 01/10/1973
Sire: Happy; Dam: Sneezy

Cleo gave birth to two calves at Taronga Zoo:

0.1 Katrina
Born at Taronga Zoo 21/08/1973
Died at Taronga Zoo 02/02/2012
Sire: Happy; Dam: Cleo

0.1 Cookie
Born at Taronga Zoo 09/11/1978
Died at Taronga Zoo 28/09/1990
Sire: Anthony; Dam: Cleo

A new male named Timmy was imported from Honolulu Zoo:

1.0 Timmy
Born at Honolulu Zoo 29/04/1980
Arrived at Taronga Zoo 15/04/1981
Sent to Melbourne Zoo 05/07/1995
Returned to Taronga Zoo 18/09/2007
Died at Taronga Zoo 10/05/2011

Timmy sired one calf prior to his export to Melbourne Zoo:

0.1 Ady
Born at Taronga Zoo 31/10/1985
Sent to Arnhem Zoo 16/06/1988
Sire: Timmy; Dam: Cookie

Timmy returmed from Melbourne Zoo in 2007; and a female was imported from Adelaide Zoo:

0.1 Petre
Born at Adelaide Zoo 04/08/1984
Arrived at Taronga Zoo 11/09/2007
Sent to Melbourne Zoo 12/12/2012

Petre gave birth to three calves at Taronga Zoo:

0.1 Monifa
Born at Taronga Zoo 15/10/2008
Sent to Melbourne Zoo 30/07/2009
Sire: Timmy; Dam: Petre

1.0 Unnamed
Born at Taronga Zoo 23/08/2009
Died at Taronga Zoo 28/08/2009

0.1 Kambiri
Born at Taronga Zoo 26/06/2010

After Petre's export, a new male was imported from Cairns Wildlife Safari:

1.0 Fergus
Born at Cairns Wildlife Safari 06/08/2009
Arrived at Taronga Zoo 2012/2013

Fergus and Kambiri have produced two calves to date at Taronga Zoo:

0.1 Kamina
Born at Taronga Zoo 21/02/2017
Sent to Darling Downs Zoo 01/11/2018
Sire: Fegus; Dam: Kambiri

0.1 Amara
Born at Taronga Zoo 22/11/2021
Died at Taronga Zoo 29/12/2021
Sire: Fergus; Dam: Kambiri

——————————————————

——————————————————

Adelaide Zoo

Adelaide Zoo's first Pygmy hippopotamus were 1.2 from Melbourne Zoo:

0.1 Janice
Born at Melbourne Zoo 10/06/1977
Arrived at Adelaide Zoo 31/07/1979
Died at Adelaide Zoo 12/09/2012

0.1 Karla
Born at Melbourne Zoo 12/01/1976
Arrived at Adelaide Zoo 15/09/1982
Sent to Melbourne Zoo 16/03/1988

1.0 Henry
Born at Melbourne Zoo 06/09/1979
Arrived at Adelaide Zoo 27/08/1980
Died at Adelaide Zoo 25/01/1991

Janice gave birth to one calf at Adelaide Zoo:

0.1 Petre
Born at Adelaide Zoo 04/08/1984
Sent to Taronga Zoo 11/09/2007
Sire: Henry; Dam: Janice

Petre was sent to Taronga Zoo on breeding loan in 2007; and Melbourne Zoo in 2012. One of her calves, Obi, returned to Adelaide Zoo in 2016:

1.0 Obi
Born at Melbourne Zoo 25/05/2015
Arrived at Adelaide Zoo 09/05/2016

——————————————————

——————————————————

Melbourne Zoo

Melbourne Zoo's first Pygmy hippopotamus were 1.2 from the United States:

1.0 Pi
Born at Smithsonian National Zoo 26/08/1969
Arrived at Melbourne Zoo 06/06/1970
Died at Melbourne Zoo 25/12/1994

0.1 Carolyn
Born at Cleveland Metroparks Zoo 01/07/1971
Arrived at Melbourne Zoo 20/11/1972
Died at Melbourne Zoo 18/06/2002

