San Diego Zoo Safari Park San Diego Zoo Safari Park News 2024

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A couple updates from the park:
- the Rhinoceros Hornbill habitat is being worked on in Nairobi Village.
- The Petting Kraal entrance is officially boarded up potentially signaling that work may start on that area. All of the sheep and goats are no longer in the habitat.
- Speakers and the maze are being set up for Autumn Festival next month.
- A seemingly new Rodriquez Flying Fox is in the bat house separated from the other bats.
- A few day old Lesser Flamingo Chick is in the Safari Base Camp Lagoon.
- A new male Bat-Eared Fox has been paired with the female with the hope that pups could arrive in the near future.
 
One of the remaining (unless it was the only one remaining?) secretary birds at the park has been sent to Little Rock Zoo in Arkansas.
Little Rock Zoo on Instagram: "We’re thrilled to welcome Tori and Anikin, two remarkable Secretary Birds, to the Zoo! Secretary Birds are truly unique birds of prey, easily recognizable by their long legs and striking appearance. Native to the open grasslands and savannas of Africa, these raptors are known for their unusual hunting technique, which involves stalking through the grass and delivering powerful kicks to subdue their prey, primarily snakes and insects. Tori, our 19-year-old female, came to us from the San Diego Wildlife Park. She tends to keep to the back of her exhibit, where she feels most at ease. One of her favorite activities is standing under the sprinklers, where she enjoys the cool water cascading over her feathers. Anikin, our 12-year-old male, arrived from the Birmingham Zoo just a couple of months ago. While we’re still learning about his specific preferences, he’s already shown a strong interest in exploring his environment and hunting for insects in his habitat. You can find Tori and Anikin just outside the Cheetah Outpost, across from the anteaters. Visit the Little Rock Zoo to see these extraordinary birds in action and learn more about their natural behaviors!"
 
dholesquad said:
One of the remaining (unless it was the only one remaining?) secretary birds at the park has been sent to Little Rock Zoo in Arkansas.
Little Rock Zoo on Instagram: "We’re thrilled to welcome Tori and Anikin, two remarkable Secretary Birds, to the Zoo! Secretary Birds are truly unique birds of prey, easily recognizable by their long legs and striking appearance. Native to the open grasslands and savannas of Africa, these raptors are known for their unusual hunting technique, which involves stalking through the grass and delivering powerful kicks to subdue their prey, primarily snakes and insects. Tori, our 19-year-old female, came to us from the San Diego Wildlife Park. She tends to keep to the back of her exhibit, where she feels most at ease. One of her favorite activities is standing under the sprinklers, where she enjoys the cool water cascading over her feathers. Anikin, our 12-year-old male, arrived from the Birmingham Zoo just a couple of months ago. While we’re still learning about his specific preferences, he’s already shown a strong interest in exploring his environment and hunting for insects in his habitat. You can find Tori and Anikin just outside the Cheetah Outpost, across from the anteaters. Visit the Little Rock Zoo to see these extraordinary birds in action and learn more about their natural behaviors!"
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The Secretary Birds have been absent for months from both the Zoo and the Safari Park. They will be missed.
 
A couple updates from the park:
- Visayan Warty Pigs are now permanently on habitat in the Nairobi Nursery Kraal. Four males were transferred from the San Diego Zoo this last Tuesday.
- The Petting Kraal is currently housing two Sheep and a Goat in what has been described as a “retirement situation.” Unknown what the future is of the Petting Kraal. I’m currently speculating that the Zoo’s Bontebok will be making their way over in order to make way for a potential major Northern Frontier renovation at the San Diego Zoo after Elephant Valley’s completion.
- The predictive timeline for Jillian's cub’s debut to the public is late October.
- Bokasi, the Okapi calf is now being housed alone.
- Tecuya, the older female California Condor, is back on habitat.
- Construction seems to be focused on completing the new Safari Experience hub as very little, if any, activity was observed in Elephant Valley today.
- The lanterns have been installed in Mombasa Lagoon for the Autumn Festival.
 
