Calgary Zoo Calgary Zoo News 2023

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The birth watch for gorilla Yewande has officially begun. The article says shes in labour but I think they just mean the 24 hour watch for signs of labour has begun.

Baby watch begins at the Calgary Zoo as gorilla goes into labour
Yewande gave birth to a healthy infant yesterday afternoon! The sire is Jasiri of course and the sex has not yet been determined.

Wilder Institute The Wilder Institute/Calgary Zoo Family has Grown by One Beautiful Baby Western Lowland Gorilla | Wilder Institute Calgary Zoo
 
An update today on the Zoo's Facebook Page regarding Emara :(

Further to the recent heartbreaking news of the passing of our female Masai giraffe, ‘Emara’, we can confirm that her death was a tragic accident.
Members of our Animal Care, Health & Welfare team found the 12-year-old Masai giraffe unresponsive against the fence in the African Savannah Yard early morning on Friday, May 19, 2023. A complete necropsy was conducted and revealed that Emara died quickly due to a broken neck – a small comfort for the staff and volunteers that loved her https://bit.ly/3BWpHdl
 
Hate to say I'm glad about a death but the cause of death for Emara was as good as can be expected. She wasnt sick so Nabo and Moshi are safe. She wasnt in pain. She likely didnt suffer. And it was likely just an unavoidable accident that couldnt have been predicted. Thankfully it happened before staff were in so none of them had to witness it and stand there completely helpless to stop it. Small mercies. Hopefully this means Toronto can send Kiko over ASAP so Moshi isnt alone when Nabo heads the other direction.
 
I am interested to see if they go ahead with the transfer. As a huge fan of all of Autumn's family line from Greenville Zoo I am very interested to see what happens with Kiko :)
 
@Uwshuhd1, you will likely be disappointed in what happens with Kiko. He cannot breed with Moshi as she is half Masai and half retic. She was an oopsie between Nabo and the late Carrie. Kiko himself holds almost no genetic value. While Autumn offered good genetics his dad Walter did not. He likely would have been headed for a bachelor herd had he not been paired with super star Mstari. Her genetics are so strong and rare that even though Kiko is in the bottom 5 of males, his son Matu is the new number 1 male after his uncle's passing and daughter Amani is in the top 5 for females. If Calgary and Toronto were in the US Kiko would be headed for a bachelor herd. However its easier to just move him to Calgary where if he had bred with Emara successfully it would have been great (she was just that valuable) but the odds of it happening were pretty low due to Emara's history. It was a move that basically takes Kiko out of breeding. I dont think even with Emara's death that there will be a huge desire to send up another high ranking female for him. He might just have a platonic relationship with Moshi until Nabo and Mstari have a female calf ready for a new home. That calf will be just as valuable as its mom thanks to Nabo's almost as rare genetics as Mstari. Mstari and Nabo's girls are Kikos best hopes in my opinion.
 
Thank you for that extremely valuable information! I will be sad if Kiko doesn't breed anymore. But I understand the reasons. You seem to still think they will do the transfer though so that Nabo can breed with Mstari. I guess we will see what and when it all plays out :)
 
@Uwshuhd1, I do think they will continue with the transfer. Mstari is the number 1 ranked female. So I dont drag the conversation about Calgary too far off if you want to know why she is so high ranking send me a private message. Nabo is the 5th ranked male, he has yet to contribute a surviving calf (Moshi as I mentioned before doesnt count) and hes already 13. They need him with a female who can produce calves and Mstari and Amani offer him the best chance. Mstari gets pregnant very easily and has been a very successful mother. Meanwhile Amani is just maturing and there is no reason to think she would have any problems.

Kiko doesnt need to have another calf. If he does great, as long as the mother offers amazing genetics. @Polar bear fan, thank you for reminding me that Eleanor was recommended to come up to Calgary as well. I had totally forgot about her. Eleanor is a mid level female in terms of genetics. If she doesnt arrive and Kiko cant breed thats fine. Kiko would be better off with a Nabo/Mstari daughter. I bet that will be the SSP's big hope for their first calf.
 
There has been some kind of controversy about the condition of one of the zebras hooves. The zoo responded to online criticism by explaining the zebras hooves need trimmed but she was pregnant and is now raising a very young foal. She will be trimmed once the foal is older but she is in no pain or danger.

CityNews
 
Very exciting news! Outside of penguins, Calgary's bird collection has really stagnated in recent years. Hopefully there will be a baby boom soon enough in the Africa Aviary, with new pairs of Spoonbill, Southern Bald Ibis, and Hammerkop all on the go (or set to arrive soon), plus the existing breeding pair of Hadhada Ibis.

And the Red Crowned Crane is an extremely exciting new addition as well! I suspect she arrived from Granby, and given her low genetic value, she likely won't be breeding any time soon, but it would be nice to see a companion arrive for her all the same. And if she's gone into the exhibit I think she has, it'll very a nice nice improvement as well, considering its current occupant (a female musk deer) spends the majority of the day hiding.
 
The Canadian Wilds section of the zoo is being renamed Wild Canada and there will be two male Polar Bears ('Baffin' and 'Siku' from Assiniboine Park Zoo) joining Calgary in the fall. The new exhibit opens on December 1st.
 
The Canadian Wilds section of the zoo is being renamed Wild Canada and there will be two male Polar Bears ('Baffin' and 'Siku' from Assiniboine Park Zoo) joining Calgary in the fall. The new exhibit opens on December 1st.

Mostly I'm excited about this project, but I do miss the Dall's Sheep (the bighorn and mountain goats remain)
 
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