0.1 Diana
Born at Maryland Zoo 03/05/1973
Arrived at Melbourne Zoo 07/03/1975
Sent to Pearl Coast Zoo 05/12/1987

Carolyn gave birth to four calves at Melbourne Zoo:

0.1 Karla
Born at Melbourne Zoo 12/01/1976
Sent to Adelaide Zoo 15/09/1982
Returned to Melbourne Zoo 16/03/1988
Died at Melbourne Zoo 22/02/1996
Sire: Pi; Dam: Carolyn

0.1 Janice
Born at Melbourne Zoo 10/06/1977
Sent to Adelaide Zoo 31/07/1979
Sire: Pi; Dam: Carolyn

1.0 Unnamed
Born at Melbourne Zoo 23/07/1981
Died at Melbourne Zoo 23/07/1981
Sire: Pi; Dam: Carolyn

1.0 Frank
Born at Melbourne Zoo 23/07/1981
Sent to Pearl Coast Zoo 05/12/1987
Sire: Pi; Dam: Carolyn

Diana gave birth to three calves at Melbourne Zoo:

1.0 Unnamed
Born at Melbourne Zoo 26/04/1978
Died at Melbourne Zoo 29/04/1978
Sire: Pi; Dam: Diana

1.0 Henry
Born at Melbourne Zoo 06/09/1979
Sent to Adelaide Zoo 27/08/1980
Sire: Pi; Dam: Diana

0.1 Unnamed
Born at Melbourne Zoo 29/04/1982
Died at Melbourne Zoo 07/05/1982
Sire: Pi; Dam: Diana

A new male named Timmy was imported in 1995:

1.0 Timmy
Born at Honolulu Zoo 29/04/1980
Arrived at Melbourne Zoo 05/07/1995
Sent to Taronga Zoo 18/09/2007

Timmy was sent to Taronga Zoo on breeding loan in 2007; and one of his calves, Monifa, returned to Melbourne Zoo in 2009:

0.1 Monifa
Born at Taronga Zoo 15/10/2008
Arrived at Melbourne Zoo 30/07/2009
Died at Melbourne Zoo 09/11/2010

A new pair was imported from Cairns Wildlife Safari and Taronga Zoo:

1.0 Felix
Born at Cairns Wildlife Safari 17/11/2006
Arrived at Melbourne Zoo 29/04/2011

0.1 Petre
Born at Adelaide Zoo 04/08/1984
Arrived at Melbourne Zoo 12/12/2012
Died at Melbourne Zoo 22/08/2016

Petre gave birth to one calf at Melbounre Zoo before her death in 2016:

1.0 Obi
Born at Melbourne Zoo 25/05/2015
Sent to Adelaide Zoo 09/05/2016
Sire: Felix; Dam: Petre

——————————————————

 

[Zoofan15]

Resource Seven: Founder List and Family Tree

Common Hippopotamus

————————————————————

Updated Founder List

1.0 Dizzie (1898)
1.0 William (1908)
0.1 Rosamund (1909)
1.0 Chaka (1920)
0.1 Fatima (1928)
0.1 Hilda/Henrietta (Unk)
1.0 Billy (1948 or 1950)
1.0 Kabete (1953)
0.1 Lindy (1948 or 1954) - if not Taronga bred
0.1 Mumsy (1959)

Only founders known or suspected to have contributed to the current population are listed.

————————————————————
————————————————————

Family Tree (Population Overview)

This is the current population:

Taronga Western Plains Zoo:

0.1 Nile (15/05/1999) Ollie x Suzie
0.1 Cuddles (00/09/2002) Fonzie x Solucky
0.1 Kibibi (11/09/2014) Mana x Cuddles
0.1 Kendi (25/05/2017) Mana x Cuddles
1.0 Kani (15/04/2020) Mana x Cuddles

Werribee Open Range Zoo:

0.1 Primrose (01/12/1990) Harold x Genevieve
0.1 Brindabella (09/12/1990) Harold x Beatrice
0.1 Tulip (01/01/2003) Harold x Primrose
0.1 Lotus (28/03/2008) Harold x Primrose
0.1 Pansy (18/11/2013) Harold x Brindabella

================================

And this is how we arrived here:

Taronga Zoo:

Dizzy (1898) and Fatima (1928) produced Nada (1939).

