Escape from the ABCs

Maguari · 4 Apr 2010

Pertinax said:
I believe this is one of the very small Macaw species- like the Illigers.? I have heard that in Avicultural terms it is 'difficult'- being of a nervous disposition and with a tendency to drop dead quite easily..

They are pretty tiny by macaw standards.

Pertinax said:
Blue Ducks- you can't beat seeing these in the wild sitting on boulders on torrent rivers of North Island, New Zealand..(teeheee.. )

Now that's just mean!

kiang · 5 Apr 2010

Another unusual underwater species the shark ray, i could not find its scientific name, a really unusual looking species, these 2 are the only ones on show in the western hemisphere.

Shark ray mating program progressing at Newport Aquarium | cincinnati.com | Cincinnati.Com

Pygathrix · 5 Apr 2010

Is it this one:
Shark Ray, Rhina ancylostoma Bloch & Schneider, 1801 - Australian Museum

called bowmouth guitarfish on ISIS, there are two other places in US with them, also Lisbon and Ocean Park HK. I'd guess there are probably some to be seen in Australian aquaria too.

Maguari · 5 Apr 2010

That does appear to be a Bowmouth Guitarfish (Rhina ancylostoma).

It can, in fact, now be seen in the UK - an individual has gone on show recently at Blackpool SeaLife Centre, where I saw it last week!

http://www.zoochat.com/898/bowmouth-guitarfish-blackpool-sealife-centre-27-a-139823/

kiang · 5 Apr 2010

Maguari said:
That does appear to be a Bowmouth Guitarfish (Rhina ancylostoma).

It can, in fact, now be seen in the UK - an individual has gone on show recently at Blackpool SeaLife Centre, where I saw it last week!

http://www.zoochat.com/898/bowmouth-guitarfish-blackpool-sealife-centre-27-a-139823/

And the light goes on

As i was writing this post, i was thinking to myself, i am sure i have seen this animal mentioned here

Thanks for the confirmation guys.

Hix · 6 Apr 2010

Pygathrix said:
I'd guess there are probably some to be seen in Australian aquaria too.

Yep, Sydney Aquarium has at least one.

http://www.zoochat.com/52/shark-ray-68648/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/shark-ray-68647/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/mouthparts-shark-ray-68631/

Hix

Chlidonias · 24 Aug 2010

time to give this thread a bit of a bump I think (it should be a sticky in my opinion....)

a few of the fishy persuasian from me:
http://www.zoochat.com/399/urchin-clingfish-dellichthys-morelandi-154800/
http://www.zoochat.com/399/silverspot-threpterius-maculosus-154799/ (there's a short video attached to this as well, to show why its so cool)
http://www.zoochat.com/399/macrophthalmia-pouched-lamprey-geotria-australis-159995/
and my all-time favourite NZ fish: http://www.zoochat.com/399/dark-toadfish-neophrynichthys-latus-169169/

and some from Tarsius' Japanese trip, although he seems to have stopped uploading photos from it unfortunately:
flying fish (!): http://www.zoochat.com/740/kamogawa-seaworld-164093/
sea moth: http://www.zoochat.com/644/dragonfish-164255/
tarsier: http://www.zoochat.com/648/tarisier-young-165198/

I think Maguari must have a bunch of new photos of unusual species by now too.....

sooty mangabey · 24 Aug 2010

The whole of Pilsen Zoo might feature on this thread - a meerkat-free zone! - but I have uploaded pictures of a few favourites from a trip there in July.

http://www.zoochat.com/415/northern-luzon-cloud-rat-169646/
http://www.zoochat.com/415/red-necked-spurfowl-169645/
http://www.zoochat.com/415/hausa-genet-169644/
http://www.zoochat.com/415/philippine-porcupine-169643/
http://www.zoochat.com/415/syrian-marbeled-polecat-161434/

A superb array of unusual animals, displayed with real elan. It's a great zoo.

kiang · 24 Aug 2010

Hix said:
Yep, Sydney Aquarium has at least one.

http://www.zoochat.com/52/shark-ray-68648/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/shark-ray-68647/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/mouthparts-shark-ray-68631/

Hix

Oceanopilis, in Brest has also just received a female too.

Du nouveau dans le bassin des requins à Océanopolis

Maguari · 25 Aug 2010

Chlidonias said:
a few of the fishy persuasian from me:
http://www.zoochat.com/399/urchin-clingfish-dellichthys-morelandi-154800/
http://www.zoochat.com/399/silverspot-threpterius-maculosus-154799/ (there's a short video attached to this as well, to show why its so cool)
http://www.zoochat.com/399/macrophthalmia-pouched-lamprey-geotria-australis-159995/
and my all-time favourite NZ fish: http://www.zoochat.com/399/dark- toadfish-neophrynichthys-latus-169169/

I've been paying attention to your wonderful Southern Encounter pictures - looks a fantastic line-up. The lamprey in particular has got me jealous!

