From the looks of it, it appears Melbourne already have a five year masterplan.
It would be interesting to see what it'd involve, but i'm assuming a key part will be what's replacing the elephants.
Melbourne Zoo Future of Melbourne Zoo 2022 (Speculation / Fantasy)
- Thread starter austrlain zoo gower
- Start date
-
- Tags
- melbourne zoo
From the looks of it, it appears Melbourne already have a five year masterplan.
It would be interesting to see what it'd involve, but i'm assuming a key part will be what's replacing the elephants.
austrlain zoo gower
Well-Known Member
As pritty much confirmed by multiple keepers and zoochaters hopefully mandrills will be coming around early next year,but where are the nyala they are on the Melbourne zoo map at least at the zoo,the keepers seemed confident they would come,my reason would be they had iris and the zebra arnt mixed together and adding another species would make matters worst I would say they have been delayed, I’ve tried to research but can find any info
I would assume the move has been delayed if there's integration issues with the giraffe and zebra. The Nyala could easily be held at Werribee for longer until the zoo are ready to receive them. Their mention on the map represents an intention to have them on display soon.
For the record, Nyala are very amicable from what I've seen, with even the males suitable for mixed species exhibits.
Last edited:
Melbourne Zoo have no intention of holding elephants in the future (even bachelor bulls). There will be facilities to accommodate bull elephants at Werribee - beginning with Luk Chai and Man Jai; and it's been widely speculated that they will receive Putra Mas from Perth in the futue.
Indian rhincoeros would be a great addition to Melbourne Zoo and I'd say there's a strong likelihood they've been identified as the replacement for the elephants. There's potential for a mixed species exhibit with Indian antelope etc.
Well there's a young male in Dubbo that will need a new home in a couple of years and since European zoos have I believe halted breeding at this time due to lack of new holders finding a female to pair with the male at Dubbo should not be to difficult.
At this stage, I don't think there's much chance of receiving additional female founders given we're not utilising the ones we've got to their full potential. I expect Sabai will be accommodated at Dubbo long term as there will be no use for him at Werribee. He could be the most suitable role model for the next cohort of male calves given Gung and Pathi Harn are more forceful in personality.
Swanson02
Well-Known Member
I personally would prefer Hari to end up in Perth with a European female there. A pair could occupy the soon-to-be-vacated elephant exhibits (Obviously with a bit of renovation and expansion to allow the rhinos to run). That would allow Perth to phase out their White Rhino, without losing rhinos in WA. That could allow Perth to expand their Savanna into the old White Rhino exhibits. Or hold something new in them like Pygmy Hippo.
I think @Zorro's comment was about our Indian Rhinos, not Asian Elephants
Last edited:
Correct, sorry I was not clear enough.
Last edited:
No problem, it was my fault as well. It'd be nice to see Hari found a mate from Europe to continue the success of Dubbo's breeding programme. A new founder pair would be a good addition at either Melbourne or Perth as well (whichever didn't receive Hari), so that our population doesn't descend soley from Dubbo's pair.
Actually another pair in Perth would be a major bonus, having a third pair in the region even more so since European zoos are at capacity
Agreed. Importing a further two breeding pairs would sustain the regional population for three or four decades combined with Dubbo's pair and generate enough surplus to supply other new holders that arise.
They haven't arrived yet - and they aren't on the actual map (online, and the ones handed out), just one near the Train station entrance. The former Bongo enclosure looked to be fenced off with a lot of overgrown vegetation removed, so maybe they plan to exhibit them there at first once they arrive.
Also on the topic of what's replacing the elephants, it's still very much in the air, although to my understanding Melbourne will be moving away from large ungulates overall (of course, with the exception of Giraffe and Zebra).
I'm not sure what exactly they have in plan (although it's most likely been decided).
I'm backflipping on my previous stance regarding this situation. I visit both Werribee and Melbourne often and know a few of the keepers. They believe that if Indian Rhinos were to be kept by Zoos Victoria, they'd be kept at Werribee. Werribee has the space to breed this species, unlike Melbourne who (with limited space) will probably be looking to reinvest the space into smaller, rainforest species.
It's still unknown yet what will replace the elephants, those are just my thoughts.
I genuinely don't have a single outstanding idea of what will, so it'll be interesting to see what they finally decide.
I'm not sure what exactly they have in plan (although it's most likely been decided).
I'm backflipping on my previous stance regarding this situation. I visit both Werribee and Melbourne often and know a few of the keepers. They believe that if Indian Rhinos were to be kept by Zoos Victoria, they'd be kept at Werribee. Werribee has the space to breed this species, unlike Melbourne who (with limited space) will probably be looking to reinvest the space into smaller, rainforest species.
It's still unknown yet what will replace the elephants, those are just my thoughts.
I genuinely don't have a single outstanding idea of what will, so it'll be interesting to see what they finally decide.
That area would be suitable for a pair of Indian rhino, little if anything would really need to be done, 3 yards and a pool are a bonus also a large indoor area..
It makes sense to house Indian rhinoceros at Werribee. It’d allow a larger herd to be kept rather than the pair we’d see at Melbourne Zoo - as well as allowing the housing of a stimulant bull.
However, the fact remains that the visitors will be expecting a replacement when the elephants leave and there’s few species that will meet or exceed those expectations. Melbourne already has Western lowland gorilla, Sumatran orangutan and Snow leopard.
So here’s a controversial idea…Giant panda. Giant panda are viewed by the majority of people on ZooChat as a diversion of money from other species. However, they’re huge crowd pullers and bearing in mind the zoo board’s many skills largely lie outside of Zoology, it’s not hard to imagine they’d be viewing them as the ultimate replacement. They’re a symbol of prestige and obtaining them would increase Melbourne’s profile by taking out Adelaide’s point of difference.
In perfect world yes I agree with you. The public will likely expect a big ticket item to replace a herd of elephants and yes if it can house a herd of elephants its big enough for a pair of IR. I don't think we we will ever see a larger herd of IR any where in the region, all these years now and still only one pair in the region but a herd would be wonderful but unlikely
I am referring to the current elephant herd at the Melbourne zoo
Yes, but it takes up a lot of space, which could be put to use in a much better way for a city zoo. An extension to the Asian area is what I expect with species such as Sri Lankan Leopards, Binturongs, Red Pandas ect.
They could slot those species in with little problem