Famous zoo animals

PossumRoach said:
As far as I am aware there is Shabani the handsome gorilla from Nagoya Higashiyama Zoo who made it to international headlines.
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Thanks ! Japan is a country where the individual personality of an animal is highly appreciated and respected.
In Nagoya's Higashiyama Zoo alone we could mention 0,2 Asian elephants Makani and Erudo (1937 - 1963) who survived WWII, where famous and beloved throught the whole country , special trains brought children from each corner of Japan to visit Makani and Erudo. A special exposition commemorates them, stating that "their remains rest in the Zoo".

Long before handsome Shabani Nagoya was already a true "gorilla zoo". Also Emily Hahn describes (in "Animal Gardens", 1967) the absolutly amazing Nagoya keeper living together with 3 adult gorillas. Zoo people outside Japan didn´t even belief her. The 3 gorillas where famous in Japan!
 
As Bronx Zoo animals go, the one that came to me first was Pattycake, the gorilla that used to live at Central Park Zoo. First gorilla born in NYC.
 
tigris115 said:
As Bronx Zoo animals go, the one that came to me first was Pattycake, the gorilla that used to live at Central Park Zoo. First gorilla born in NYC.
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Another (once) famous Bronx Zoo inhabitant was the long-lived hippopotamus, "Peter the Great" who was born in Central Park Menagerie on 13th July 1903, then transferred to Bronx Zoo three years later, where he died on 1st February 1953.
 
Tim May said:
Another (once) famous Bronx Zoo inhabitant was the long-lived hippopotamus, "Peter the Great" who was born in Central Park Menagerie on 13th July 1903, then transferred to Bronx Zoo three years later, where he died on 1st February 1953.
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I also remember the elephants Gunda; the Bronx's first major elephant controversy and Kartoum, the African elephant who eclipsed Jumbo but was dead before he could get a good measurement in
 
Haunthow said:
I’m curious if Charles the gorilla from Toronto zoo is well known, been at the zoo since opening day and he feels well known to me but that may just be my hometown bias.
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He is pretty well know, also Puppe is also very famous, the oldest orangutan in North America, Toronto zoo has a lot of famous animals.
 
Zoo adventures said:
He is pretty well know, also Puppe is also very famous, the oldest orangutan in North America, Toronto zoo has a lot of famous animals.
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Any other notable animals from the zoo or Canada in general that you know of? I’m trying to think of some but none are coming to mind.
 
Haunthow said:
Any other notable animals from the zoo or Canada in general that you know of? I’m trying to think of some but none are coming to mind.
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Winnie the Pooh, Winnipeg, was born in Canada(wild), then she went to the London Zoo.
Louis, the upright walking gorilla, was born in Philadephia zoo, and then went to Zoo Granby
Toronto zoo:Mila the tiger, everyone loved her, but passed away in Cheyenne mountain zoo.
 
JVM said:
To clarify, not all of the following animals meet the same standard of 'famous'.

Bushman the gorilla was not only pretty famous in life at Lincoln Park Zoo, one of the only gorillas on display in the country at the time, but his remains on display at the Field Museum remain an attraction there (specific designation on the map, mentioned in news stories) separate from the other taxidermy exhibits. I don't think any of the zoo's current residents meet his level of fame.

Brookfield has had quite a few famous animals, with Binti Jua probably taking the cake for saving a child who fell into the gorilla enclosure in 1996. (She is the only animal here I have seen in person.) Samson the gorilla was also a local favorite and is still promoted by the zoo, although I am unsure how famous he actually is. Olga the walrus was famous enough I've seen her mentioned in a non-zoo book at least and she was one of the zoo's icons. Some historical stuff also drew a lot of attention to Ziggy the elephant but there's not a lot of memory of him today that I know of.

When me and dad visited Milwaukee for the first time, Samson the gorilla was still well-remembered by him and still promoted as well with magnets in the gift shop at least.
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Binti Jua is also notable for being the niece of the late Koko, the gorilla who was taught sign language. Sunshine, Koko's brother, was Binti Jua's father and Binti Jua's name literally means "daughter of Sunshine" in Swahili.
 
Famous orangutans I've heard of include the notorious escape artist Ken Allen of San Diego Zoo (February 13, 1971 – December 1, 2000) and Singapore Zoo's iconic Ah Meng (circa 18 June 1960 – 8 February 2008).

Another famous ape of a different kind is Twycross Zoo's Jambo the hairless chimp, notable because of his rarity (completely bald due to alopecia) and his battles with younger males who have their sights set on his position as alpha.
 