Chlidonias said:
I think Maguari must have a bunch of new photos of unusual species by now too.....

Well, since you ask!

Maguari · 25 Aug 2010

kiang said:
Oceanopilis, in Brest has also just received a female too.

Du nouveau dans le bassin des requins à Océanopolis

This is actually a very good place, which I have fond memories of from 2002 - my first sawfish (Large-toothed, Pristis microdon) and an all-indoor, icy mixed seal exhibit for Harp and Ringed Seals.

Zambar · 25 Aug 2010

Went there again this Summer, brilliant as always.

Too late for the ray shark though.

Chlidonias · 26 Aug 2010

Maguari said:
I've been paying attention to your wonderful Southern Encounter pictures - looks a fantastic line-up. The lamprey in particular has got me jealous!

it is a good little aquarium and because it has a focus of solely NZ species it has some really interesting species passing through its tanks (but to most of the visitors they're "just fish" - no appreciation for toadfish or lampreys at all

).

I'll add that the lamprey macrophthalmia have already been released to continue their parasitic ways out in the ocean.

Maguari said:
Sorry - got a bit carried away there! But it was a very good trip - if a little mammal-y for the true spirit of this thread! This weekend a new adventure begins, and Germany is once more beckoning...

damn you all and your close proximity to hundreds of zoos replete with unusual animals!!!

Here are a few from New Caledonia:
http://www.zoochat.com/391/giant-skink-phoboscincus-garnieri-169696/ and http://www.zoochat.com/391/giant-skink-phoboscincus-garnieri-169697/
http://www.zoochat.com/391/knob-headed-giant-gecko-rhacodactylus-auriculatus-169690/
http://www.zoochat.com/391/ouvea-horned-parakeet-eunymphicus-uvaeensis-169779/
http://www.zoochat.com/391/horned-parakeet-eunymphicus-cornutus-169770/
http://www.zoochat.com/391/male-cloven-feathered-dove-drepanoptila-holosericea-169759/
http://www.zoochat.com/391/new-caledonian-imperial-pigeon-ducula-goliath-169762/
http://www.zoochat.com/391/striated-starling-aplonis-striata-169753/

there's more of these species and others in the http://www.zoochat.com/gallery/noumea-zoo/

Hvedekorn · 30 Aug 2010

sooty mangabey said:
The whole of Pilsen Zoo might feature on this thread - a meerkat-free zone!

You would love Denmark then - only four of our zoos keep meerkats and the three biggest ones don't. It's probably due to the translation error in the Danish version af the Lion King, where Timon is referred to as a "desmerdyr" (which can mean any species of viverrine or mongoose), thus a meerkat isn't anything special here. We have tons of banded mongooses, though.

Back to the topic, a perfect contender to this thread would be Copenhagen Zoo's Tasmanian devils. Not sure if we have other remarkable oddities.

Meaghan Edwards · 5 Sep 2010

Perhaps not so rare as maybe overlooked, but fish in general have always been one of my favorite aspects in zoos (and of course, aquariums). I've seen so many people walk past fish exhibits without stopping to look, but to me, they're among the most relaxing animals to watch.

KCZooFan · 5 Sep 2010

I agree with that, but sadly, in our modern culture, animals that just swim back and forth, back and forth, back and forth... aren't as interesting as a huge carnivore or an active primate would be. It is sad but true.

Maguari · 13 Sep 2010

A very special Escape from the ABCs this evening, coming not from a wonderful zoo or an exotic wilderness... but from my own living room.

It's bascially an excuse to show off the latest arrivals at Maguari Towers, 0.0.4 Mascarene Grass Frogs, Ptychadena mascareniensis. These are a very wide-ranging African species (or possibly species complex), a small true frog (ranid).

Very nice little chaps - pretty sure I've got a least one male/female pair in there so fingers crossed.

siamang27 · 20 Sep 2010

Douc langurs, aye-ayes, all bamboo lemurs, and night monkeys are some of the more unusual primates...

For birds, I'd say that some really exciting species for me would be Horned Parakeet, Racket-tailed Roller, Andean Cock-of-the-rock, Bare-throated Bellbird, Superb Bird-of-paradise, Fawn-breasted Bowerbird and many more.

Binturongs are also pretty cool to see.

Chlidonias · 15 Oct 2010

hmm...does anyone like takahe....?

http://www.zoochat.com/400/takahe-porphyrio-hochstetteri-184938/

or just go direct to the Willowbank gallery (I put six photos on there): Willowbank Wildlife Reserve Gallery

Maguari · 15 Oct 2010

Chlidonias said:
hmm...does anyone like takahe....?

Me! Me!

Seriously, that is a very special animal - one of those animals of near-mythical status that I'd love to see. You've got some great shots there.

Escape from the ABCs

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