Darling Downs Zoo Darling Downs Zoo News 2023

Tragic news, especially as it concerns a rare species in the region.

Hopefully a transfer can be worked out for Banduka asap so Chaturi's parents can be paired up again.:)
 
PaddyRickMFZ said:
I didn’t know much about the leopards at DDZ, but that’s terrible that she passed away so early.
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The Sri Lankan leopards are a relatively new addition to the region. The National Zoo imported a pair in 2019 and Darling Downs Zoo imported a pair in 2021. Both subsequently produced twins - in 2020 and 2022 respectively. These eight cats are therefore the only Sri Lankan leopards to be held in the region and of the four cubs bred in Australia, Chaturi was the only female.
 
Zoofan15 said:
The Sri Lankan leopards are a relatively new addition to the region. The National Zoo imported a pair in 2019 and Darling Downs Zoo imported a pair in 2021. Both subsequently produced twins - in 2020 and 2022 respectively. These eight cats are therefore the only Sri Lankan leopards to be held in the region and of the four cubs bred in Australia, Chaturi was the only female.
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The fact she was a female then only consolidates how bad of a loss that is. Great that the region is starting to commit to these species though, and other Australasian zoos will chime in with luck. Also, it’s great that so many cubs have already been produced!
 
PaddyRickMFZ said:
The fact she was a female then only consolidates how bad of a loss that is. Great that the region is starting to commit to these species though, and other Australasian zoos will chime in with luck. Also, it’s great that so many cubs have already been produced!
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It does as she represented an opportunity to form a first generation pairing with one of the male cubs bred at the National Zoo. From Darling Downs Zoo’s statement, I’m hopeful a new holder will emerge in the near future to receive Banduka.
 
Darling Downs Zoo have welcomed a string of new arrivals. Twin Cottontop Tamarins have been born with one of the twins having to be handreared. The male tamarin has been named Taco and doing well. A Quokka joey is also currently being handreared and there are plans to place the Quokkas on display soon. The zoo's second white Red Kangaroo joey is also starting to emerge from its pouch - reported by 7NEWS Toowoomba.
 
Ring-tailed lemur update:

The infant born November 2022 has been sexed as a male and has been named Reeve.

His parents are King Julian and Zola and he’s notable as being the first birth of his species at Darling Downs Zoo.

Congratulations to Darling Down’s Zoo. I look forward to hearing of many more successful births over the years to come.
 
Babirusa said:
the zoo is for sale

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=1854276401634850
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This is unexpected news!

@Steve Robinson and his family should nonetheless be proud of all they’ve achieved with the zoo. It’s experienced the most exponential growth during the past two decades of any small zoo in the region and remains an example for others in the industry to aspire too.

Whoever takes this on will have the chance to further build on the progress the zoo has made and I’m sure we will all envy them that opportunity.

I wish everyone involved the best of luck for the future.
 
I had my annual pilgrimage to Darling Downs Zoo today, and as always, was very impressed with all the developments throughout the past year. With permission to put it on here, I can confirm the zoo is for sale as a result of Steve’s ailing health. There of course would be an extensive and gradual process if an appropriate buyer is found that aligns with the zoo’s values and the Robinsons would be involved in every step of the handover. From what I saw today, the zoo continues to grow with thought and purpose with several fruitful developments including the new zebra/ostrich paddock being a sizeable development. The Javan Binturongs imported from the UK were fantastic as well and tick the small carnivore box for the Asian area. Some of my notes are below (do note that some of the developments occurred months ago but were still new to me):
  • the new phase of the Australian/Asian exhibits opened today. There is now public access to the dingo enclosure and a set of very large new paddocks for Red Deer/Blackbuck and Red Kangaroo/Emu that expands the zoo’s footprint outwards. The pathway runs through the old kangaroo enclosure currently and provides all the animals here with significantly larger areas.
  • a male Komodo Dragon that was bred at the Australian Reptile Park has arrived at the zoo joining older male Balu. A new glass-fronted facility [New Komodo Dragon/Aldabra Giant Tortoise Building - ZooChat] for Komodo Dragons and Aldabra Giant Tortoises is currently nearing completion up the hill near the wolves.
  • a large mob of Tammar Wallabies is now mixed with Common Wombats and Rufous Bettongs allowing for an engaging filler while the wombats snooze in their dens. The Short-beaked Echidnas and Quokkas are now on-display with the Koalas which have three joeys currently. Next-door, there are more new macropods; Agile Wallabies are now on-display with a Swamp Wallaby, a Red-necked Wallaby and the white Red Kangaroos.
  • the new holding aviaries near the entrance currently contain; (aviary 1) Alexandrine Parakeet, Blue-and-Gold Macaw and Bush Stone-Curlew, (aviary 2) Nankeen Kestrel and Malleefowl and (aviary 3) Barking Owl.
  • Chestnut Rail, Indian Ringneck Parakeet and Red-whiskered Bulbul are all new avian additions since my last visit. Australian Pied Oystercatcher is another new arrival. I also noticed that there was a pair of northern race Masked Lapwings in the aviary near the capybaras.
  • lots of pheasants today just the way I like it; Silver Pheasants are a new addition to the display spaces for two aviaries – a pair with the black cockatoos and one near the owls. The Nepal Kalij Pheasants showed nicely in the waterbird aviary.
  • four Cape Barren Geese have hatched recently and there are chicks among the Wonga and Topknot Pigeons.
  • the family of Pygmy Marmosets and a single male Golden Lion Tamarin are now on-display in the former Red-handed Tamarin exhibit mixed with the Cottontop Tamarins with their current infant in a single exhibit. Therefore, all six callitrichids currently in Australia are on show at the zoo with two family groups of Red-handed Tamarins nearby, the Emperor Tamarins and the Common Marmosets later down the path.

Main highlights (for more photos see here: Darling Downs Zoo - ZooChat) :
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WhistlingKite24 said:
  • a male Komodo Dragon that was bred at the Australian Reptile Park has arrived at the zoo joining older male Balu.
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Very interesting to see they've acquired a male from the ARP group, considering the stated plans were for a female to breed with Balu. Unless the trio hatched at ARP were all males, I see no reason for this decision.
Perhaps the plan is the import a female (or multiple dragons for multiple facilities, like the last imports) and have two separate males to attempt to pair her with for a higher chance at breeding success.
Probably just wishful thinking on my part lol. Komodo's have long been a favourite of mine, and I'd love to see more of them in zoos in the region.
 
Zoofan15 said:
De Brazza’s monkeys coming to DDZ:

Tasmania Zoo

Jefferson and Millie have been imported from Texas and are coming to DDZ via a brief stay at Tasmania Zoo.
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Awesome news! Wonderful job Steve.:D

I've long been disappointed with the regions approach to phasing out many primate species over the last decade and one that disappointed me most was losing the De Brazzas so it's really phenomenal to have them return.

Hopefully a regional breeding program for them can be reinvigorated. It would be staggering if they returned to our city zoos.
 
Any ideas on the purchase price is for the zoo?
 
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