It can be a bit difficult to differentiate between truly famous and just notable zoo animals, but off the top of my head...
  • Incas (prior to 1885 – February 21, 1918) the Carolina parakeet, famous for being an endling.
  • Oliver (c. 1957 – June 2, 2012) the chimpanzee. Also known as the "Humanzee", Oliver was purported to be a missing link or hybrid, based on his unusual appearance and behaviour. In reality, he was genetically an ordinary Pan troglodytes, who'd been exploited and mistreated most of his life.
  • Northern white rhinos Sudan (c. 1973 – March 19, 2018), Najin (c. 1989) and Fatu (June 20, 2000), all famous for being the last living representatives of their subspecies. Honourable mention goes to Nola (August 21, 1974 – November 22, 2015), the last northern white rhino exhibited outside of Africa.
  • Keiko (September 24, 1976 – December 13, 2003) the orca, known for starring in the film Free Willy (1993) and for the subsequent attempt to return him to the wild from captivity.
  • Tilikum (c. December 1981 – January 6, 2017) the orca. Perhaps the most famous animal on my list, lauded within both pro-caps and anti-caps communities, and perhaps most well-known for killing trainer SeaWorld Dawn Brancheau in 2010.
  • Emi (c. 1988 – September 6, 2009) the Sumatran rhino, matriarch of the current captive population of her species.
As for famous/notable individuals I've seen in person, I'd say Aurora, the last of the Vancouver Aquarium's belugas, who died just nine days after her 21yo calf, Qila, passed away, counts as one. Both whales' deaths were ruled the result of an unknown toxin, and I remember there being a lot of media attention on the situation. As well, Boomer the lion, the only of the Greater Vancouver Zoo's animals to have spent a night in jail. His backstory and the subsequent legal ordeal was covered in the news, and he's now arguably the zoo's most popular animal (if you don't count the red pandas ;)).
 
kermodei said:
It can be a bit difficult to differentiate between truly famous and just notable zoo animals, but off the top of my head...
  • Incas (prior to 1885 – February 21, 1918) the Carolina parakeet, famous for being an endling.
  • Oliver (c. 1957 – June 2, 2012) the chimpanzee. Also known as the "Humanzee", Oliver was purported to be a missing link or hybrid, based on his unusual appearance and behaviour. In reality, he was genetically an ordinary Pan troglodytes, who'd been exploited and mistreated most of his life.
  • Northern white rhinos Sudan (c. 1973 – March 19, 2018), Najin (c. 1989) and Fatu (June 20, 2000), all famous for being the last living representatives of their subspecies. Honourable mention goes to Nola (August 21, 1974 – November 22, 2015), the last northern white rhino exhibited outside of Africa.
  • Keiko (September 24, 1976 – December 13, 2003) the orca, known for starring in the film Free Willy (1993) and for the subsequent attempt to return him to the wild from captivity.
  • Tilikum (c. December 1981 – January 6, 2017) the orca. Perhaps the most famous animal on my list, lauded within both pro-caps and anti-caps communities, and perhaps most well-known for killing trainer SeaWorld Dawn Brancheau in 2010.
  • Emi (c. 1988 – September 6, 2009) the Sumatran rhino, matriarch of the current captive population of her species.
As for famous/notable individuals I've seen in person, I'd say Aurora, the last of the Vancouver Aquarium's belugas, who died just nine days after her 21yo calf, Qila, passed away, counts as one. Both whales' deaths were ruled the result of an unknown toxin, and I remember there being a lot of media attention on the situation. As well, Boomer the lion, the only of the Greater Vancouver Zoo's animals to have spent a night in jail. His backstory and the subsequent legal ordeal was covered in the news, and he's now arguably the zoo's most popular animal (if you don't count the red pandas ;)).
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I would argue Martha was the more famous endling at Cincinnati kept in the exact same building... ;)
 
birdsandbats said:
I would argue Martha was the more famous endling at Cincinnati kept in the exact same building... ;)
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Oh I won't debate you there haha, I'd say most of his fame has come post-mortem. Though it may interest folks to know that while he was alive, the London Zoo offered $400 (over $10,000 today) for both Incas and his mate, Lady Jane.
 
kermodei said:
Oh I won't debate you there haha, I'd say most of his fame has come post-mortem. Though it may interest folks to know that while he was alive, the London Zoo offered $400 (over $10,000 today) for both Incas and his mate, Lady Jane.
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Martha was female, so she. ;)
 
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