What are the most common species represented in the zoos of the world?

Dassie rat said:
About a year ago, I completed a search through all the species listed on ISIS. The top 10 species in each category are as follows:

MAMMALS: 1. House mouse 11,097; 2. Seba's short-tailed bat 9106; 3. Brown rat 5430;
4. Goat 5162; 5. Sheep 3792; 6. Red-necked wallaby 3010; 7. Fallow deer 2935; 8. Ring-tailed lemur 2501; 9. Jamaican fruit bat 2452; 10. Egyptian rousette bat 2434
BIRDS: 1. Budgerigar 7922; 2. Houbara bustard 5389; 3. American flamingo 4822; 4. Chilean flamingo 4807; 5. Greater flamingo 4662; 6. Common peafowl 3896; 7. Red jungle fowl 3570; 8. Mallard 2715; 9. Humboldt’s penguin 2624; 10. Zebra finch 2528
REPTILES AND AMPHIBIANS: 1. Kihansi spray frog 5070; 2. Common slider 4535; 3. Green and black poison frog 2553; 4. Oregon spotted frog 2017; 5. American alligator 1731; 6.
Blue poison dart frog 1607; 7. Houston toad 1443; 8. Yellow-banded poison dart frog 1402; 9. Mission golden-eyed tree frog 1247; 10. Boa constrictor 1244
FISHES: 1. Guppy 4,009,823; 2. Cardinal tetra13,635; 3. Goldfish 7547; 4. Common carp 7477; 5. Nile tilapia 7315; 6. Red piranha 5018; 7. White cloud mountain minnow 2525;
8. Glowlight tetra 2414; 9. Neon tetra 2358; 10. Scaled herring 2128
INVERTEBRATES: 1. Leafcutter ant 10,350,704; 2. Honeybee 409,815; 3. Madagascan hissing cockroach 75,103; 4. Three-colored hermit crab 16,487; 5. Clonal plumose anemone 12,875; 6. Strawberry false coral 12,355; 7. Red-lined cleaner shrimp 11,933;
8. Lightfoot snail 11,094; 9. Black boring sea urchin 10,287; 10. Sunburst diving beetle 10,284

There are quite a few surprises here, but I suspect many are due to a few zoos having large groups of some species, rather than some 'common' species being evenly distributed among collections. I can't tell if the house mice and brown rats include individuals destined to be fed to other animals. Some animals definitely seem to be over-represented, such as various domestic animals and the flamingoes. I have not included the 100,001 Amur tigers that suposedly exist in Seoul as I believe the figure is a typing error; otherwise the tiger would the fourth most abundant species in zoos (after the leafcutter ant, guppy and honeybee.

I compiled the lists using figures from species represented by at least 500 individuals, so I have additional data, if anyone is interested.
Click to expand...

This is really interesting Dassie rat; thank you for posting it. Red-necked wallabies seem to be both numerous and geographically widespread in European zoos...I do not know how common this species in U.S. zoos as I do not know that I've seen that species. I'm wondering if the Kihansi spray toad numbers are from a captive breeding program? Interesting that budgies are the most common bird and I would never have guessed that penguins were that common.
 
Thanks to al the Zoo Chatters interested in the list.

I've taken the bulk of my messages out of my inbox. I thought that moving them into separate folders would free up space, but it didn't.

I used the same classification as ISIS, but I suspect that some 'species' may be subspecies or may have been split into several species. The total list is as follows (deep breath):

