popslck
Member
The keeper must have misspoke as it is definitely a Philippine spotted deer. For some reason I cannot attach images so I have attached a link instead https://photos.app.goo.gl/7U6CKYZ9zmDYAw9d8
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ZSL Whipsnade Zoo ZSL Whipsnade Zoo News 2024
- Thread starter Rosie183
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The keeper must have misspoke as it is definitely a Philippine spotted deer. For some reason I cannot attach images so I have attached a link instead https://photos.app.goo.gl/7U6CKYZ9zmDYAw9d8
Quite happy about the Prince Alfred's deer. Whipsnade is slowly reclaiming the spot for hoofstock!
I wish that in part ZSL's Regent Park site will follow suit with some its iconic buildings (Casson, Mappins ... et cetera)!
I wish that in part ZSL's Regent Park site will follow suit with some its iconic buildings (Casson, Mappins ... et cetera)!
Kalaw
Well-Known Member
The seventh new ungulate taxa to arrive in the 2020s so far (domestics aside), with some of those being real rarities - very impressive, especially as I don't recall any species being lost in that time? I've always felt as though Whipsnade should have one of the finest ungulate collections in the world, but it hasn't for quite some time now, although progress in the right direction is most certainly being made and it is a joy to see. I wonder what's next - personally, I would love to see tapir, caprines or wild camelids for the sake of completeness, but my number one priority would have to be the return of the moose! Such an impressive and unique animal that encapsulated the feel of Whipsnade greatly, and the return of which would do wonders for the shrinking European zone.
I agree; I would love to see moose return to Whipsnade. Personally, would also like to see Whipsnade acquire white-lipped deer.
I have never seen PA/Phillipine deer listed for Whipsnade, either past or present so perhaps its a new addition?
Personally I don't like pig/deer mixes as the pigs plough up the ground, eventually leaving no decent areas of flat terrain for the deer either to walk on or to graze. Just because two species hail from the same region doesn't always warrant a shared exhibit IMO.
I was pleased to hear the Colchester mix was later disbanded though I don't know the exact reason.
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Lafone
Well-Known Member
Was indeed enjoyable to see the new Spotted Deer today, an attractive younger looking male, very lively and curious as mentioned above. No sign yet but it was mentioned they were a recent arrival. The enclosure house has a temporary looking run to allow the two species to have separated access. The warty pigs were in their yard with the deer in the main enclosure. The deer was quite noisy and appeared to be looking for other deer but also spent time interacting through the fence with the pigs. The pigs haven't plowed up the ground in their enclosure so much and it's still got lots of cover and grass having had the whole family out in it for a while and it is on rotation with the other two outside areas (Colchester had no facility to allow the ground to rest) so I expect that won't change.
The Otters are still not in their enclosure
but the main work appears to be construction of a new house in the centre of the island which looks almost complete. Some pipe ends / holders have been fixed to the tree trunks outside, perhaps for some sort of ramps or other access
And it doesn't stick out too much.
The entrance / exit to monkey forest near the exit to A passage through Asia is still closed with work going on on the paths as mentioned on the site.
Was a misty low cloud sort of day but lots of animal activity, particularly the lynx and the tiger who were busy around their enclosures in the cooler temperatures and good views of Ruby and Nilo the red pandas in the main enclosure. Great view of two mature Pere David stags sparring in the lake and then sparring and chasing on the shoreline which was a bit of fortunate timing. There was also a young Mara out and about with it's parents at the top of the zoo, quite a late arrival. The youngster was filthy and wet so it looked like it had been in a muddy burrow or scrape somewhere, but it dried off in the picnic shelter near the Blue cranes.
The Otters are still not in their enclosure
but the main work appears to be construction of a new house in the centre of the island which looks almost complete. Some pipe ends / holders have been fixed to the tree trunks outside, perhaps for some sort of ramps or other access
And it doesn't stick out too much.
The entrance / exit to monkey forest near the exit to A passage through Asia is still closed with work going on on the paths as mentioned on the site.
Was a misty low cloud sort of day but lots of animal activity, particularly the lynx and the tiger who were busy around their enclosures in the cooler temperatures and good views of Ruby and Nilo the red pandas in the main enclosure. Great view of two mature Pere David stags sparring in the lake and then sparring and chasing on the shoreline which was a bit of fortunate timing. There was also a young Mara out and about with it's parents at the top of the zoo, quite a late arrival. The youngster was filthy and wet so it looked like it had been in a muddy burrow or scrape somewhere, but it dried off in the picnic shelter near the Blue cranes.
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Sounds a good day! Looking forward to seeing the deer myself.
