Marwell Wildlife Marwell Zoo News 2024

Excellent news (the birth that is).

I thought I only saw 2 mountain zebra on my last couple of visits.
 
I am afraid he is no longer around Marwell have now 0.2.1.
Does this mean there is only a single (adult) Hartmann's zebra stallion in the UK at present - or even none? Paignton don't have one, if Marwell don't have one either that only leaves the Blackpool male or is he dead too? Or does Linton still have them as well?
 
Does this mean there is only a single (adult) Hartmann's zebra stallion in the UK at present - or even none? Paignton don't have one, if Marwell don't have one either that only leaves the Blackpool male or is he dead too? Or does Linton still have them as well?
Current UK numbers are;

Blackpool - 1,2,0
Linton - 0,3,0
Marwell - 0,2,1
Paignton - 0,2,0

That is accurate, providing Linton haven't lost any females this year. The Blackpool male is only young, having been born in 2021 and arrived in a swap move with the sire of Marwell's new foal.
 
Current UK numbers are;

Blackpool - 1,2,0
Linton - 0,3,0
Marwell - 0,2,1
Paignton - 0,2,0

That is accurate, providing Linton haven't lost any females this year. The Blackpool male is only young, having been born in 2021 and arrived in a swap move with the sire of Marwell's new foal.

Thanks. I don't know his genetic relationship to the other various females but there could be quite a lot resting on this young male given the complexities involved with importing animals at present.
 
Thanks. I don't know his genetic relationship to the various females but there could be quite a lot resting on this young male given the complexities involved with importing animals at present.
The new male at Blackpool is unrelated, he arrived with a new female from Marwell Wildlife but they have different parentage - the other female at Blackpool is the offspring of the sire of the new foal at Marwell. It will be interesting to see what the future is for Hartmann's mountain zebra going forward within the UK.
 
Sounds like we really need the new foal to be male.

What about the ages and genetics of the mares at Paignton and Linton Is there potential there is the Marwell foal is male?
 
Sounds like we really need the new foal to be male.

What about the ages and genetics of the mares at Paignton and Linton Is there potential there is the Marwell foal is male?
The Linton females are probably more feasible as two of the three females were born in 2016 - the Paignton individuals are also an option, Paignton previous male was the offspring of the sire of the new foal at Marwell. He sired two foals, but, according to the online studbook they have both died.
 
Thanks. I don't know his genetic relationship to the other various females but there could be quite a lot resting on this young male given the complexities involved with importing animals at present.
Importing equids should be easier than pretty much everything else.
No Bluetongue to worry about, and equine moves are sorted with systems in place - presumably due to the lobbying and financial clout of the horse-racing industry.
 
Importing equids should be easier than pretty much everything else.
No Bluetongue to worry about, and equine moves are sorted with systems in place - presumably due to the lobbying and financial clout of the horse-racing industry.

That is good to hear. Plenty of Hartmann's have been born over the years in the UK. At Marwell in particular, but also a smaller number at Paignton and Blackpool, though they now seem to have dwindled to this very small population with an almost total bias to females. These things suddenly creep up unawares sometimes.

Going forward it sounds as if at least one new stallion is needed from Europe to ensure
the future.
 
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Do they need to be European, though? Surely it would be better to go straight to the source, and bring in some fresh blood in Africa?
 
This discussion has made me realise that Marwell's decision several years ago to reduce animal numbers to 3 or 4 per species and not hold large herds may have deeper consequences. The larger groups and more frequent births would have helped to prevent this scenario where you have a shortage of one gender.

Mountain zebra wasn't one of their larger herds, but they did have more than they have held recently.
 
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