Further details on the Titi Monkeys. They are 2.0 from a collection in France
Colchester Zoo News: Red Titi monkeys join our collection for the first time!
Colchester Zoo News: Red Titi monkeys join our collection for the first time!
Colchester Zoo Colchester Zoo news 2012
- Thread starter Badgerman91
- Start date
Looking at the zoo's Future Projects page, there is due to be a new Japanese-themed exhibit called 'Koi Niwa' opening around December 2012- the description says that the exhibit will include 'a number of Koi Carp and other Japanese species'.
I'm quite interested to hear what these other Japanese species might be- and where this new development actually is. I'd imagine it would be open air- or might it be in the old Familiar Friends barn?
http://www.colchester-zoo.com/index.cfm?fa=content.list&page=77§ion=6
I'm quite interested to hear what these other Japanese species might be- and where this new development actually is. I'd imagine it would be open air- or might it be in the old Familiar Friends barn?
http://www.colchester-zoo.com/index.cfm?fa=content.list&page=77§ion=6
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IanRRobinson
Well-Known Member
Unlikely to be wolves, sealions or (we now understand) otters..
Would be awesome if they brought in some Japanese Macaques!
Other than the familiar friends barn i can't think of where else it could go unless it is part of the Sun Bear redevelopment area??
But by the sounds of things will be fish but who knows maybe some Spider Crabs or Giant Salamander aswell??
Other than the familiar friends barn i can't think of where else it could go unless it is part of the Sun Bear redevelopment area??
But by the sounds of things will be fish but who knows maybe some Spider Crabs or Giant Salamander aswell??
I have recieved a reply to a message I sent to Colchester's Facebook wall that basically says that 'Koi Niwa' will be going into the Familiar Friends barn. I reckon that the other Japanese species will probably be more fish, although I guess we could always hold out for some Ryukyu flying foxes.
Went for a brief visit today, so here are the main things I observed:
- The Chaco chachalaca have gone on-show again in the old South American walkthrough indoor area.
- The new species boards for the Orangutan Forest marine aquarium show a bristle-tail file-fish (Acreichthys tomentosus, although there was no sign of the actual fish.
- A Siamese flying fox (the fish, not the fruit bat) is in the tank with the giant Asian pond turtles.
- There is a new baby silvery marmoset in the Worlds Apart walkthrough.
- The giant rabbit enclosure by the Familiar Friends barn has also been demolished- presumably to make way for Koi Niwa.
- Most importantly though is that the lower section of the Kingdom of the Wild indoor area has been closed off- I have now found from a confirmation on Facebook that a new pygmy hippo has been born. Great news!
- The Chaco chachalaca have gone on-show again in the old South American walkthrough indoor area.
- The new species boards for the Orangutan Forest marine aquarium show a bristle-tail file-fish (Acreichthys tomentosus, although there was no sign of the actual fish.
- A Siamese flying fox (the fish, not the fruit bat) is in the tank with the giant Asian pond turtles.
- There is a new baby silvery marmoset in the Worlds Apart walkthrough.
- The giant rabbit enclosure by the Familiar Friends barn has also been demolished- presumably to make way for Koi Niwa.
- Most importantly though is that the lower section of the Kingdom of the Wild indoor area has been closed off- I have now found from a confirmation on Facebook that a new pygmy hippo has been born. Great news!
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Visited the zoo yesterday for the first time in a few years and was pretty impressed by the progress the zoo has made with the development of their new enclosures, especially the smooth coated otter exhibit, where I spent about a full half an hour watching the family chase around the exhibit together and wrestle over who gets to sit on the floating log!
The animals received from the RSCC have really added to the collection and thought the sun bears make for a great exhibit, have never seen an animal have so much fun with the head of a broom! I just hope the standard of the new enclosure they are building follows in the footsteps of the otter and tiger enclosures. (And hope they do not use to much fake rock and bamboo combo’s!
). Not alot of work was happening while i was at the zoo, they seemed to be focusing all efforts on building the new japanese themed enclosure instead.
Also can’t believe how TIga (the orang) has matured since I last saw him, was good to see Rajang looking so well. Cannot help but feel a bit disappointed still when looking at their enclosure. Looks like a late 80’s early 90’s enclosure as opposed to a modern 21st century exhibit.
