Belfast Zoo Belfast Zoo News 2019

Does anyone know what has happened to Belfast's Malayan tapirs? I just went to have a look at the website and they don't seem to be shown on there anymore.

How many tapirs did they have until now? Did they go to another collection or did they die out?
 
Belfast had a breeding pair of Malayan tapirs, Elmer and Gladys, who had many successful births over the years; their offspring includes Benny in Denver, Marjorie in Chester, and Harapan in Beauval (who passed away late last year). They were both in their late twenties, so they might now have both passed away from old age.
Another species that you may have noticed is missing from the website is the fossa. On my last visit in June last year, I was told that they just had a single fossa, a female named Freya, whose age was said to be 21. As this is a very old age for a fossa, I think that Freya has also passed away. I noticed the fossa was missing from the website when I looked on it last year, which raised my thought that she died. Some of you might remember seeing two fossas in Belfast, the other one was her mate, who, on another of my visits, I was told had passed away but they didn't specify when.
 
Babyrousa said:
Belfast had a breeding pair of Malayan tapirs, Elmer and Gladys, who had many successful births over the years; their offspring includes Benny in Denver, Marjorie in Chester, and Harapan in Beauval (who passed away late last year). They were both in their late twenties, so they might now have both passed away from old age.
Click to expand...

Blimey, that is rather sad to know that both of those tapirs have gone. :(

TBH I've never actually been to Belfast zoo myself (Because I don't like travelling too far), but I do find the place rather interesting to be fair. (I'd say it's the Northern Ireland-version of either Edinburgh or Dudley Zoo, considering it was built on top of a hillside.

Thanks for letting me know in advance though! ;)
 
Animallover1998 said:
I'd say it's the Northern Ireland-version of either Edinburgh or Dudley Zoo, considering it was built on top of a hillside.;)
Click to expand...

I always found Belfast layout reminiscent of Dudley, but even more so like Edinburgh when I went there last year. The old dance hall at Belfast reminds me of the listed buildings at Dudley. The collections are very different though. Belfast also has the curiosity of some of the derelict old zoo still visible.

For many years I would go to Belfast 2 or 3 times a year and enjoyed it very much. Sadly it’s not a zoo that I’ve been to in the last decade.
 
Are there any Asian Golden Cats left in the zoo? I've heard that they are gone...

If so, is there a chance that the species will come back to Belfast?
 
Neva said:
Are there any Asian Golden Cats left in the zoo? I've heard that they are gone...

If so, is there a chance that the species will come back to Belfast?
Click to expand...

I know the female Myo-tho went to Allwetterzoo Munster last year, but unsure of where the male Saigon went. However, the latest map on the website does say that their enclosure is 'under development', so next time I'm up in Belfast, I'll see whether the enclosure will still be used for golden cats or if it will house a different species.
 
Thank you!
I knew about Myo Tho, however I didn't know exactly if Belfast get another female after her.
I will looking forward for an update :)
 
I was up in Belfast recently on a very wet and misty day. Some noteworthy things to mention from my visit:
  1. The red pandas were in the vacated fossa enclosure and, as the current map says, their original enclosure is 'Under development'. This is most likely to prevent them from escaping (again).
  2. There were capybara in both the former tiger enclosure (which, as we saw through the misted glass, had a lot of its grass stripped away) and one of the former maned wolf enclosures.
  3. The enclosure with the white-nosed coatis is now vacant, and they are no longer on the mammals page of their website.
  4. I have also seen signs around the tiger enclosure and the walkthrough aviary, saying that those enclosures are being considered for redevelopment. As mentioned earlier in this thread, they were going to turn the latter into a lemur walkthrough.
  5. I saw the new giant anteater enclosure just outside the rainforest house. It looked very much the same when it held the red kangaroos and species before that, except that there is now indoor viewing, so I was lucky enough to view the anteater indoors :). There was still the other anteater at the top of the zoo, which I also saw indoors.
At some point, I will also upload some photos from my visit so stay tuned.
 
Wait, so now the zoo no longer has White-nosed coati anymore? Well that can't be good considering they were (if this is no longer the case) the only remaining holder for them in the UK! What a shame...
 
Babyrousa said:
I was up in Belfast recently on a very wet and misty day. Some noteworthy things to mention from my visit:
  1. The red pandas were in the vacated fossa enclosure and, as the current map says, their original enclosure is 'Under development'. This is most likely to prevent them from escaping (again).
  2. There were capybara in both the former tiger enclosure (which, as we saw through the misted glass, had a lot of its grass stripped away) and one of the former maned wolf enclosures.
  3. The enclosure with the white-nosed coatis is now vacant, and they are no longer on the mammals page of their website.
  4. I have also seen signs around the tiger enclosure and the walkthrough aviary, saying that those enclosures are being considered for redevelopment. As mentioned earlier in this thread, they were going to turn the latter into a lemur walkthrough.
  5. I saw the new giant anteater enclosure just outside the rainforest house. It looked very much the same when it held the red kangaroos and species before that, except that there is now indoor viewing, so I was lucky enough to view the anteater indoors :). There was still the other anteater at the top of the zoo, which I also saw indoors.
At some point, I will also upload some photos from my visit so stay tuned.
Click to expand...
Any plans for tigers to return?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top