Melbourne Zoo Melbourne Zoo News 2024

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WhistlingKite24 said:
Kiani, Melbourne Zoo's older hybrid orangutan was euthanised today, having spent her entire 45 years at the zoo. The zoo still have her hybrid daughter Gabby and Sumatran male Malu - reported on their social media.
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Very sad news. I feel honoured to have had the time to see Kiani a few weeks ago. She was up at the glass with Malu, staring into each other’s eyes. They looked very close and it was clear she benefited from his companionship in her final years. Farewell to an iconic resident of Melbourne Zoo - notable for being a twin birth in 1978.
 
Zoofan15 said:
Very sad news. I feel honoured to have had the time to see Kiani a few weeks ago. She was up at the glass with Malu, staring into each other’s eyes. They looked very close and it was clear she benefited from his companionship in her final years. Farewell to an iconic resident of Melbourne Zoo - notable for being a twin birth in 1978.
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I'm also glad to have had time with her. In the week before I moved in late July I did the Orangutan Encounter and got to see her up close BoH doing training/check-up.
Vale Kiani.
 
WhistlingKite24 said:
Kiani, Melbourne Zoo's older hybrid orangutan was euthanised today, having spent her entire 45 years at the zoo. The zoo still have her hybrid daughter Gabby and Sumatran male Malu - reported on their social media.
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Sad news: I remember when I was a little kid, Kiani was called Suma. She was a twin - her brother was called Bono. "Bono and Suma" were a well known pair of celebrities at the zoo. I still have a book about them from when I was a little boy. It was written from their perspective - eg. "I'm Bono and this is Suma" etc. Bono was transferred to a zoo in India a number of years ago and died a few years back from what I understand. As youngsters Bono and Suma were very popular.
 
Grant Rhino said:
Sad news: I remember when I was a little kid, Kiani was called Suma. She was a twin - her brother was called Bono. "Bono and Suma" were a well known pair of celebrities at the zoo. I still have a book about them from when I was a little boy. It was written from their perspective - eg. "I'm Bono and this is Suma" etc. Bono was transferred to a zoo in India a number of years ago and died a few years back from what I understand. As youngsters Bono and Suma were very popular.
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Thanks for sharing. Bono was also known as Kembar. He was sent to Hyderabad Zoo on 01/04/1993 and died there 04/07/2007 at the age of 29 years. It wasn’t an especially long life, but he fared better than many of the other orangutans in the region sent to Indian zoos.

In March 1986, Perth Zoo sent Hyderabad Zoo 1.2 hybrids (including Bono’s father, Bobby). The two females (aged 11 and 15 years) both died within two years and Bobby died in 1995. Taronga Zoo sent an 18 year old female to Hyderabad Zoo in 1990, who died two years later.
 
Zoofan15 said:
Thanks for sharing. Bono was also known as Kembar. He was sent to Hyderabad Zoo on 01/04/1993 and died there 04/07/2007 at the age of 29 years. It wasn’t an especially long life, but he fared better than many of the other orangutans in the region sent to Indian zoos.

In March 1986, Perth Zoo sent Hyderabad Zoo 1.2 hybrids (including Bono’s father, Bobby). The two females (aged 11 and 15 years) both died within two years and Bobby died in 1995. Taronga Zoo sent an 18 year old female to Hyderabad Zoo in 1990, who died two years later.
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I don't know why they changed Bono and Sumas' names to Kembar and Kiani - and I don't know what those names mean. However I do know the origin of their original names: Bono = Borneo and Suma = Sumatra (the islands orangutans are from).
 
Grant Rhino said:
I don't know why they changed Bono and Sumas' names to Kembar and Kiani - and I don't know what those names mean. However I do know the origin of their original names: Bono = Borneo and Suma = Sumatra (the islands orangutans are from).
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Kembar means ‘twin’ or ‘equal’ and Kiani means ‘queen’.

Melbourne have long had a tradition for house names versus media names; but above all else, they likely wanted to downplay the reference to them being hybrids. The zoo’s announcement of her death didn’t mention her hybrid status; and referenced Sumatran orangutans (which only applies to Malu):

Melbourne Zoo is also home to Kiani's 33-year-old daughter, Gabby, as well as adult male, Malu. Sumatran Orangutans are currently listed as Critically Endangered in the wild.
 
OrangutanMan said:
New Species Of Animal
Echidnas Have Arrived to Melbourne Zoo I saw a huge sign in the Tasmanian devil exhibit in Ausie bush they were in there hiding.
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That’s good news. Short-beaked echidna have previously been housed at Melbourne Zoo, sharing an exhibit with Koala.

Perhaps Tasmanian devil will be the species housed at the entrance to the Australian precinct; unless they figure one TD exhibit in the Carnivores precinct is sufficient (which it is tbh).
 
OrangutanMan said:
New Species Of Animal
Echidnas Have Arrived to Melbourne Zoo I saw a huge sign in the Tasmanian devil exhibit in Ausie bush they were in there hiding.
Click to expand...
Zoofan15 said:
That’s good news. Short-beaked echidna have previously been housed at Melbourne Zoo, sharing an exhibit with Koala.

Perhaps Tasmanian devil will be the species housed at the entrance to the Australian precinct; unless they figure one TD exhibit in the Carnivores precinct is sufficient (which it is tbh).
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Really great to see the Echidna return! I don't believe Melbourne have housed them for at least the past decade or so. They were last in with the Tree Kangaroos in the Treetop trail, making them quite difficult to view so it'll be good to hopefully see one from an easier vantage point.

Perhaps the male (Graham) has passed, although he did only arrive back in 2022.

The two exhibits within the Carnivores trail are more than enough, and they're currently being used to house the trio of siblings that recently moved in last year.
 
The Sleepy Hippo said:
Disappointing location. That enclosure is the only one I've reliably seen Tasmanian Devils in.
I still think they should be in a mixed enclosure with Koala
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That enclosure did previously have Koala, but it was obviously deemed a slice too small for them. It would be great to see a mixed species exhibit for them (with the Koala) in the former Koala exhibit.
 
Jambo said:
That enclosure did previously have Koala, but it was obviously deemed a slice too small for them. It would be great to see a mixed species exhibit for them (with the Koala) in the former Koala exhibit.
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The Sleepy Hippo said:
Completely agree. Koala and Echidna at the entrance to GFA. Tassie Devil in Aussie Bush, and Carnivores can have something new.
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Koala return to entrance exhibit:

Melbourne Zoo’s map has been updated. Koala are now shown in the entrance exhibit outside the Great Flight Aviary.

https://www.zoo.org.au/melbourne/mz_map/
 
NathanTheAsian said:
I'll be heading to Melbourne Zoo sometime next week. Just like with Werribee, if you all have any questions for keepers just @ me and I can try and get them answered when I visit.
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Thanks @NathanTheAsian

I’d like to know:

1. If there’s been any progress in breeding their Black and white colobus.

2. Whether they’ll consider bringing in a female Sumatran orangutan following the passing of Kiani, or wait until an expansion of the facilities.

3. Intended use for the Malayan tapir exhibit.

4. Whether there’s any possibility Iris the giraffe is pregnant? She had a roundness to her on my visits in November and December, but nothing on the level of the heavily pregnant Nakuru. I wouldn’t be surprised if she was around eight months pregnant.
 
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