Henry Vilas Zoo Henry Vilas Zoo News 2024

IndianRhino

IndianRhino

Well-Known Member
5+ year member
Male polar bear, Borealis, will be transferred to another AZA facility next month on a breeding recommendation!

The zoo is working with the SSP to get another polar bear to join their female, Berit, by the end of this year.

Henry Vilas Zoo on Instagram: "We're gearing up for a BIG move next month! Borealis, or "Bo", is heading to another AZA-accredited zoo on a breeding recommendation. We do not have an exact departure date because moving a polar bear takes a lot of coordination and Wisconsin winter weather doesn't always cooperate, but our goal is to move Bo by mid-February to coincide with the polar bear breeding season, which is just beginning. Bo arrived at Henry Vilas Zoo in late 2020 just shy of his second birthday and weighing in at just over 600 pounds. Now five years old and 1,000 pounds, Bo is just now reaching sexual maturity. Breeding recommendations help keep populations healthy and stable. There are currently fewer than 50 polar bears in zoos in the U.S. due in part to the strict animal care standards that have to be met, so this move is especially important. Polar bear populations in the wild are declining as arctic ice shelves shrink and they have fewer places to hunt. Bo has been an amazing ambassador for his species. Hundreds of thousands of people have visited Bo over the last four years. Bo loves to interact with all sorts of enrichment, from tossing a giant plastic pickle around his yard, to throwing his barrels into the pool, he has delighted guests with his playful antics. Our female polar bear, Berit, is an excellent companion for young bears. She never had cubs, but she is very patient with younger bears and teaches them appropriate bear behavior. We are working closely with AZA and hope to have another bear join Berit by the end of this year. Bo is loved by all of our staff and we will miss him greatly. We are proud to have been a part in his upbringing and know he will thrive in his new environment."
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IndianRhino said:
Male polar bear, Borealis, will be transferred to another AZA facility next month on a breeding recommendation!

The zoo is working with the SSP to get another polar bear to join their female, Berit, by the end of this year.
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The arrival of a new bear is exciting, but it is a shame to see Borealis move. He was quite an active and impressive individual. I'm curious to see if it'll be another young male or an older male.
 
Milwaukee Man said:
Two female rock hyraxes, named Frenchie and Rizzo, have made their debut in the lemur exhibit.

Pair of rock hyraxes make new home at Henry Vilas Zoo
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I wonder if this actually occurred on Friday or not. On my last visit on December 30, 2023, they had three of them on exhibit. I wonder if these were the new females? Henry Vilas went from two males, to one male, to three, unless they had two extra males for a little bit and then sent them off?
 
2/24/2024 Updates
  • More perches and hides have been added to the Aardvark exhibit. They include straw hides on the rockwork, hammocks, branches, ropes, hanging baskets, and a large tube. (Aayla was also quite active today!)
  • There is now only one Chuckwalla in their exhibit.
  • The Eastern Massasauga exhibit is still empty.
  • The Henkel's Leaf-Tailed Gecko and Rhinoceros Iguana exhibits had "Animal Off Exhibit" signs on them. The Rhinoceros Iguana was off-exhibit on my last visit two months ago as well.
  • The faux tree exhibits in the Aviary have been re-done and have educational signs on new trim surrounding the viewing windows. (Note that even though they have been renovated, they do not look the best.) Pepper Cockroaches, Two-Spotted Assassin Bugs, and an Emperor Scorpion are in them.
  • The smaller exhibit that used to house the turaco is birdless once again. (Minus the turtles)
  • The path surrounding one side of the African Lion exhibit was closed off (the side next to the porcupines)
  • The guineafowl and turkeys now officially share an exhibit, with the guineafowl having a new sign talking about their species and what individuals are in there. Aubergine, Gnocchi, Teva, Courgettem and Camembert are their names.

This is the current walk-through aviary inventory:
Italics indicate the species was not seen
  • Hoffmann's Two-Toed Sloth
  • Northern Helmeted Curassow
  • Blue-Crowned Motmot
  • Red-and-Yellow Barbet
  • Red-Capped Cardinal
  • Yellow-Rumped Cacique
  • Silver-Beaked Tanager
  • White-Faced Whistling Duck
  • Chestnut Teal
  • Black-Crowned Night Heron
  • Yellow-Crowned Night Heron
  • Black Crake
  • Blue-and-Gold Macaw
  • Red-Footed Tortoise
 
Does anyone have pictures of what they hope to build for the giraffes? Been trying to see anything and everything I’ve found is just text telling the story of what’s to come. Though I did see someone said that there’s signs showing off the giraffe renovation. If someone does have pictures, would you mind sharing.
 
MKE Zoo guy said:
Does anyone have pictures of what they hope to build for the giraffes? Been trying to see anything and everything I’ve found is just text telling the story of what’s to come. Though I did see someone said that there’s signs showing off the giraffe renovation. If someone does have pictures, would you mind sharing.
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I may have posted some in the gallery, but I would have to double check.
 
Had anyone else noticed that Henry Vilas Zoo lost their vet again? While interning at a different facility over the summer, the vet they had was moving to be Henry Vilas Zoo’s vet, but not long ago I saw the position open again.

I saw they just fire their curator and see if things get better from there…

We will see what happens when they get inspected by the AZA!
 
EsserWarrior said:
Had anyone else noticed that Henry Vilas Zoo lost their vet again? While interning at a different facility over the summer, the vet they had was moving to be Henry Vilas Zoo’s vet, but not long ago I saw the position open again.

I saw they just fire their curator and see if things get better from there…

We will see what happens when they get inspected by the AZA!
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Isn’t the director known to be a bit toxic? Maybe that is the issue?
 
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