Auckland Zoo 5 New Alligators from Australia

driftaguy

driftaguy

Well-Known Member
15+ year member
I saw on The Zoo Season Final last night that Auckland Zoo was getting 5 alligators from Australia. Does anyone know if they have arrived in Auckland yet?

Thanks :)
 
They're coming in June, the cold temperatures will make all the alligators slower and lessen any scrapping during introcution to their female Doris.
 
I heard they're coming from the Austrlai Reptile Park, it was on the Zoo programme, they even sent a keeper over to meet them
 
Don't think mogo would have five alligators, think they have two and last time I was there one was in one of the tiger enclosures.
 
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Does anyone know if the new alligators are a breeding pair or able to breed with doris or is she to old.
 
It was decided that the original group that were shown on The Zoo were too small. A second lot was found but there were health issues with them...the third group, 4 females, finally fit the bill and are now in quarantine at Auckland Zoo's NZCCM to be moved in with Doris sometime in the next couple weeks, ive even heard they could be starting that move next week. Doris was moved into the new exhibit herself on thursday. All went well and it was filmed but im not sure what for as i didnt see it on the news so maybe the move will be on the next season of The Zoo...?
 
thanks Jalur, I guess that explains all the differing opinions on this thread then :D
 
no problem Childonias happy to help! It got really quite confusing for a while so im not surprised people have been hearing different things
 
Scoop: Auckland Zoo opens The Tropics for new alligators
Visitors to Auckland Zoo will be able to check out four impressive new American alligators at a newly built exhibit that opens this Queen’s Birthday weekend.

The eight-year-old female alligators arrived from Australia Zoo earlier this month, waiting out a quarantine period at the New Zealand Centre for Conservation Medicine before joining the zoo’s long-time resident alligator Doris in their new home.

Auckland Zoo Exotic Birds and Reptiles team leader Lana Judd says that it will be great for 30-year-old Doris to have other alligators for company.

“Doris has lived alone for more than 10 years now, so it will be a massive change for her, but we’re confident that all the alligators will get on well together.

“The new exhibit is fantastic - it really brings to life the American alligator’s natural habitat of the swamps and wetlands of the south-eastern United States,” she says.

Auckland Zoo Life Sciences Manager, Kevin Buley, says that the new exhibit will be a part of a greater precinct called The Tropics, which will completed and open to the public later this year.

“The new exhibit and precinct will allow our visitors to take a journey through the tropics of the Florida swamps to the tropical rainforests of South America,” he says.

The Exotic Birds and Reptiles team will be putting on special alligator encounters for the public at the new exhibit on the Saturday and Sunday of the long weekend at 10.30am and 1.30pm.

The zoo is calling on members of the public to help name its four newest residents. Along with having their suggested name chosen, the four winners will get the opportunity to meet with one of the zoo’s reptile keepers at the exhibit to learn more about the alligators.

Visit Auckland Zoo Homepage for more information.

How to enter the naming competition:

*email zoonews@aucklandcity.govt.nz by 9am on Tuesday, 8 June with your suggested name. Please put ‘Alligator naming competition’ in the subject line

*your chosen name should reflect the south-eastern United States’ bayou region. If applicable, please include the meaning or translation of your suggested name

*include your contact name, address and phone number

*the four winning names will be selected on Monday, 14 June and the winners notified by phone, with details of the names posted on Auckland Zoo Homepage

*the prize consists of free one-day entry into the zoo for each winner and a caregiver if applicable. It does not include transport.
Click to expand...
 
Will the keepers be able to hold the new alligators? On the TV series the zookeeper from Australia was showing the Auckland Zoo keeper how to pick them up and hold them, but now with the new lot might they not be able to? Thanks.
 
see the news video a couple of posts back - the alligators are quite large (not huge but not small either). I doubt they will be handling them unless they have to, eg for moving or health check-ups.
 
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