Insects replacing elephants, they may as well shut the zoo down, and sell the land of.
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Insects replacing elephants, they may as well shut the zoo down, and sell the land of.
Let’s not throw the baby out with the bath water. Trail of the Elephants is my favourite precinct; but the rest of the zoo is still impressive when you consider exhibits like the Snow leopard, Sumatran tiger, Sumatran tiger Hamadryas baboon and Giraffe exhibits; as well as complexes like Gorilla Rainforest, the pinniped pool and the Reptile House.
Many zoos in the region have adapted fine without elephants - Adelaide and Wellington; with Auckland, Perth, Taronga and Melbourne now following suit.
Oh don't get me wrong, zoos can be great without elephants. Melbourne is a nice zoo. But with all the land the complex has and the funding the zoo has. If they replace elephants with insects, they may as well shut the zoo. Management have given up and its only a matter of time before the rest fall of.
They have a large chunk of land to utilise, they could build a huge new multi species display for there orangs and gibbons that utilise high ropes. Chuck a coffee shop in under and have insects and other small species to fill in around. But if they are going to waste the opportunity, it's a very big indicator of what's to come.
Melbourne isn't like taronga where in 10 years time they may bring bull elephants back. So they are keeping the exhibit intact or as close to as possible. Melbourne will have no need to with there complex at Werribee.
Great news if true! Which enclosure was this in reference to?
It also almost certainly seems to point towards Melbourne acquiring one of ARP's hatchlings from a couple years back. Melbourne have long been interested in acquiring Komodos (they were in early plans for the Carnivores precinct a decade back); so it would be awesome if they are finally displaying them. It would also be the first Komodo in zoo history!
Chester Zoo are opening a 'Heart of Africa' precinct in 2025, not sure if there's some confusion there. And at times Werribee is referred to as the 'Heart of Africa' too.
However I'm positive there is no 'Heart of Africa' precinct at Melbourne (or at least what is public knowledge). It would also make little sense with Werribee being entirely African themed, and majority of Melbourne's African species having recent ish enclosures. If we were to assume animals like Giraffes, zebra ect. would be moved into the current Elephant complex (which btw, makes no sense theming wise), the current enclosures would require quite extensive renovations to flatten out the habitats. Plus the barns too.
Even an African precinct on the smaller side wouldn't make sense when you already have Werribee who could do with additional species as it is. I guess if there is something that isn't currently public knowledge that @Kifaru Bwana has been made aware of; it could be a revamp of the current Elephant complex for African forest species. This would sort of align with the surrounding theming, and would allow for new exhibits to be built for the likes of Pygmy Hippo and Colubus.
The Sleepy Hippo
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I don't think the elephants are being replaced by insects. I imagine if some more insects are going in they will not be taking up much space, and will be linking in with the Butterfly house. The entire elephant section of the trail will be shut off from the public, and the trail much shorter. The redevelopment will most likely take considerable time.
Don't expect anything dramatic to be built any time soon.
Zoos Vic barely breaks even; in fact, I believe they were recently operating at a deficit. They rely on Government grants for substantial projects and have only recently received funding for the elephant project.
The State Government is operating at a huge deficit, there have been cutbacks across many areas. For instance, 100 staff were recently axed from Parks Victoria and promised new national parks have been put aside. I would be surprised if there was much new at Melbourne Zoo for a while.
Zoos Vic barely breaks even; in fact, I believe they were recently operating at a deficit. They rely on Government grants for substantial projects and have only recently received funding for the elephant project.
The State Government is operating at a huge deficit, there have been cutbacks across many areas. For instance, 100 staff were recently axed from Parks Victoria and promised new national parks have been put aside. I would be surprised if there was much new at Melbourne Zoo for a while.
That pretty much hits the nail on the head, the state government has been investing in a lot of other projects and infrastructure as of late (not directly related to wildlife) so funding any project at Melbourne on a large scale (like an Orangutan expansion) is probably a fair way away.
Taronga is simply placing an Indian Rhino plus a few Water Buffalo in their complex meaning they need to make little to no changes to their current complex. I do wonder whether Melbourne may end up going in a similar direction, although in their case they don't have an Indian Rhino on hand to utilise as a replacement.
That's also a decent plan on tarongas part, especially if they in a few years time need space, They can easily house two bull elephants in the exhibit if they decide to do so at a later time. ZoosVic don't need to do anything like that with there Werribee complex 40 minutes away.
Als bearing in mind that Melbourne Zoo comes under the Zoos Victoria umbrella, with the elephant complex at Werribee taking priority over everything.
The empty elephant exhibits at Melbourne remain a gap that needs to be addressed. In the interim between a total development, it wouldn’t be surprising to see something inexpensive act as a filler (something exciting is coming soon). Whether that be domestic hoofstock (camels, water buffalo); or something like a ropes course as previously mentioned.