Billy (1950) sired Lindy (1954), Bonnie (1957) and Albert (1965).

Billy and Lindy produced Victoria (1967) and Suzie (1970).

Billy and Unknown produced Toby (Unlnown).

——————

Adelaide Zoo:

Albert and Victoria produced Beatrice (1980).

——————

Auckland Zoo:

Chaka (1920) and Bella (1921) produced Dimazulu (1937).

Dimazulu and Bella produced Rangi (1944).

Kabete (1953) and Nada produced Snorkel (1959).

Kabete and Snorkel produced Solucky (1987).

Kabete (1953) and Bonnie produced Faith (1975).

Kabete and Faith produced Fonzee (1986).

——————

Tipperary Station:

Fonzee and Solucky produced Cuddles (2002).

——————

Taronga Western Plains Zoo:

Toby and Suzie produced Ollie (1988).

Suzie and Toby produced Harold (1984).

Suzie and Ollie produced Mana (1996) and Nile (1999).

Mana and Cuddles produced Kibibi (2014), Kendi (2017) and Kani (2020).

——————

Melbourne Zoo:

William (1908) and Rosamund (1909) produced Bella (1921) and Esmeralda (1933).

Esmeralda and Rangi (1944) produced Genevieve (1955).

——————

Werribee Open Range Zoo:

Harold and Beatrice produced Brindabella (1990).

Harold and Brindabella produced Pansy (2013).

Harold and Genevieve produced Primrose (1990).

Harold and Primrose produced Tulip (2003) and Lotus (2008).

————————————————————

 

[Zoofan15]

Research Questions

I thought a good place to start would be to identify our main research questions.

The following are a mixture of priority questions including details of founders and offspring born - as well as a few simple questions to tie up loose ends e.g. the date in 2007 that Mafuta died etc.

The term “Full details” is used to describe birth place, date of birth, date of death, date of transfer and details of offspring - name, gender and date of birth.

It’s likely as these questions are answered it will open up other questions e.g. if new hippos are discovered. From here, we can work on low priority questions e.g. causes of death, which hippos were hand raised etc.

Taronga/Dubbo:

Full details on Hilda and Henrietta

Full details on Lindy (bar date of transfer to Werribee)

Full details on Toby

Full details on all non surviving calves born at Taronga (full details on their mothers will provide name, gender and date of birth; so just need date of death)

Full details on Mumsy (if not 1961 USA import); if USA import then date of death/transfer and confirmation Albert was her only offspring

Date of death for Mafuta (1991-2007).

Melbourne:

Full details of the mystery bull imported 1966

Full details of offspring born to Genevieve and Henrietta

Date of transfer to Werribee

Werribee:

Date of death of Alice, Beatrice, Genevieve, Henrietta, Leopolda, Makoko

Full details of all calves born at Werribee (bar Primrose, Brindabella, Tulip, Lotus and Pansy)

Date of death of bull transferred

 

[Jambo]

Rumbin (1987-2011)

Rumbin died on October 4th 2011.

Full details of all calves born at Werribee (bar Primrose, Brindabella, Tulip, Lotus and Pansy)

Beatrice mothered a male calf born 03/01/1989. Unfortunately I do not know when he died; but we can assume he died later that year, or early 1990, due to Beatrice giving birth to Brindabella less than two years later.

I’ll try to do some more research on these questions though. Hopefully I can dig up something.

 

[Zoofan15]

Rumbin died on October 4th 2011.



Beatrice mothered a male calf born 03/01/1989. Unfortunately I do not know when he died; but we can assume he died later that year, or early 1990, due to Beatrice giving birth to Brindabella less than two years later.

I’ll try to do some more research on these questions though. Hopefully I can dig up something.

Thanks, I’ve removed Rumbin from the list of questions.