I’ve always been amazed at how the warty pig enclosure actually doesn’t get destroyed as much as I thought it would do
Kalaw
Well-Known Member
A big advantage of the Whipsnade enclosure is that it is much larger than Colchester's, so there is more areas for the pigs to dig and forage, thus making it harder for them to destroy all the grass at once. From experience, the pigs also tend to stay at the end nearest to the house, and when they do venture further down they tend to remain in the moat-like dip along the side opposite the yaks. In these areas, the grass has, as you would expect, been worn rather thin. I might be wrong with these presumptions, but I can't see the deer lingering in the moats as much, whereas I can see them exploring the full length of the enclosure, given their preference for flat grassy terrain. In other words, I feel as though the combination of the sheer size of the enclosure and the pig's preference for certain terrain which I suspect the deer will avoid will reduce the risk. That said, only time will tell. Fingers crossed that this mix works, because exhibits like this with a variety of different ungulates from different families are really charming when executed properly, but @Pertinax is quite right to mention that they sometimes have issues.
I’m not sure if it’s just me, but, since the new ZSL hierarchy took over, there seems to be a clear emphasis on promoting conservation projects across SE Asia, whether that be through species acquisitions; exhibits or lectures (the upcoming lecture on the Nepalese Terai).
Certainly Whipsnade has the blank canvas to project this. The Banteng and deer were unexpected surprises though, if I’m being greedy, Malayan tapir would be the icing on the cake!
Certainly Whipsnade has the blank canvas to project this. The Banteng and deer were unexpected surprises though, if I’m being greedy, Malayan tapir would be the icing on the cake!
It must be about ten or eleven years ago when I posted on ZooChat that Colchester's Prince Alfred's deer appeared nervous of the warty pigs that shared their enclosure.
Fortunately that situation doesn't appear to have happened at Whipsnade; let's hope Whipsnade's larger exhibit works out well for the two species.
cerperal
Well-Known Member
Malayan tapir would be the dream, especially as an extension onto the new monkey exhibits. Or more gaur, which isn't so unlikely anymore!
But the ideal thing would be London gaining pangolins, and with Vienna now obtaining a pair I don't think that's too out of the question.
I think even I find the prospect of obtaining a herd of chiru too unlikely to suggest...
Agreed: Malayan tapir, takin, goral, ibex, guanaco and Bactrian camel (as an ambassador for wild camels in Mongolia / P.R. of China).
Lafone
Well-Known Member
Whipsnade already have domestic Bactrians with a calf this year.
“Whipsnade Zoo’s domestic Bactrian camels act as an ambassador species for their critically endangered ‘cousins’ the wild camel (Camelus ferus) in Mongolia and China”
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Rajang-GOAT
Well-Known Member
The mix of these two species at Colchester in the Island Dwellers consisted of 3 male Visayan Warty Pig- quite possibly brothers, alongside a small breeding group of Phillipine spotted deer, and I believe this mix ended at the end of last year with the pigs passing away. From my observations the two groups didn't normally spend much time close to each other but when they did, they didn't seem to take much notice of each other. As @Pertinax pointed out above, the pigs probably had an influence on the terrain with their foraging behaviours and by the end of the mix the enclosure consisted of woodchip substrate with some hardstanding directly in front of the viewing area, though I imagine the grass may be beginning to grow back now as the only inhabitants of the paddock are a breeding pair and their male calf born in January.
I anticipate Whipsnade's mix can be a more successful display in this way (though not that Colchester's was not a nice exhibit) with a good sized breeding group of pigs and rotation options to conserve grass.
Yes, the Whipsnade area (an old rhino paddock) is certainly larger than Colchester's so it should hopefully work a lot better. The last time I saw them at Colchester I felt sorry for the deer, by then living in a bare, churned up paddock created by the pigs' rooting, though I saw no interactions between them. It was the ground I felt was so unsuitable.
Of course Newquay 'combine' the two species also, but in their case they are not actually together. The Phillipine deer exhibit there is really attractive IMO. This seems to be a species slowly spreading among UK zoos with Bristol and now Whipsnade becoming new/recent holders.
Lafone
Well-Known Member
Interesting article on the website about the zoo during WW2 as part of stories around Remembrance Day. Although posted some time ago on the site itself it was relinked in the Zoos Facebook and worth a read if you haven’t seen it before.
The Zoo during the Second World War | Whipsnade Zoo
The Zoo during the Second World War | Whipsnade Zoo
Strathmorezoo
Well-Known Member
If you want to read more on the history of Whipsnade and London Zoo during the war,I would highly recommend Clinton Keeling books on this subject.
Lafone
Well-Known Member
Members email confirming the name of the new baby rhino voted on via the website.
We're pleased to announce that the name with the most votes was Khulu! Khulu is a Zulu word that can be translated to mean both small, and great or significant. It's a perfect fit for our small but significant rhino. With just 17,500 southern white rhinos left in the wild, the little rhino will be taking big steps for his species by joining the European breeding programme. The 5-week-old rhino calf has shown his love for the great outdoors, after exploring his 21-acre paddock for the very first time last week with mum, Fahari.
We're pleased to announce that the name with the most votes was Khulu! Khulu is a Zulu word that can be translated to mean both small, and great or significant. It's a perfect fit for our small but significant rhino. With just 17,500 southern white rhinos left in the wild, the little rhino will be taking big steps for his species by joining the European breeding programme. The 5-week-old rhino calf has shown his love for the great outdoors, after exploring his 21-acre paddock for the very first time last week with mum, Fahari.