Śląski Ogród Zoologiczny Katowice Zoo News

Looks like the Chorzow ZOO will try to build a new lion house. Something that was not planned before and they will try to do it pretty soon. All because Chorzow has angolan lion herd (1.2) that can "do the job" but right now there is no enough room for a new family. If all goes well its possible that they will start building it in H1 of 2023.

Additionally the ZOO has few ready projects (see below) that wait for founding, but for now there is no timeline on them.

HippioCrocodile house:
Pawilon dla hipopotamów i krokodyli
Polar bear exhibit:
Pawilon dla niedźwiedzi polarnych

ps. I mentioned that in April, so just a small update: the new wolverines and lynxes house/exhibit is under construction. It should be ready in February 2023.

ps2. The new South America tropical forest house is shaping up. Depending on how fast they will finish it new animals should start to arrive H1 2023 (howlers, anteaters, giant otters, capybaras, toucans, tamanduas, sloths + some terrariums). Probably will be open to public H2 2023. Lets hope it will be sooner.

ps3. The Chorzow ZOO is part of one of the biggest city parks in Europe. Through the park you can travel with cable railway. In 2023 they will build a second line that will go above the ZOO. Will be something like this: Kolej Linowa „Elka" Stacja Stadion Śląski
 
I visited this zoo some years ago. The general impression was very positive. It seems like a little-known jewel to me, and it's really worth the visit.
 
Hi!

Quick summery of what has been going on in Slaskie Zoo (Chorzow) the last couple of months (January-April).

Who was born:
- Arui (Ammotragus lervia) x1
- Ring-tailed lemur (Lemur catta) x3
- Bactrian camel (Camelus ferus f. bactrianus) x2
- Common eland (Tragelaphus oryx) x1
- Gemsbok (Southern oryx) x1
- few Common green iguana + Cuban iguana (numbers unknown yet)
- Kafue lechwe (Kobus leche kafuensis) x1
- Nyala (Tragelaphus angasii) x2
- Pygmy marmoset (Cebuella pygmaea) x1
- Patas monkey (Erythrocebus patas) x1

New arrivals:
- 7x Gemsbok (Southern oryx) from Zoo Magdeburg (January)
- 2x Dwarf crocodile somewhere form Czech Republic (not sure from where)

New investments:
- they are finishing the new wolverine/lynx enclosure (1500 m2 + 1000 m2). should be open in June/July
- they are still working on the new South America tropical forest house (mentioned that above)
- they should start building the new lion house with enclosure in June (they want to finish it till the end of 2023)
 
Two dwarf crocodiles came from Olomouc Zoo and one from Doue la Fontaine Zoo.
Wolverine and lynx exhibit still without animals but practically ready and inside looks really good (which wasn't always the zoo's strong point, e.g snowleopard enclosure).
Work has begun on the lion enclosure (former antelope/ostrich paddock) but I don't believe it will be ready this year.
 
The new South America rainforest house will be opened to public on the 7th of October.
Still no word about the giant otters, anteaters, howlers or capybaras that should be part of the house.
 
Marcin said:
The new South America rainforest house will be opened to public on the 7th of October.
Still no word about the giant otters, anteaters, howlers or capybaras that should be part of the house.
Click to expand...

The tropical forest pavilion opened in October. So far I had seen visitor´s pics of hairy armadillo, black howler monkey, some tarantula, dart poison frogs, common boa, green basilisk, sloth and green arassari. But more reptile species are kept.

Has anybody visited since and can give us full species list? And why have giant otters not moved in yet?
 
Not counting the terrarium part right now Chorzow has:
- Big hairy armadillo (not sure how many)
- Southern three-banded armadillo (not sure how many)
- Black howler monkey 1.2
- Cotton-top tamarin 3.0 (they had 4.0 but one of them didin't get along with the rest)
- Green aracari 1.1

They are preparing the ropes above the terrarium for the sloth (or sloths) but they are not in Chorzow yet (video below). Also the giant otters, anteaters and capybara did not arrive yet.

IMG_4075

ps. At least one flamingo hatched and could be more in the next few days/weeks. I think its the first time in Chorzow.
 
Marcin said:
ps. At least one flamingo hatched and could be more in the next few days/weeks. I think its the first time in Chorzow.
Click to expand...

Do you mean their Greater flamingos built nests and laid eggs in their winter house now in December?

I like what Chorzow did for its flamingos in recent years. It built a nice winter house for them, with plenty of daylight (important!). They got rid of other species they lived in mixed group but in small numbers (lessers and Caribbeans) and instead enlarged their Greater flamingo flock to good size. And I was intrigued they had a section with mud/sand that took good part (maybe 1/3) of the area inside the house. Good for their feet. If this set-up even allows them now to breed whenever they are in mood for it even in winter - double bingo.
 