I agree it’s likely the calf died as he doesn’t appear to have cropped up anywhere else, but the age gap between this calf and Brindabella would have been 23 months which is more than enough time for Beatrice to have weaned this calf and had another one.

For comparison, Faith had a 23 month gap between Floyd in 1982 (survived) and her next calf in 1984; and Fonzee born in 1986 (survived) was followed by her next calf 14 months later. The latter would have been considered a short interbirth interval though with 18-24 months appearing to be the norm.

 

[Abbey]

Thank you for compiling this comprehensive information altogether! The level of research about the regional hippo population by all of you has been phenomenal

 

[Jambo]

Thanks, I’ve removed Rumbin from the list of questions.

I agree it’s likely the calf died as he doesn’t appear to have cropped up anywhere else, but the age gap between this calf and Brindabella would have been 23 months which is more than enough time for Beatrice to have weaned this calf and had another one.

For comparison, Faith had a 23 month gap between Floyd in 1982 (survived) and her next calf in 1984; and Fonzee born in 1986 (survived) was followed by her next calf 14 months later. The latter would have been considered a short interbirth interval though with 18-24 months appearing to be the norm.

That’s very true. If the calf didn’t die within its first year, it still likely died young. I can’t imagine Werribee attempting to import another female (Leopolda) in 1990 when they may have already two bulls, four cows and a calf. This leads me to believe a lot had died beforehand (obviously though we can rule out Harry, Genevieve and Beatrice) but the other’s fates (the unknown male, Henrietta and Alice) are all up in the air.

 

[Zoofan15]

Thank you for compiling this comprehensive information altogether! The level of research about the regional hippo population by all of you has been phenomenal

You’re welcome and thank you! I’m astounded by how much we’ve been able to find via newspaper archives alone. There’s been a lot of guess work along the way, but more often than not we’ve been right. A highlight for me was coming across a complete list of the Adelaide births vis Tierdetails as that was a source of intrigue for me for sometime and has opened up additional questions about Werribee’s hippos.

 

[Jambo]

Thank you for compiling this comprehensive information altogether! The level of research about the regional hippo population by all of you has been phenomenal

Thank you!

We knew very little about the history of our regional population before (besides @Zoofan15 ’s history of Auckland), and I remember always being fascinated by Primrose and Brindabella at Werribee, and the mystery around their mothers.

This led me to conduct research (mainly on the history of Melbourne and Werribee’s hippos initially) - but with this I was able to find info on the hippos at Taronga and Adelaide too, so it’s turned into a sort of a whole population research event!

 

[Jambo]

Thank you! I’m astounded by how much we’ve been able to find via newspaper archives alone. There’s been a lot of guess work along the way, but more often than not we’ve been right. A highlight for me was coming across a complete list of the Adelaide births as that was a source of intrigue for me for sometime and has opened up additional questions about Werribee’s hippos.

Yes, I have access to the Victorian State Library database, so have been able to find a lot about Melbourne and Taronga, but there’s almost little to nothing about Werribee which I find interesting.

I have to say I was shocked to find out Beatrice wasn’t the only Adelaide hippo sent to Werribee. Finding out three more were sent too is shocking! Werribee had a large bloat of hippos at the time than I had initially thought.

 

[Zoofan15]

Yes, I have access to the Victorian State Library database, so have been able to find a lot about Melbourne and Taronga, but there’s almost little to nothing about Werribee which I find interesting.

I have to say I was shocked to find out Beatrice wasn’t the only Adelaide hippo sent to Werribee. Finding out three more were sent too is shocking! Werribee had a large bloat of hippos at the time than I had initially thought.

I’ve found the Australian newspaper archives to be a valuable source of information on Taronga, Melbourne and even Auckland; but Werribee appears to have had very little media communication. Given so many of their hippopotami appeared to have died prematurely (including a large number of neonates), it’s not surprising given it was around this time zoos became reluctant to disclose animal deaths - versus the early to mid 20th century when information was a lot more free flowing. The same trend was observed at Auckland Zoo.

