I went to Healesville on the weekend and saw the single remaining Tassie Devil they have. Getting a large number of disease free Devils breeding should be a priority of all Australian zoos. I asked about why they dont have more and was told that the Tasmainian Government does not want to export any.
Another thing which suprised me was in the Platypus building there where several Maquarie Perch on display. These fish are one of our most threatened native fish and the tank did not even have a sigh saying what they were. The last remaning healthy breeding population of Maquarie perch is in the Yarra river where they were translocated to over 100 years ago. All other populations in their natural range are either extinct or declining. These fish so far can not be bred in captivity and are all killed by EHN whcih is spred by redfin and rainbow trout as well as the competition with mass stockings of introduced preditors/compeditors (trout).
Another thing which suprised me was in the Platypus building there where several Maquarie Perch on display. These fish are one of our most threatened native fish and the tank did not even have a sigh saying what they were. The last remaning healthy breeding population of Maquarie perch is in the Yarra river where they were translocated to over 100 years ago. All other populations in their natural range are either extinct or declining. These fish so far can not be bred in captivity and are all killed by EHN whcih is spred by redfin and rainbow trout as well as the competition with mass stockings of introduced preditors/compeditors (trout).