lemurs
- Thread starter Cat-Man
- Start date
Any good exhibit should have lots of enrichment to prevent the animal from getting bored and be appropriately sized for the animal. So something that would be good for lemurs, would be a fairly large enclosure, lots of ropes and wooden structures and things for them to climb on and an indoor area for them to get some privacy.
ZooLeopard
Well-Known Member
Cant go wrong with an island. Same as HuxleyPig, lots of enrichment, ropes tall trees and thick foliage. A clearing though so visitors can veiw them.
Panthera Puss
Well-Known Member
I suppose you have to think firstly about the type of area your lemurs inhabit in the wild, and any special needs they have tied to this, e.g. Ringtails on sandy scrubby areas with small bushes & trees; Ruffeds more arboreal and need to nest if reproducing; others live in spiny forest or sharp rocky areas, etc. Trees and bushes might be an optimum distance apart to allow a challenging leap between them.
They need space to go out & forage for food so you would need good enrichment opportunities for scattering or hiding food built in as well as the ability to bring in special enrichment activities like hanging feeders. You might want to build in feeders or holders for juice or water bottles. You would need safe & enriching plants, ideally some that the lemurs can eat safely. The animals may need access to soil for the intake of minerals.
You would need to think about the position of the sun to provide both shade & sunbathing opportunities.
You would need a roof or hot-wire to prevent them from climbing out, so the ground plan would need to take this into consideration. You would need quick easy access to electrical supplies in case of animal mishaps with any hot-wire, plus some sort of back-up generator or battery.
Inside accomodation would need heating for winter plus a water supply/ies accessible to all members of the group. You would need the ability to isolate indioviduals or sub-groups for social or vet. reasons. Ideally you would have a choice of accomodation / day dens for when social fall-outs happen and the animals need to avoid each other. You might need some sort of outside annexe for sick / socially challenged (or just plain naughty) animals to be safely separated from others at times. If you need to make staggered introductions of animals e.g. with mixed species exhibits, an area like this might also be useful.
You would need to think about flooring materials, and how easy it would be to keep them clean in the context of chosen substrate & bedding materials. You may need to disinfect inside quarters at times, or renew soil substrates especially in a hot climate - how could enclosure design make this easier? Inside & outside areas need good drainage. You would have to think about pest control - would you need extra deep fencing to keep burrowers out, or a roof to protect from birds of prey?
You might want a dedicated food preparation room, especially as lemurs need to follow diets to some degree and have their food isolated from citrus fruit sources where appropriate.
Double doors for security and some sort of lighting for winter, especially if your lemurs are nocturnal & need to have night access.
Stand-off barriers of an appropriate distance to allow good viewing but prevent feeding & teasing from the public. If you're taking the public in for 'experiences' you need to think about how you're going to do that safely - you might need bigger safety areas between inner & outer doors for safe coming & going, plus a way in that avoids inappropriate or scruffy working areas.
Just some of my thoughts - hope they're of some use to you!
They need space to go out & forage for food so you would need good enrichment opportunities for scattering or hiding food built in as well as the ability to bring in special enrichment activities like hanging feeders. You might want to build in feeders or holders for juice or water bottles. You would need safe & enriching plants, ideally some that the lemurs can eat safely. The animals may need access to soil for the intake of minerals.
You would need to think about the position of the sun to provide both shade & sunbathing opportunities.
You would need a roof or hot-wire to prevent them from climbing out, so the ground plan would need to take this into consideration. You would need quick easy access to electrical supplies in case of animal mishaps with any hot-wire, plus some sort of back-up generator or battery.
Inside accomodation would need heating for winter plus a water supply/ies accessible to all members of the group. You would need the ability to isolate indioviduals or sub-groups for social or vet. reasons. Ideally you would have a choice of accomodation / day dens for when social fall-outs happen and the animals need to avoid each other. You might need some sort of outside annexe for sick / socially challenged (or just plain naughty) animals to be safely separated from others at times. If you need to make staggered introductions of animals e.g. with mixed species exhibits, an area like this might also be useful.
You would need to think about flooring materials, and how easy it would be to keep them clean in the context of chosen substrate & bedding materials. You may need to disinfect inside quarters at times, or renew soil substrates especially in a hot climate - how could enclosure design make this easier? Inside & outside areas need good drainage. You would have to think about pest control - would you need extra deep fencing to keep burrowers out, or a roof to protect from birds of prey?
You might want a dedicated food preparation room, especially as lemurs need to follow diets to some degree and have their food isolated from citrus fruit sources where appropriate.
Double doors for security and some sort of lighting for winter, especially if your lemurs are nocturnal & need to have night access.
Stand-off barriers of an appropriate distance to allow good viewing but prevent feeding & teasing from the public. If you're taking the public in for 'experiences' you need to think about how you're going to do that safely - you might need bigger safety areas between inner & outer doors for safe coming & going, plus a way in that avoids inappropriate or scruffy working areas.
Just some of my thoughts - hope they're of some use to you!
Panthera Puss
Well-Known Member
I noticed you accomplished this very well at the IOW Zoo.
Yes, I suppose you write what you know about (including the reference to 'naughty' lemurs, you know who you are).
Seriously, the animal & maintenance staff have done an awesome job with the lemur enclosures, not always appreciated.
Ring-tailed Lemur - Lemur catta : WAZA : World Association of Zoos and Aquariums
Black-and-white Ruffed Lemur - Varecia variegata : WAZA : World Association of Zoos and Aquariums
Click on the "In the Zoo" section on those pages
Black-and-white Ruffed Lemur - Varecia variegata : WAZA : World Association of Zoos and Aquariums
Click on the "In the Zoo" section on those pages
An interesting question as there are so many alternatives.
I can think of examples of each of these schemes in the UK at the moment, some designs suit some species better than others - but I don't think you can be dogmatic about a perfect design for lemurs.
Alan
- cage, island or hot-wired enclosure?
- indoor viewing only, indoor & outdoor viewing or outdoor only?
- distant viewing, viewing through wire, viewing through glass or walk-through?
- single species, mixed lemur species or lemurs mixed with other mammals (and/or birds)?
- dead branches and bark flooring, dead branches and grass, live native trees and herbs, exotic planting (palms, bamboos etc)?
I can think of examples of each of these schemes in the UK at the moment, some designs suit some species better than others - but I don't think you can be dogmatic about a perfect design for lemurs.
Alan
adrian1963
Well-Known Member
Lemur Wood at Dudley zoo isn't bad