Werribee Open Range Zoo Chimps and Gorillas for Werribee

i agree with everyone above i also think zoos vic do need a direction.

i think that one possible idea for melbounre is that it becomes one of the first zoos to adopt a completely conservation approach to zoo keeping focusing on endangered species and conservation and even considering to get rid of animals like lions giraffes and other common zoo animals.

as for werribee it's doing better ever since it unveiled it's plan to eventually get 1500 animals in the zoo which is something it needs because it lacks for some people diversity as it only has a limited number of species.


on another note though are the 2 servals on display and is their any estimate of when the new gorillas exhibit will open and do people think it's worth having a 10,000m2 enclosure for 3 gorillas and considering the fact that it's meant to be only for bachelor gorillas?
 
animal kid said:
i agree with everyone above i also think zoos vic do need a direction.

....

on another note though are the 2 servals on display and is their any estimate of when the new gorillas exhibit will open and do people think it's worth having a 10,000m2 enclosure for 3 gorillas and considering the fact that it's meant to be only for bachelor gorillas?
Click to expand...

Lucky for you Zoos Victoria has just made a new 'action' plan ;) They ARE changing their direction. :)

The Serval's aren't actually on display, and now I believe that they never will be on public display, only paid tours.

Also, the Gorilla enclosure is already 'started'. I do believe they are making a lovley little Forrest in the the frosty WORZ. :D
 
m575 said:
Also, the Gorilla enclosure is already 'started'. I do believe they are making a lovley little Forrest in the the frosty WORZ. :D
Click to expand...

So the three spare males at Melbourne will definately go there?

Good idea, and I think they should then raze the old Grottoes to the ground and build something new on the space created.
 
Pertinax said:
So the three spare males at Melbourne will definately go there?

Good idea, and I think they should then raze the old Grottoes to the ground and build something new on the space created.
Click to expand...

I'd like to bongo and congo buffalo to move there as a nice opener to the African Rainforest.
 
PAT said:
I'd like to bongo and congo buffalo to move there as a nice opener to the African Rainforest.
Click to expand...

That'd be good. Except why would any responsible zoo director build a new (minor) feature exhibit for two species that are on their way out in Australia without new imports of genetic material? It's quite likely, at this point, that there will be no further generations of bongo or congo buffalo to occupy any such exhibit.
 
This may be fodder for another post, but, can someone please explain to me how Austalian zoos are not exempt from import regulations.

How do they operate their stud books, international breeding programs and trades etc ?

Going back to the original post, what are the relationships of the Australian gorrila populations ? I know the 3 bachelors at Melbourne are father and sons, If the Bachelo males are interelated, especially to the femaes are they viable to the breeding program or would it be better to ship them off where they can become part of a family (breeding) group elsewhere.
 
bdradford said:
Going back to the original post, what are the relationships of the Australian gorrila populations ?
Click to expand...

The two groups, Taronga & Melbourne, are not related at all. Taronga's group was originally imported from Apenheul, Holland. Melbourne's is made up of animals from several other sources.

The two sons of Motaba(Yakini & Ganyeki) are genetically important on their mother's side, rather than on their father's. Ganyeki in particular is the only offspring of G Anne -who in turn is the only(surviving) offspring of her wildcaught mother. So he could be valuable in the future.
 
Thanks Pertinax, it is a very interesting topic, and i just found a link to the gorrila stud book which I will have a better look at.

Do Gorillas form Bachelor groups in the wild ? I am still a fan of moving them into a family situation. With AI ever more so popular, their genitic importance is not at stake by doing this. Does the zoo collect samples from genetically important animals like these as standard practice ?

Would also be very interested to hear from anyone regarding the import/quarintine restrictions that are placed on zoos, especially in Australia.

Regards
 
bdradford said:
Do Gorillas form Bachelor groups in the wild ? I am still a fan of moving them into a family situation. With AI ever more so popular, their genitic importance is not at stake by doing this.
Click to expand...