Saw the young pygmy hippo, was in the tunnel part of the indoor area but did not have access to the outside area. Both mum and baby looked very healthy and relaxed. If I ever win the lottery I have decided I am going to fund the building of a new enclosure for them, is probably one of the worst exhibits I have seen anywhere.
A couple of questions: -
Where are the Victoria crowned pigeons? (As missed them completely!)
Why were the colobus moved from the edge of Africa to their current enclosure and are there any plans for a new exhibit for them, as the area they are in now looks very dated and cramped? (Am hoping they might be moved into the temporary sun bear enclosure when their new enclosures finished).
The animals received from the RSCC have really added to the collection and thought the sun bears make for a great exhibit, have never seen an animal have so much fun with the head of a broom! I just hope the standard of the new enclosure they are building follows in the footsteps of the otter and tiger enclosures. (And hope they do not use to much fake rock and bamboo combo’s!
). Not alot of work was happening while i was at the zoo, they seemed to be focusing all efforts on building the new japanese themed enclosure instead.Also can’t believe how TIga (the orang) has matured since I last saw him, was good to see Rajang looking so well. Cannot help but feel a bit disappointed still when looking at their enclosure. Looks like a late 80’s early 90’s enclosure as opposed to a modern 21st century exhibit.
Saw the young pygmy hippo, was in the tunnel part of the indoor area but did not have access to the outside area. Both mum and baby looked very healthy and relaxed. If I ever win the lottery I have decided I am going to fund the building of a new enclosure for them, is probably one of the worst exhibits I have seen anywhere.
A couple of questions: -
Where are the Victoria crowned pigeons? (As missed them completely!
)Why were the colobus moved from the edge of Africa to their current enclosure and are there any plans for a new exhibit for them, as the area they are in now looks very dated and cramped? (Am hoping they might be moved into the temporary sun bear enclosure when their new enclosures finished).
Gigit
Well-Known Member
This is the second comment recently about Tiga's growth so it must be impressive. Can anyone post a current photo of him?
quote=Gigit;594894]This is the second comment recently about Tiga's growth so it must be impressive. Can anyone post a current photo of him?[/quote]
Just added a couple of pics of Tiga to the gallery, there not great but probably give you an idea of his maturity now.
He is pretty much the same size as Rajang now.
Just added a couple of pics of Tiga to the gallery, there not great but probably give you an idea of his maturity now.
He is pretty much the same size as Rajang now.
Gigit
Well-Known Member
I see what you mean! Very impressive.
I have to say i do agree with many of your observations, the pigmy hippo accomodation is definitely below average at best! The colobus are in a worse enclosure than before and it irritates me no end that the sun bears are still in that cage whilst several other new buildings have been developed since work commenced on their new enclosure & seems to be taking an eternity!Visited the zoo yesterday for the first time in a few years and was pretty impressed by the progress the zoo has made with the development of their new enclosures, especially the smooth coated otter exhibit, where I spent about a full half an hour watching the family chase around the exhibit together and wrestle over who gets to sit on the floating log!
The animals received from the RSCC have really added to the collection and thought the sun bears make for a great exhibit, have never seen an animal have so much fun with the head of a broom! I just hope the standard of the new enclosure they are building follows in the footsteps of the otter and tiger enclosures. (And hope they do not use to much fake rock and bamboo combo’s!
Also can’t believe how TIga (the orang) has matured since I last saw him, was good to see Rajang looking so well. Cannot help but feel a bit disappointed still when looking at their enclosure. Looks like a late 80’s early 90’s enclosure as opposed to a modern 21st century exhibit.
Saw the young pygmy hippo, was in the tunnel part of the indoor area but did not have access to the outside area. Both mum and baby looked very healthy and relaxed. If I ever win the lottery I have decided I am going to fund the building of a new enclosure for them, is probably one of the worst exhibits I have seen anywhere.
A couple of questions: -
Where are the Victoria crowned pigeons? (As missed them completely!
Why were the colobus moved from the edge of Africa to their current enclosure and are there any plans for a new exhibit for them, as the area they are in now looks very dated and cramped? (Am hoping they might be moved into the temporary sun bear enclosure when their new enclosures finished).
The smooth coated otter development is excellent i agree, and i also noted how much tiga had developed on my last visit about 6 weeks ago.
The only thing i cant agree on is the orang enclosure, it may not be perfect, but tiga & rajang seem to be ok in it and it is a massive improvement on the old one! It also affords better public viewing than others elsewhere which cost far more to build. It's certainly better than at least 2 other orang enclosures ive seen in the uk and less dated.