Leafcutter ant 10,350,704
Guppy 4,009,823
Honeybee 409,815
Madagascan hissing cockroach 75,103
Three-colored hermit crab 16,487
Cardinal tetra13,635
Clonal plumose anemone 12,875
Strawberry false coral 12,355
Red-lined cleaner shrimp 11,933
House mouse 11,097
Lightfoot snail 11,094
Black boring sea urchin 10,287
Sunburst diving beetle 10,284
Emerald false coral 10,145
Green pincushion urchin, Caribbean giant cockroach 10,079
Brain coral 10,075
Leathery soft coral 10,008
Elegance coral 10,005
Caribbean thorny sea star 10,004
Knobby candelabrum 9,999
Seba's short-tailed bat 9106
Budgerigar 7922
Goldfish 7547
Common carp 7477
Nile tilapia 7315
Elkhorn coral 7059
Giant prickly walkingstick 5543
Brown rat 5430
Houbara bustard 5389
Goat 5162
Kihansi spray frog 5070
Red piranha 5018
American flamingo 4822
Chilean flamingo 4807
Greater flamingo 4662
Common slider 4535
Common peafowl 3896
Sheep 3792
Red jungle fowl 3570
Desert locust 3531
Hide beetle 3500
Giant cockroach 3246
Pink-winged walkingstick 3096
Red-necked wallaby 3010
Fallow deer 2935
Giant stick insect (Eurycantha calcarata) 2881
Giant African millipede 2838
Two-spotted assassin bug 2773
Mallard 2715
Sun beetle 2695
Apple snail 2682
Giant African snail 2640
Humboldt’s penguin 2624
Green and black poison frog 2553
Zebra finch 2528
White cloud mountain minnow 2525
Ring-tailed lemur 2501
Scarlet ibis: 2484
Jamaican fruit bat 2452
Partula nodosa 2454
Mandarin duck 2444
Egyptian rousette bat 2434
Glowlight tetra 2414
Neon tetra 2358
Migratory locust 2283
Slender-tailed meerkat 2227
European house cricket 2182
Blackbuck 2170
Chimpanzee 2151
Scaled herring 2128
Axis deer 2100
Mealworm 2068
Black-tailed prairie dog, rock dove 2058
Giant mealworm 2026
Oregon spotted frog 2017
Sapphire damselfish, helmeted guineafowl, Central American forest cockroach 2002
Cheetah 1980
Mozambique tilapia 1945
Rosy barb 1936
Jackass penguin 1920
Giant thorny walkingstick 1881
Spotted platyfish 1872
Convict cichlid 1770
Common blue mussel 1837
Partula dentifera 1776
Domestic ox 1763
Carolina duck 1758
Jade-headed buffalo beetle 1757
American alligator 1731
Cockatiel 1726
Convict cichlid 1716
Rainbow lorikeet 1699
Lion 1696
Tiger 1666 (100,001 in Seoul?)
Java sparrow 1640
Partula gibba 1633
Rummynose tetra 1628
False herring 1623
Rabbit 1622
Blue poison dart frog 1607
White-faced whistling duck 1576
Australian rainbow fish 1555
Lesser flamingo 1525
Bullshead cockroach 1521
White stork 1513
Grey wolf 1508 (includes 65 dingo, 282 domestic dog, 77 singing dog)
Common zebra 1500
Horse 1482
Domestic guinea pig 1471
Giraffe 1461
Californian anchovy 1446
Houston toad 1443
Lyretail cichlid 1439
Bangai cardinalfish 1433
Hamadryas baboon 1427
Red deer 1424
Black field cricket 1410
Cuban green cockroach 1403
Yellow-banded poison dart frog 1402
Butterfly splitfin 1400
Naked molerat 1390
Cobalt blue zebra cichlid 1362
Red-crested pochard 1359
Bluegill 1352
Coulon cockroach 1350
Blue and yellow macaw 1340
Sacred ibis 1325
Congo chafer (Pachnoda peregrina) 1314
Blind cavefish 1303
Wild boar 1295
Ringed teal 1282
Giant Ghana snail 1281
Sailfin molly, sika 1277
Red-whiskered bulbul 1261
Midas cichlid 1255
Mombassan train millipede 1250
Trinidad bat-cave cockroach 1249
Mission golden-eyed tree frog 1247
Boa constrictor 1244
Zebra dove 1243
Western cattle egret 1238
Australian rainbow lorikeet 1234
Yellow and blue poison frog 1223
Golden shiner 1217
Walkingstick (Peruphasma schultei) 1215
Golden frog 1213
Walkingstick 1212
Mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis) 1208
Waldrapp ibis and common ostrich 1200
Swordtail (Xiphophorus hellerii) 1199
Common squirrel monkey 1187
African spurred tortoise 1186
Emu 1180
Barbary sheep 1175
Scimitar-horned oryx 1167
Queensland red claw 1164
Goitred gazelle 1159
Llama 1151
Atlantic mackerel 1150
Giant stick insect 1140
Black swan 1135
Snakelocks anemone 1127
Pillbug 1111
Cotton-top tamarin 1103
Firehead tetra 1102
Desert popfish 1096
Nicobar pigeon 1090
Corn snake 1082
White-eyed assassin bug 1080
African cinereous cockroach, Pacific rotten wood termite 1071
Canada goose 1069
Hermann’s tortoise 1064
American bison 1062
Greenhouse stone cricket 1053
Congo chafer (Pachnoda savignyi) 1050
White-knee tarantula 1044
Oriental fire-bellied toad 1041
Red-footed tortoise, Madagascar giant cockroach 1040
Walkingstick (Lonchodes brevipes) 1039
Eastern white pelican 1035
Elephant beetle 1032
Longnose killifish 1031
Bluegreen chromis 1021
Atlantic herring, Sheepshead minnow and Seminole topminnow 1018
Grey parrot 1013
