Belfast Zoo Belfast Zoo News 2009

  • Thread starter Thread starter Al
  • Start date Start date
Oh my god, how did that happen?:shock:
Did it happen when she arrived or sometime during the transportation?
 
During. To my understanding she tried to find a way out of the box a bit too hard.

From what I read she was searching for any holes trying to get out during the first 100km of the transport and injured in the process. Allegedly injured by iron bars of the cage, bouncing into walls of the box (but this is from newspaper article so who knows, zoo website doesn't provide any details how she did it to herself).

Hopefully it is just a tough beginning and she will settle well with the male (his sister will leave the zoo soon).
 
Its quite a common injury when lions in particular are transported long distances by road, they will heal in time though .
 
As long as she gets better!:p
Could we see some pictures of here new home perhaps? And isn't here brother Boris being planned to mate with Simons (Lilys mate) sister? Pretty cool.
And hope you visit this thread often and give us updates on Lily, thanks.:)
 
The pavilion is quite new (2007), other inhabitants should be amur tigers and there was one jaguar youngster when they have no tiger, maybe it still lives there.
Few more pictures here Zoologická zahrada HODONÍN
and one with her new partner in outside exhibit here http://www.zoochat.com/411/hodonin-zoo-31865/

Šimon's sister should go to Olomouc in few days (maybe it is already there?) but I guess it is just a move prerequisite to put the young couple together. I don't know about Buzetta's future more.

from Sun Wukongs review of the zoo (I actually haven't been there):
a pair of "Barbary" lions and jaguars (at the moment, a single playful spotted youngster; the other three, melanistic jaguars are still kept in a row of typical old-fashioned "concrete-and-bars" cages) each enjoy a new, nicely structured outdoor exhibit-with quite minimalistic, bare indoor enclosures. Seems like the architect responsible for the tiger & leopard exhibit in Brno had another go here...Visitors and big cats are seperated by security glass, huge wooden posts and-of course-hot wire. While all the glass panels I have seen so far in Czech and Slovakian zoos have hot wire, is still an unanswered question; maybe the staff doesn't want to spend much time on window cleaning, maybe it's another improvement of security-or maybe they just want to make photographing through a window more demanding for their visitors...
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Recent Visit

Hi all, was at Belfast Zoo today. I was pleased to see the crowds despite the poor weather...

Firstly, Kwikila the Goodfellows tree roo is absolutely stunning - spent ages watching her in the new tree roo house which also looks excellent. I'm sure Kwikila's tail must have nearly exceeded 1m!:)

There was a sign on the vacant tiger enclosure saying that they hope to have tigers back soon. I was told by a keeper that one of the curators had been off to England to view some possible specimens - not sure which sub-species...possibly more white...

The capybara has been moved to the quarantine enclosure opposite the elephants and the red roos have moved back near the gibbons. The elephants were all enjoying rolling on a very large mound of sand!!

The newly-refurbished reptile room was open and is currently home to:
Box turtle, chinese water dragon, tree monitor lizard, mediterranean tortoise, cuban tree boa, red footed tortoise(5 babies), brazillian rainbow boa, madagascan tree boa and veiled chameleon.

i wasn't expecting the new pair of Von der Decken's hornbills to be so small.

There are to be changes made to the gorilla group. Boulas the silverback is soon to move to Twycross as he has never produced any offspring during his time at Belfast. This will allow Gugas to establish himself as the new silverback. Also there will be a gorilla exchange happening with a French zoo - not sure which. One of Belfast females will be leaving (Not sure which...possibly Bikira) and a French female will come to Belfast - in the not too distant future.

I will definately return before the summers over to see all the new bird species that are arriving next week...:D
 
Fergie said:
There are to be changes made to the gorilla group. Boulas the silverback is soon to move to Twycross as he has never produced any offspring during his time at Belfast. This will allow Gugas to establish himself as the new silverback. Also there will be a gorilla exchange happening with a French zoo - not sure which. One of Belfast females will be leaving (Not sure which...possibly Bikira) and a French female will come to Belfast - in the not too distant future.
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Interesting, moves going on. Do you know when exactly he is moving to Twycross?
 
I wonder whether at twycross they will have to move the current gorillas about as will they put him in joe's old part or put him in the newish bit with the 2 females and the young male?
 
Malayan Tapir said:
I wonder whether at twycross they will have to move the current gorillas about as will they put him in joe's old part or put him in the newish bit with the 2 females and the young male?
Click to expand...

We will have to wait and see on this as it may not be the only move into Twycross.
 
easytigger said:
Its quite a common injury when lions in particular are transported long distances by road, they will heal in time though .
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Tejas the lion cub who featured in Zoo Days had similar injuries when he was transported from Chester zoo to his new home in France. He was fine once he had settled. I think the wounds just looked worse than they actually were. Not a nice thing to see though. Poor thing. :(
 
I hope Belfast don't get White tigers again, It is such a good zoo with a positive attitude towards breeding rare and endangered animals. I think they should consider Amur of Sumatrans. I don't mind smaller collections keeping white tigers if they cant make any contribution to breeding programs but Belfast are in a position to do so. I don't feel they have a place in Belfast zoo.
 
Sorry I don't know the exact date for Boulas' move but was told it will be soon.

I too would rather see Belfast welcome Sumatran or Amur tigers as opposed to the white "hybrid" but I guess that cubs or surplus stock need to find new homes and Belfast can accomodate them. Also, white tigers are very popular with visitors which is a bonus.

Still no luck in finding out the new species which Belfast will house and will be the only zoo to do so outside south-east asia!>>>:confused:
 
yeah I've been racking my brains and looking through books and the internet but can't seem to find out.
Looking forward to getting back there for at least once more before the summer ends (31 August)
 
I'd like to see a zoo take on white tigers and explain what they really are and why they shouldn't be bred from.
 
Vulpes said:
I hope Belfast don't get White tigers again, It is such a good zoo with a positive attitude towards breeding rare and endangered animals. I think they should consider Amur of Sumatrans. I don't mind smaller collections keeping white tigers if they cant make any contribution to breeding programs but Belfast are in a position to do so. I don't feel they have a place in Belfast zoo.
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Then again, Belfast could do another zoo a favour, like Noah's Ark has done, and take on a pair of hybrids (only non-breeding!).
 
It is great that finally things are also moving at Belfast with Boulas on his way out. What age is Gugas now and is he a good silverback candidate?

Fingers crossed for the import of male Goodfellow's ex US or Papua/Oz!
Perhaps Al has some further news for us all?
 
Kifaru Bwana said:
It is great that finally things are also moving at Belfast with Boulas on his way out. What age is Gugas now and is he a good silverback candidate?
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Gugas is 15 now (how time flies...) he is possibly the very last Wildcaught Gorilla to enter a zoo in Europe or the US (confiscated after being smuggled into Portugal). So valuable for breeding. He does mate but defers to the older Boulas- hence the move in order to allow Gugas a better chance to breed at Belfast. A new female may well help too as there is some problem with the existing group( possibly infertility or stress?) as there has been no breeding for about 11 years. Probably it will be Bikira who is exchanged for a new female.

See other comments about this move on Twycross thread.
 
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For sure the stress of having a sub-ordinate male (silverback) gorilla to a domineering silverback is not an ideal setting. I would also suspect that the elderly Bikira is having a major blocking influence on making the group fully cohesive. The earlier she is also relocated to another collection with use for her the better.
 
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