IMHO Colchester is probably one of the most improved and fastest developing zoos in the uk over the last decade or so and is now a top 5 rather than a top 20ish zoo!
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IanRRobinson
Well-Known Member
The only thing i cant agree on is the orang enclosure said:
I have to agree that the aquatic exhibits weren't needed and the public area is probably more than required and some of that area could have been given to the apes instead, but as i said although not perfect it is a vast improvement and better than others.
I went to the zoo yesterday. The orangs were both shut outside and Rajang was quite near the door waiting to be let outside. Tiga was hideing in under the logs.
There was a fair amount of eating off the bushes from the giraffes and the elephants. I also went into the discovery centure which now has some nice insects and spiders as well as dramatic skulls of an elephant, a hippo and a giraffe.
Gavin, I must admit I've hardly ever managed to see the smooth coated otters active in their current enclosure so you were lucky to see that with the cubs too.
I believe the plan is to effectively give the black and white colobus monkeys the whole space of the "Out of Africa" building and I think they want to make that whole area of the zoo look completely different. I am not sure how long it will be before they manage to do this.
One question I have is I know (haven't seen) but am aware that there is a spotted hynea cub. I would like to know when abouts did the striped hynea go?
There was a fair amount of eating off the bushes from the giraffes and the elephants. I also went into the discovery centure which now has some nice insects and spiders as well as dramatic skulls of an elephant, a hippo and a giraffe.
Gavin, I must admit I've hardly ever managed to see the smooth coated otters active in their current enclosure so you were lucky to see that with the cubs too.
I believe the plan is to effectively give the black and white colobus monkeys the whole space of the "Out of Africa" building and I think they want to make that whole area of the zoo look completely different. I am not sure how long it will be before they manage to do this.One question I have is I know (haven't seen) but am aware that there is a spotted hynea cub. I would like to know when abouts did the striped hynea go?
I think there's a big difference between the indoor and outdoor Orangutan enclosures. Indoors is fine for these apes- whether a larger enclosure area for them and a smaller public area would have been better is of course open to debate. Zoo architecture does sometimes follow this pattern- too small an enclosure coupled with unnecessarily large viewing areas.
But IMO the outdoors is horrible
- and totally unsuited to this arboreal species. A completely different design allowing far more climbing, no rock walls or the 'pit' like effect of viewing from above would have been far better. The Orangs use it of course as its what's available for them- but they could make far more use of a better-designed enclosure. As it is this would have been fairly suitable for the Sunbears!Because it is so modern IMO this outside is the worst Orang enclosure in the UK ,as it doesn't even have the excuse of being old or dated. Referring to it as a 'Forest' is just a farce.
I have to agree on your last point, it certainly doesn't fit the description! The only remotely natural exhibit i've seen in the uk is Paignton, its great to see an orang in a real tree.I think there's a big difference between the indoor and outdoor Orangutan enclosures. Indoors is fine for these apes- whether a larger enclosure area for them and a smaller public area would have been better is of course open to debate. Zoo architecture does sometimes follow this pattern- too small an enclosure coupled with unnecessarily large viewing areas.
But IMO the outdoors is horrible
Because it is so modern IMO this outside is the worst Orang enclosure in the UK ,as it doesn't even have the excuse of being old or dated. Referring to it as a 'Forest' is just a farce.
But whilst accepting your consideration of the age of some enclosures, i still don't see it as the worst enclosure by some distance. I accept it has limited climbing oppurtunities at the moment, but i'm sure there is the capacity to improve this in the future, when they have a family group, rajang probably doesn't use what they have already!
The criticism of the pit concept may be fair, but then what most would consider the best orang exhibit, ROTRA at Chester, has a similar viewing angle, and much of it through tiny porthole windows, at least Colchester has a decent sized viewing window to the outside. I've given my views of my experience in the Chester threads so I wont go on.
On the size of the visitor indoor area, probably both zoos have it wrong, chester not enough on busy days, colchester too much visitor space, i've never seen the indoors remotely appear crowded.
Gavin, I must admit I've hardly ever managed to see the smooth coated otters active in their current enclosure so you were lucky to see that with the cubs too.
I must have been lucky to have seen all the smooth coated otters then!
That’s great news about the colubus, just hope it doesn’t take too long to develop the enclosure. (Maybe the colubus would have been better going to the proposed new Francois langur exhibit?)