Derbyana flower beetle, Red kangaroo 1011
Mat anemone 1007
Giant South American grasshopper 1005
Ladybug (Coccinnella novemnotata), field cricket 1000
Fulvous whistling duck, Sea cucumber (Astichopus multifidus) 999
Apple snail 997
White-spotted rose anemone 996
Cave cricket (Pholeogryllus geertsi) 989
Diamondfish 979
Buenos Aires tetra 969
Greater rhea 955
Northern seahorse 944
Impala 941
Common shelduck 921
Spur-thighed tortoise 919
Bar-headed goose 906
Western grunt 902
Pere David’s deer 898
Common eland 888
African wild ass and donkey 887
Hellbender 886
Crested wood partridge, giant danio 884
Monk parakeet 883
Green iguana 871
Arabian oryx 869
Grey-crowned crane 866
Common emperor scorpion 858
Springbok and Patagonian mara 855
Common barn owl 853
Sambava tomato frog and Mexican blind cave fish 850
Emperor tetra 843
Oriental small-clawed otter and Brown-nosed coati 842
Capybara, leopard tortoise 838
Peach-faced lovebird 835
Long-eared sunfish 832
Bolivian squirrel monkey 831
American cockroach 829
Pintail 827
Black and white ruffed lemur 825
Sun conure, Wyoming toad 824
Eastern box turtle 823
Radiated tortoise 819
Alpaca 817
Ne-ne 815
Barnacle goose 813
Postman butterfly 808
American flagfish 800
Eld’s deer 790
Brown capuchin 789
Asian rock python 788
Blue mbuna cichlid, rose-ringed parakeet 787
Redeye tetra 786
Golden ide 776
Cairo spiny mouse and Japanese macaque 773
Egyptian goose 772
Leopard 771
Speckled mousebird 770
Gentoo penguin 769
Bactrian camel 767
Atlantic herring 763
Turkey 754
Western gorilla 753
Turban snail 752
Fischer’s lovebird 751
Greylag goose and Green-winged macaw 750
Peacock clownfish 741
Boesemann’s rainbowfish 740
Red-breasted goose 733
Central Asian tortoise 731
Lechwe 730
Red-eyed tree frog 728
Orange fairy basslet, Turkish spiny mouse 727
Sumatran tiger barb 723
Golden mantella 715
Black-headed weaver 707
Marbled hatchetfish 706
Caribou 705
Pygmy marmoset, Brazilian high hat, Mexican dwarf hermit crab 703
Mountain gazelle 698
Roseate spoonbill and Black-crowned night heron 697
Scarlet anemone 694
Hooded merganser 692
Puppet margarite 691
Golden pheasant 689
Scarlet macaw 688
Freshwater angelfish 687
Superb starling 686
Addax, Star tortoise, blackfin molly 684
Common waterbuck 681
White’s tree frog 680
Common marmoset 677
Orang-utan 673 (inc 236 Sumatran, 329 Bornean)
Rodrigues flying fox 673
Reeve’s muntjac 671
Fregate Island Enid snail 670
Grass carp 666
African straw-coloured fruit bat 660
Ruddy shelduck 659
Marbled teal 655
Eastern black+white colobus 650
Hunting dog 648
Diamond dove, Golfodulcean poison dart frog 645
Painted turtle, Bali mynah 644
Milk snake 640
Lake Malawi cichlid (Copadichromis jacksoni) 635
Red bishop 634
Rainbow trout 632
Mary’s cichlid 631
Giant day gecko 629
Brook trout, green-winged dove 626
European green toad 624
Swan goose 619
Eurasian eagle owl 618
Angular-winged katydid 625
Common pochard 617
Barb (Barbodes schwanenfeldii) 615
Collared peccary 612
Puerto Rican crested toad 609
Common white-eye duck 606
Bluestreak hap cichlid 603
Black neon tetra 600
Black ruby barb 595
Little egret 597
Red ruffed lemur 596
Bahamian pintail 593
Fregate Island giant beetle 590
Rosybill, pied avocet, Inland bearded dragon 587
Suckermouth catfish 586
Black rat 582
Sugar glider 581
Common periwinkle 580
Brindled gnu, Florida lubber 579
Pearl danio, harlequin rasbora 578
Sambar 574
Tonkin bug-eyed frog 573
Harvest mouse 571
Eclectus parrot 570
Rock hyrax 569
Degu 567
Ruddy duck 565
Taveta golden weaver 563
Congo tetra 560
Mandrill and Military macaw 557
Asian house gecko 554
Tufted duck 552
Raccoon, sitatunga, Cichlid (Paratilapia pollen) 551
Californian sealion 548
Inca tern 544
Stocky cerith 542
Asiatic elephant 540
Staghorn coral 539
Bleeding heart tetra 536
Yellow-spotted Amazon river turtle, cherry barb 535
Bloodfin tetra, red fody 531
Laughing kookaburra 529
Speckled pigeon, axolotl 528
Striped newt, clown barb, pied imperial pigeon and Nubian ibex 527
Dwarf giant clam 525
Partula taeniata 524
African pancake tortoise 522
Common eider 520
Plain copella 519
Blesbok, Black horn snail 515
River hatchetfish 513
Great cormorant 512
Red-billed quelea and White rhino 511
Goldenear, cichlid (Ptychochromis oligacanthus) 509
Black-bellied whistling duck, Hermit crab (Iridopagurus cribbenis) 508
Nile lechwe 507
White-tailed deer 506
Brown bear 505
Costa Rica clearwing butterfly 504
Desert walkingstick, channeled turban snail, Nilgai 503
X-ray tetra 501
Longfin tilapia, Parma wallaby, Black Portuguese millipede 500