For the record, I prefer the Indian rhinoceros idea too - if only Zoos Victoria had one!
Considering it's a state run organisation, does running at a deficit matter. Taronga for a very long time ran at a deficit. Im not even sure if it's making a profit today. NSW did a similar thing back 10 years ago, except they made redundant up to of memory 30% or national parks and staff throughout the botanic gardens. Then a few short years later announced large scale projects like the revamp of there African theme, the sumatran tiger enclosures etc.
Now the hippo IRA has gone through if the imported 2 females to put with there male. They could house the pygmy hippos and the nyala together as mixed species exhibits. Which would be a good temp place holder.
Speaking of which, long term it would be good to see them expand/rebuild there orang and gibbon enclosures and build purpose built pygmy hippo and colobus exhibits. That would be a fantastic use of the land.
Speaking of which, long term it would be good to see them expand/rebuild there orang and gibbon enclosures and build purpose built pygmy hippo and colobus exhibits. That would be a fantastic use of the land.
The Sleepy Hippo
Well-Known Member
I think it is perfectly fine that they run at a deficit. Tickets for non members are expensive as it is, and children get free entry on weekends and holidays. If it had to run at surplus, ticket prices would go up, and there would not be any free days.
Plus they are open every day of the year, so don't avoid the public holiday and Sunday pay bonuses.
Plus they are open every day of the year, so don't avoid the public holiday and Sunday pay bonuses.
@Tiger91
The state of Victoria government would say its not a financially good time period to be giving another big injection of money into Melbourne Zoo itself right now; the Werribee Elephant complex being the massive project of late for Zoos Vic all up the state government has spent on. Maybe over next few years will see bit of financing for Healesville and Kyabram on a much smaller scale towards upkeep of native wildlife and while Melbourne Zoo will of course get a bit of continuous funding every year; think MRJ's example about 100 national parks staff losing their jobs (man that's brutal) is an example of where the state government of Victoria is finding itself currently.
Think MZ's new exhibits/upgraded exhibits/replacement exhibits run of recent years has stopped for a few years now. It'll start again in near-ish future.
The state of Victoria government would say its not a financially good time period to be giving another big injection of money into Melbourne Zoo itself right now; the Werribee Elephant complex being the massive project of late for Zoos Vic all up the state government has spent on. Maybe over next few years will see bit of financing for Healesville and Kyabram on a much smaller scale towards upkeep of native wildlife and while Melbourne Zoo will of course get a bit of continuous funding every year; think MRJ's example about 100 national parks staff losing their jobs (man that's brutal) is an example of where the state government of Victoria is finding itself currently.
Think MZ's new exhibits/upgraded exhibits/replacement exhibits run of recent years has stopped for a few years now. It'll start again in near-ish future.
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The fencing would need to be modified for Nyala - so we can probably throw that idea out the window.
I remember Melbourne were planning to acquire Malayan Tapir and since their previous enclosure is currently being occupied by the Nyala, perhaps they'll be housed in part of the Elephant complex. The barn may help with their eye issues per se.
Hypothetically an Orangutan expansion wouldn't need to take up as much space of the current elephant complex if they utilised the island opposite too, which would be preferable.
I think Brazilian tapir are a strong likelihood given regional interest in this species and plans to import several new founders in the coming years. It makes even more sense with the upcoming Xenarthra IRA - a true South American revival. All we need now is Jaguar to make a comeback!
I’d love to see this eventuate, with the adjacent island utilised too. The existing orangutan exhibit is adequate; but new supporting infrastructure, including a second night house and day room as well as aerial pathways, could turn it into so much more.
That Aussie Guy
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A bit off-topic, but do you think this new IRA will see sloths, armadillos, or anteaters make a return to Melbourne Zoo, or the country as a whole?
Absolutely. As Steve said in the Xenartha IRA thread, a lot of the main zoos are showing strong interest in the completion of this IRA which solidifies their interest in potentially importing a fair amount of the species once this IRA is completed.
All three of the species you mentioned should be of interest to Melbourne, especially when you consider the species they've lost as of late and their noticeable lack of 'South American' species.
Yes I do. Steve Robinson shared this list of species that have been agreed to as a region:
Giant Anteater
Two-toed Sloth [Linne's]
Tamandua
Yellow Armadillo
Three-banded Armadillo
Combnined with Melbourne Zoo’s interest in importing Brazilian tapir and I believe we’re headed for a South American resurgence!
Rounding down, Zoos Vic received $74 million from admission and sales, while it cost them $136 million to run the four zoos (22-23 figures). In other words, they are already running at a substantial deficit. This deficit is funded by Government grants. It is up to the Government to decide how much their subsidy will be, and the Board has to decide how they manage the zoos to make that work. A growing unfunded deficit would not see the zoos close, but it may see a number of senior people in Zoos Vic looking for other work.
The size of the State deficit is about the only election issue the opposition have at the moment, so the Government will not be looking to grow it.
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