 

[Jambo]

I’ve found the Australian newspaper archives to be a valuable source of information on Taronga, Melbourne and even Auckland; but Werribee appears to have had very little media communication. Given so many of their hippopotami appeared to have died prematurely (including a large number of neonates), it’s not surprising given it was around this time zoos became reluctant to disclose animal deaths - versus the early to mid 20th century when information was a lot more free flowing. The same trend was observed at Auckland Zoo.

Werribee also at the time was a very small zoo (I say small as in collection wise) - and was still operating as a mainly ungulate holding facility. The media at the time would’ve been much more interested in what was happening with apes, felids and elephants at Melbourne rather than the Giraffes and Antelope at Werribee.

 

[Zoofan15]

New Taronga Zoo Information

Hilda and Henrietta were Mumsy and Lindy!

Facts:

Mumsy and Lindy were wild born and arrived at Taronga Zoo 02/03/1951. Mumsy was transferred to Taronga Western Plains Zoo 08/04/1976 and Lindy was transferred there 27/10/1992.

Billy and Mumsy were the parents of Toby. Toby was born at Taronga Zoo 26/02/1970 and was transferred to Taronga Western Plains Zoo 08/04/1976, along with his mother and Susie (born 1970 to Lindy).

Deductions:

Hilda and Henrietta were noted as being in transit to Australia from Kenya in February 1951. We can therefore conclude that these females were the same animals as Mumsy and Lindy, who arrived in March 1951.

Mumsy would have been the mother of Bonnie (born 1957), as Victoria (born 1967) was noted to have been Lindy’s first surviving calf. We know Mumsy was also the mother of Albert (1965).

We can therefore remove two founders from the list (Hilda and Henrietta) and add one (Lindy), who was previously thought to be Taronga born.

Updated Founder List:

1.0 Dizzie (1898)
1.0 William (1908)
0.1 Rosamund (1909)
1.0 Chaka (1920)
0.1 Fatima (1928)
0.1 Lindy (1948)
0.1 Mumsy (1950)
1.0 Billy (1950)
1.0 Kabete (1953)

 

[Jambo]

New Taronga Zoo Information

Hilda and Henrietta were Mumsy and Lindy!

Facts:

Mumsy and Lindy were wild born and arrived at Taronga Zoo 02/03/1951. Mumsy was transferred to Taronga Western Plains Zoo 08/04/1976 and Lindy was transferred there 27/10/1992.

Billy and Mumsy were the parents of Toby. Toby was born at Taronga Zoo 26/02/1970 and was transferred to Taronga Western Plains Zoo 08/04/1976, along with his mother and Susie (born 1970 to Lindy).

Deductions:

Hilda and Henrietta were noted as being in transit to Australia from Kenya in February 1951. We can therefore conclude that these females were the same animals as Mumsy and Lindy, who arrived in March 1951.

Mumsy would have been the mother of Bonnie (born 1957), as Victoria (born 1967) was noted to have been Lindy’s first surviving calf. We know Mumsy was also the mother of Albert (1965).

We can therefore remove two founders from the list (Hilda and Henrietta) and add one (Lindy), who was previously thought to be Taronga born.

Great discovery!

Just as i'd assumed.

It's good to finally know Lindy and Mumsy were Hilda and Henrietta. I was always fairly sure, as the young female (who was imported in 1954) was never sold to Taronga, and considering Lindy wasn't Taronga born in 1954, the only explanation was both girls being Hilda and Henrietta.

We also know Mumsy died prior to 1985 at Dubbo. Toby was always (at least imo) the offspring of Mumsy, considering he was bred with Susie (daughter of Billy and Lindy). If they were full sisters, it would've made more sense to breed Susie with her father (50% of her DNA match) rather than her full brother.

This we means we now know the following:

Mumsy:

Bonnie (1957)
Albert (1965)
Toby (1970)

Lindy:

Victoria (1967)
Suzie (1970)

There was also a calf born in 1968; but i'm assuming this was in fact (Victoria) who was born December 1967. It's interesting to see these founder girls had many names as Lindy in this article was referred to as Heather! Although we can assume this may have misinterpreted instead of 'Henrietta'.