I saw this under construction enclosure during my visit to Brasilia zoo in october 2019. I think this might be a new home for the giant armadillo that the zoo keeps off display.
@Onychorhynchus coronatus and @FelipeDBKO, this is the enclosure I told you I think it is the new home for "Mabu", the female giant armadillo at Brasilia zoo. What do you guys think?
Judging mainly from the amount of earth above the wall (and am I mistaken or there's concrete below it?), I believe that could be the case. I don't know what's the matter with it though, since the plan supposedly was to have a public exhibit for Mabu finished in 2016.
@FelipeDBKO Yes, that's what I thought too... She's been in the zoo for too long for not having an exhibit. Although, The brick wall in this picture seems a bit mossy, so I think this is actually the exhibit that has been built for her, but is stuck for too long... Dirt in the exhibit also doesn't look very smooth like when you just drop it, it actually also seems it's been there for a while. If this is the enclosure, I hope they resume the building of it soon...
@David Matos Mendes I think you are right and that it could well be the planned enclosure for this giant armadillo. It looks like the floor beneath the substrate is concrete and there would be a huge risk of this species digging its way out and escaping (a situation which the zoo would be trying their best to avoid). These animals are pretty much semi-fossorial so they will dig extensive burrows and spend much of the day in them.
@Onychorhynchus coronatus Yeah, I think you're right. The concrete below the dirt substrate quite tells us this is actually the exhibit for the armadillo. Very few other animals would need this kind of bareer...
@David Matos Mendes I don't think she is going to be an active animal or seen very much by the public though. She will probably dig herself several burrows within her enclosure and stay there avoiding people until nightfall. Even so I think it is brilliant that Brasilia zoo rescued her and have given her a home.
@Onychorhynchus coronatus Yes, totally agree. If maned wolves are already difficult to see in zoos, imagine an armadillo, that has the possibility to literally disappear in the ground... But yes, It's really nice that the zoo provided her a second chance!