dholesquad said:
One of the remaining (unless it was the only one remaining?) secretary birds at the park has been sent to Little Rock Zoo in Arkansas.
Little Rock Zoo on Instagram: "We’re thrilled to welcome Tori and Anikin, two remarkable Secretary Birds, to the Zoo! Secretary Birds are truly unique birds of prey, easily recognizable by their long legs and striking appearance. Native to the open grasslands and savannas of Africa, these raptors are known for their unusual hunting technique, which involves stalking through the grass and delivering powerful kicks to subdue their prey, primarily snakes and insects. Tori, our 19-year-old female, came to us from the San Diego Wildlife Park. She tends to keep to the back of her exhibit, where she feels most at ease. One of her favorite activities is standing under the sprinklers, where she enjoys the cool water cascading over her feathers. Anikin, our 12-year-old male, arrived from the Birmingham Zoo just a couple of months ago. While we’re still learning about his specific preferences, he’s already shown a strong interest in exploring his environment and hunting for insects in his habitat. You can find Tori and Anikin just outside the Cheetah Outpost, across from the anteaters. Visit the Little Rock Zoo to see these extraordinary birds in action and learn more about their natural behaviors!"
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RJB Wildlife said:
The Secretary Birds have been absent for months from both the Zoo and the Safari Park. They will be missed.
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The Park still breeds and maintains multiple pairs of secretarybirds behind-the-scenes. They just took them off-exhbit.
 
Kudu21 said:
The Park still breeds and maintains multiple pairs of secretarybirds behind-the-scenes. They just took them off-exhbit.
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Good to know there’s still more behind the scenes. Anyone know the reason they took them off exhibit in the first place?
 
Quite a few new babies at the Park since my last visit before my trip to Europe!

There is now a very young greater kudu calf on exhibit with the adults and the Soemmerring's gazelles in African Woods, an additional roan antelope calf with the herd in the East Africa field exhibit, and a Somali wild ass foal with the herd in their exhibit above the South Africa field exhibit!

The breeding male peninsular pronghorn has also been reintroduced to the herd in their exhibit along the Africa Tram, as well.

There's also some sort of construction going on in the greater flamingo lagoon along the African Tram, but I do not know exactly what it is.
 
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Nile Hippo Expert said:
Were they the only zebras of any species or does the park still have one or two of the other subspecies?
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The Park will continue to have Grevy’s zebras. There’s a sizable herd of females in an exhibit above the South Africa field exhibit along the Africa Tram (that they share with assorted bachelor Bovids) and two bachelor males in the Central Africa field exhibit.
 
Kudu21 said:
The Park does only have the three animals. They were just taken off-exhibit this week, but it is my understanding that they do intend to ship them out.
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I do not understand why a safari park with huge acreage has to downsize its animal collection and cannot maintain breeding and bachelor herds of 2 highly endangered zebra taxa.....

Having said that, I am glad they keep the Grevy's zebra ... though!
 
Kifaru Bwana said:
I do not understand why a safari park with huge acreage has to downsize its animal collection and cannot maintain breeding and bachelor herds of 2 highly endangered zebra taxa.....

Having said that, I am glad they keep the Grevy's zebra ... though!
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They do also have breeding herds of Somali wild ass and Przewalski’s horses… And countless other ungulates. All of which take up space and resources, both on exhibit and in the behind-the-scenes holding. At least the species they chose to go out of was the least endangered, not that uncommon in zoos, and one they were only a holding facility for, anyways. The Equids have proven to be unmanageable in the big field exhibits, from what I understand. They’re prone to overeating, rapid weight gain, and they become intractable making trying to manage them for any separation, medical issues, all-important hoof trims extremely difficult, and immobilizing Equids in those sorts of environments is extremely dangerous. That’s not to mention that having Equids in the fields makes it practically impossible to breed other animals in the exhibits with how they like to treat the young of other animals… I imagine the Grevy’s males in the Central Africa exhibit will eventually be pulled out too.
 
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