Please note I did this a year ago, so it is out of date, but I suspect the figures are still similar for most of the species.
 
DavidBrown said:
I would never have guessed that penguins were that common.
Click to expand...

You would have if you lived in the UK, (probably wrongly) I get a little bored seeing Humboldt's Penguins at zoo after zoo.

More seriously, it's not that surprising when you consider the Penguin is a desirable, iconic species and given there's only 17 species of penguin to choose from of which only a few species have really been established in captivity. The Humboldt is certainly the most established in Europe probably related to the facts that it doesn't seem to have have particularly demanding husbandry/enclosure requirements and is conservationally relevant.

Compare this with a Parrot or Raptor (other desirable/iconic species) where a zoo has a lot of species existing and available to choose from.
 
Strictly speaking, the name "Bennett's Wallaby" should not be interchangeable with "Red-necked Wallaby" every time, although the names are often thought of as synonymous. Correctly, Bennett's Wallaby are those Red-necked Wallabies (Macropus rufogriseus fruticus) hailing originally from the island of Tasmania. So unless the origin is certain, I prefer to call them all Red-necked Wallabies (sorry, Edward Bennett).
 
Hallo Shirokuma

I've just done a recheck on ISIS. It seems there are now 46 Houbara bustards, so I think I got taken in by a typo. I don't think that Seoul has 100,001 Amur tigers and I'm surprised about the number of Jamaican fruit bats. I think ISIS is trying to make its figures more accurate and, like some other Zoo Chatters, I think the species list on Zootierliste is more up to date.
 
Dassie rat said:
Hallo Shirokuma

I've just done a recheck on ISIS. It seems there are now 46 Houbara bustards, so I think I got taken in by a typo. I don't think that Seoul has 100,001 Amur tigers and I'm surprised about the number of Jamaican fruit bats. I think ISIS is trying to make its figures more accurate and, like some other Zoo Chatters, I think the species list on Zootierliste is more up to date.
Click to expand...

Thanks for posting the list and the update Dassie rat. Either there was some bad information in ISIS or over 5000 Houbara bustards have gone missing from the world's zoos!
 
I compiled the list to show how many animals were over-represented in zoos. Zoos should be able to distinguish between conserving species for reintroduction into the wild or for attracting visitors. As JBZVolunteer suggests, there are too many ring-tailed lemurs in zoos. When I visited Madagascr in 1987, I saw golden bamboo lemurs at the Tsimbazaza Zoo. I was told they were the type specimens for the species, which was described in the previous year. I have never seen the species since. Similarly, I saw red-tailed sportive lemurs and fork-maked dwarf lemurs on my first visit to the Paris Zoo at Vincennes in 1988. Unfortunately, I never saw the hairy-eared dwarf lemur that was in the zoo a few years ago, despite returning to its enclosure several times. As an aside, why is it that when you visit a zoo to see a specific animal, that animal is often so elusive, while you easily see the species you have seen several times at other zoos?

It's a pity that so many endangered lemurs are not being bred in captivity, while there are too many ring-tailed lemurs and representatives of a few other species.
 
Dassie rat said:
I compiled the list to show how many animals were over-represented in zoos.
Click to expand...

It was done to death before, that native countries usually ban export of endangered animals to zoos, no matter if they do something or nothing to protect them in situ. Good luck in exporting some endangered lemurs from Madagascar or parrots and marsupials from Australia!

Still, there is much room to do - replace some generic sika with extinct in the wild Vietnamese sika, for example.
 
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