Marcin said:
Yes! :)

Here is a video pasted today on our local facebook group with the small fellow :)
Coś takiego "ustrzeliłem" podczas dzisiejszej wycieczki do chorzowsiego zoo. Ogród jeszcze się nie pochwalił tym przychówkim, a z tego co kojarzę to... | By Cyprian | Facebook
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This is bombastic news. You can´t see me but I´m just now jumping up and down, grinning like crazy man.

This is indeed the first flamingo chick that I know slaskie zoo ever bred.

It is probably the first ever zoo greater flamingo flock that bred in house during wintertime, at least in Europe (there might be some other precedens worldwide, but I follow captive flamingo news for +20 years and this is second example I saw). Lesser flamingos do breed in houses during winters, but for greaters this is new idea - zoos usually dont offer any soil area to the birds to build nests.
 
I will try to visit tomorrow to get more videos. Lets hope there will be more youngsters and they will stay healthy. Appreciate the good words!
 
I visited this pavilion a few days after opening and again five days ago. The giant otter enclosure looks the worst in the entire pavilion because it is not ready yet. I think the otters will arrive in a few months, maybe in the spring or later. There are two enclosures for monkeys. In one (for Bearded Emperor Tamarins) is small pool. According to the plans capybaras should be here but there is definitely too little water. Fortunately, these plans were abandoned. I don't know what they'll put there, maybe some reptiles. In second are Black Howler Monkey (1,0 from Zoo Wrocław and 0,2 from Apenheul) and Large Hairy Armadillo (only one I think). Sloth not coming yet. Plans have also changed and there will be no tamanduas. Free-flight birds are: Green Aracari (Pteroglossus viridis), White-faced and Fulvous Whistling Ducks (Dendrocygna viduata and D. bicolor) and Ringed Teal (Anas leucophrys) all birds in one pair each. Also Yellow-spotted Turtle (Podocnemis unifilis) in opened pond. There are eight bigger (but no big!) terrariums for reptiles and ten smaller for amphibians (seven) and spiders (three). Inhabitants are: Brown Basilisk (Basiliscus vittatus) and Red-footed Tortoise (Chelonoides carbonarius), Common Northern Boa (Boa imperator),Green Anaconda (Eunectes murinus), Giant Ameiva (Ameiva ameiva), Argentine Black and White Tegu (Salvator merianae), Common Green Iguana (Iguana iguana), Green Basilisk (B. plumifrons) and Yellow-footed Tortoise (Ch. Denticulatus), Garden Tree Boa (Corallus hortulanus) and Colombian Rainbow Boa (Epicrates maurus). Some reptiles are still young and when they grow up, terrariums will be too small for them. Maybe they'll join monkeys. Amphibians are Ornate Horned Frog (Ceratophrys ornata) and Poison Dart Frogs: Golfodulcean (Phyllobates vittatus), Anthonys (Epipedobates anthonyi), Yellow-banded (Dendrobates leucomelas), Dyeing (D. tinctorius), Blue (D. t. azureus), Green and Black (D. auratus). Spiders are Chromatopelma cyaneopubescens, Tliltocatlocatl albopilosus, Lasiodora parahybana. Of course, there are other species behind the scenes.
 
Thank you Arek for the detailed list of species kept at the tropical forest house. A pitty there will be no tamanduas. Also the list of reptiles is a little underwhelming, just the Ameiva would temp me.

Do you think the zoo will add capybara or other species later? There seems to be a lot of empty space just outside the house where new grassy enclosures could easily been built.

Do you know what the zoo will do with the old lion house once the animals move into the new lion house? (or they already moved?)
 
I talked to the keeper. He said there would be no tamanduas, but something even more interesting. What will it be? Top secret, it should appear no later than March. I don't know what plans the zoo has for the area around Tropical House. Because there is no more room for tropical species, typical South America exhibit may be created there e.g. vicunas, rheas, maras. Or mayby aviary? But these are just my guesses.
Lions are still in old house. Opening of the new enclosure will probably be on April 1st, the second day of Easter. I don't know who will move in to replace the lions.
 
Its not super official yet but it looks like the zoo will be getting two middle sized whole year buildings with outdoor exhibits.

The first one is the pygmy hippo / crocodile house.
The second one is a komodo dragon house.
Additionally there will be a new bat-eared fox house.

Work on all three should start in the middle of the year.
 
Marcin said:
Its not super official yet but it looks like the zoo will be getting two middle sized whole year buildings with outdoor exhibits.

The first one is the pygmy hippo / crocodile house.
The second one is a komodo dragon house.
Additionally there will be a new bat-eared fox house.

Work on all three should start in the middle of the year.
Click to expand...

Thank you for the information @Marcin !

I have been there last year and this zoo is building on a really high tempo :)
 
2 year old sloth Diego moved to Slaskie Zoo from Dierenpark Amersfoort (Holland). The giant anteater should join him in a couple of days.
 
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