San Diego Zoo Safari Park Asian Plains fauna

L

LIECOBOY

Member
Does anyone have comprehensive information on the species of fauna found in the WAP's Asian Plains exhibit? I can find no info on the WAP site and would like to know the species sharing the exhibit.
 
Information of that sort seems to be hard to come by lately. Has anyone been on a Photo Caravan or the Asian Savannah Safari lately and been able to view this exhibit? I hope the Asian Savannah Safari is not their promised Asian Tour. I hope a full scale "Journey into Asia" is still planned.
 
This list is compiled from the 2000 guidebook. The field exhibit may or may not have the same species makeup. But at least it will give you an idea of what has been exhibited in it.

Altai Wapiti
Axis Deer
Barasingha
Blackbuck
Greater Asian One-horned Rhinoceros
Indian Gaur
Javan Rusa Deer
Persian Goitered Gazelle

I also remember there being Javan Banteng also in the field exhibit from my visit in 2001.
 
I'm pretty sure the Rusa have moved on, and I know that the Pere David's deer have been moved from the now non-existant Asian Waterhole habitat to the Asian Plains. The Javan Banteng were in the Asian Waterhole, and as near as I can determine are still at the park, but I don't know if they'd be in the Asian plains considering that the gaur are there.
 
What is truly amazing is the lack of hoofstock that is available to be seen by visitors to both the zoo and wild animal park. When I was at the zoo last month Horn & Hoof Mesa was basically extinct, and the wild animal park's Asian ungulates are also in a state of flux as no one appears to know what is happening with a potential Journey into Asia monorail.
 
Based on recent photo caravan pictures on Flickr (IMG_9555 on Flickr - Photo Sharing!), here is a minimum species list for the new (current) Asian Plains:

Sambar
Indian rhino
Gaur
Armenian mouflon
Goitred gazelle
Banteng
Pere David's deer
Hog deer
Urial

From 2003, here's what I remember of the field collection (with help from a photo caravan guide):

Asian plains
Altai wapiti
Armenian mouflon
Blackbuck
Axis deer
Barasingha
Gaur
Indian rhino
Indochinese sika
Javan rusa
Malayan sambar
Nilgai
Persian goitred gazelle

Eurasian waterhole
Fallow deer
Hog deer
Indian sambar
Banteng
Wisent
Mandarin sika
Pere David's deer
Transcaspian urial
Markhor
White-lipped deer

I can confirm Ituri that the rusa have moved on, as have the last remaining wisent. As for the rest, it is all up in the air ... the ISIS records are very problematic right now, and there is a ton of off-exhibit space available to hold animals.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top