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Does anybody know how many red wolves the Fort Worth Zoo has? I know that at one point in time, they had one named (1.0) Jack, however, I haven't been able to confirm if he has passed away, been transferred, or still at the zoo. I also know they have one named Chicora, but I can't determine whether that one is a male or female.
 
In addition, does anybody happen to know the number of giraffes that Fort Worth Zoo has? They have had so many giraffe births in the last couple of years, that I haven't been able to keep track of who is still at the zoo versus who has been moved to other zoos or died. So, if anyone knows the names and genders of the giraffes, I would love to if you could tell me?
 
King of Komodo Dragons said:
The zoo has been teasing the new exhibit with short reels, we have seen ones for the lions, painted dogs, and cheetahs, but they finally showed of the African Leopard....and its a melanistic, which all but kills any hope they will have pure African Leopards

RUN, don’t walk. Predators of Asia & Africa opening June 22 ‼️ | Fort Worth Zoo |
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Were they previously saying they’d be showcasing African Leopards? I assumed they would have Amur Leopards as stand-ins as most zoos do that participate in the SSP.
 
Julio C Castro said:
Were they previously saying they’d be showcasing African Leopards? I assumed they would have Amur Leopards as stand-ins as most zoos do that participate in the SSP.
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Everything they posted specifically mentioned African Leopards, even the giant sign they had posted at the zoo, and the recent announcement of the exhibits release still said African Leopards. This is what gave me hope they were going to import some pure ones from Africa, FT Worth Zoo has a history with african imports as their lion pride and striped hyenas were imports.
 

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King of Komodo Dragons said:
Everything they posted specifically mentioned African Leopards, even the giant sign they had posted at the zoo, and the recent announcement of the exhibits release still said African Leopards. This is what gave me hope they were going to import some pure ones from Africa, FT Worth Zoo has a history with african imports as their lion pride and striped hyenas were imports.
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I just seen that when looked up the exhibit on their website, it does make mention of African Leopards. Is it possible they actually imported some? Maybe they did but I presume they’re going to use Amurs. I know when San Diego was doing Africa Rocks, at least a couple different places made mention of African Leopards, especially one of their design plans. But turns out they’re really Amur Leopards :oops:

Predators
 
Julio C Castro said:
I just seen that when looked up the exhibit on their website, it does make mention of African Leopards. Is it possible they actually imported some? Maybe they did but I presume they’re going to use Amurs. I know when San Diego was doing Africa Rocks, at least a couple different places made mention of African Leopards, especially one of their design plans. But turns out they’re really Amur Leopards :oops:

Predators
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I plan to visit the week after the exhibit opens(and hopefully this heatwave will be over) so I will hopefully be able to confirm which type of leopard it is. The video they posted does match closely with pictures of melanistic african leopards found in nature so it is still possible it's a pure african just a morph. Amur's have longer fur than african's. African's would do way better in Texas's hot summers than Amurs would, but I guess we will have to wait until the exhibit is open to know for sure.
 
lintworm said:
Given the great rarity of melanism in wild African leopards, I am not sure a zoo reply on facebook is enough evidence....
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Then again, if they went through all the time and effort to import African leopards in the first place, there's a high chance that the zoo picked out which cats'd be the most showy. That said, don't wanna extend this debate further and just bask in the fact that an AMERICAN zoo has legitimate African leopards.
 
StoppableSan said:
Then again, if they went through all the time and effort to import African leopards in the first place, there's a high chance that the zoo picked out which cats'd be the most showy. That said, don't wanna extend this debate further and just bask in the fact that an AMERICAN zoo has legitimate African leopards.
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They are so rare that a black leopard in Kenya a few years ago was the first confirmed black African leopard in 100 years. See the link below:

https://www.escapesafarico.com/post/the-discovery-of-the-africa-black-leopard

So unless the origin of these animals becomes clear, I remain doubtful....
 
StoppableSan said:
Then again, if they went through all the time and effort to import African leopards in the first place, there's a high chance that the zoo picked out which cats'd be the most showy. That said, don't wanna extend this debate further and just bask in the fact that an AMERICAN zoo has legitimate African leopards.
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Have they confirmed they imported them? Or did they obtain them from a non-AZA facility in the US that has African leopards (or leopards they claim are "100% pure African leopards")? It'll be interesting to see whether Fort Worth indicates from which facility they obtained them.
 
King of Komodo Dragons said:
Quick update to my post from yesterday. Fort Worth Zoo responded to my question on Facebook. and confirmed that both their African Leopards are 100% pure African Leopards, both are siblings and one is melanistic.
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I don’t know, unless the zoo is clear about where they got these leopards from, this sounds like a “dude trust me bro” from them. I am sure the most accurate answer regarding the lineage of these leopards is either from ZIMS or a DNA test.
 
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