There is no proof that under normal circumstances Gorillas ever form bachelor groups in the wild. Adult males that have left their natal groups tend to travel alone and avoid each other. It is an artificial situation which has arisen in captivity because of the need both to house surplus males and remove younger males from groups where tensions arise in restricted environments.

AI is still very difficult to achieve with Gorillas, despite Melbourne's ground-breaking success in the past. I think semen is often collected when genetically valuable males are 'knocked out' for other (e.g. medical) reasons but it is still nowhere near to being a reliable way to breed from Gorillas.
 
i'm just wondering but with the new plan to triple the animal population what animals wiil werribee get??? besides the chimps and gorillas

also has anyone seen the new serval enclosure??
 
It's a 20 year plan.. so don't expect any of these too soon but : Grevy Zebra, More Kudu, Black Rhino, Elephant, More Giraffe (maybe that's more my wish :P ) Oryx, Lions, Cheetah, Chimps, Gorilla, Baboon, Other antelope, Cheetah.

As you can see there's a few which they already have, and it's about breeding them out.

The new Serval enclosure is built and ready. It's fairly large.. not tooooo pretty. The Servals are still in training ;) And as I mentioned before, it'll be an off limits area. Only to those who pay!
 
Yes they did get some new giraffe but there is still room in the sheds. I can't remember what the antelope where! sorry.
 
m575 said:
The new Serval enclosure is built and ready. It's fairly large.. not tooooo pretty. The Servals are still in training ;) And as I mentioned before, it'll be an off limits area. Only to those who pay!
Click to expand...

I intend to write to the Board of Zoos Victoria complaining about this. It might be something that privately-owned zoos do with some of their animals to make a profit, and I guess that's their prerogative (although, and I'm not looking at any zoo in particular *cough, cough* - charging over $50 for an adult to get in and then withholding cheetahs, giraffes, rhino and monkeys is a bit, shall we say, "rich").

But I have a problem with a statutory zoo, one that exists as a conservation and education resource first and second, and a public space third before being a profit-driven entity fourth, using one of their species in this way. It is wholly inappropriate for Zoos Victoria to use animals that are acquired and maintained, at least partly, using taxpayer funded grants to keep an animal off-display as a lure for big-spenders.

That's not what I expect of my statutory zoo organisation.
 
Don't make any complaints yet ;) haha. That's just the direction it's been heading past few months! So it will probably happen. I think part of the reason was the old Serval(s) where not really "popular" thus, having it as a special tour will ensure the animal is "used" :P
 
I remember reading in the Herald Sun when the servals arrived at Werribee that they were going to be viewed through glass. Normally I wouldn't remember such a stupid little detail but it was in a sentence tacked on to the end of a little feel good article next to a picture.
 
From what I've seen it's a wire enclosure.. they used to be behind glass ;) I've got photos of the kittens :D (somewhere! should've taken my SLR with me for some good ones!)
 
i agree with CGSwans,

whilst i'm cool with the zoo making some extra money by offering more serious enthusiasts up close encounters or overnight stays - public statutory zoos are just that, public owned.

they exist as a recreational and educational asset to the people of their host cities and thus have an obligation to remain affordable and accessible to all. if these pay-per-view servals are the start of a trend towards more animals and encounters being reserved exclusively for wealthier patrons - then we will have good reason to be pissed off.

what australia zoo is doing is shameful - but then again its privately owned so i don't much care.
 
Australia Zoo will never have much credibility while it continues with that elitist crap!
I wouldn't visit it on principle!

Hopefully other Aussie zoos DON'T go the same way.
 
Well seems there's some good news about the Servals. But haven't been able to confirm it. From what I've seen, it'll still be an off display exhibit, but the public will still be able to see them. On another note, some people from the public HAVE seen them already :) As part of the training they SOMETIMES take them out for a walk.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top