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snowleopard said:
The zoo now exhibits a species that is almost unheard of in North American zoos: dholes!

Minnesota Zoo
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Yet another reason to visit this zoo. San Diego has had dholes for almost a decade, but has kept them off exhibit, as they have with their tuataras - very frustrating for those of us who would like to see these critters.
 
We need pictures! Every Zoo Chat Agent has their area that they are responsible for. (jokingly)

Anyone know how the MN Zoo got dholes? Its such a surprise to see a new animal exhibited in the US out of the blue, especially when I don't keep up with the TAG publications. I super excited to see that this is happening, another great reason to go see the Minnesota Zoo.
 
I know that they have two females on exhibit right now, and the other two males are still in quarantine. I will try to get pictures of the exhibit today!
 
geomorph said:
Have the dholes replaced the wolves in the Northern Trail area?
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I don't know the answer to your question, but I assumed the very same thing that you have proposed. It would make sense and the exhibit is adaptable to either canid species.
 
It is also very encouraging to see that we are finally recieving new animals into the breeding pool after nearly a decade (The last time new, totally unrelated dholes were imported was when two came from Europe to Toronto Zoo in 2002). This will be a great boost to the breeding program and the genetic diversity overall
 
I found more information regarding the new arrivals. Thanks to this blog by a zoo volunteer. creatures, trees & water

Two female Asian wild dogs, or dholes (rhymes with “holes”), came here from a zoo in Hungary and officially went public Friday in the former Mexican wolf exhibit. Unofficially, they were out there for a few hours Thursday, trotting around their new home, sniffing and making little squeaking noises. I hiked out to look at them — first from the cozy interior of the former wolf gazebo (now redesigned to resemble an Asian yurt), then from a new trail side viewing platform at the exhibit’s opposite edge.

Several guests stopped on the platform to check out the new canines. A child or two asked me if the dholes were foxes, which they clearly resemble. With their lean 45-pound frames and their springy gaits, these two girls remind me of my own petite female Belgian Malinois shepherd dog, who also weighs about 45 pounds, with a black and mahogany coat, and who frequently gets compared to a fox. But instead of the Malinois’ black face and ears, these canids have a bushy black tail– in fact, the puppies are entirely black at birth.

And puppies are part of the plan for this species, endangered throughout its range in Thailand, China, India and Russia. Two males are coming from a zoo in Sweden and will be introduced gradually to the girls, who turn 3 years old in the spring. Dholes have litters of up to 12 pups, so if even just one pair mates, family life in this exhibit could get very interesting.
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Some breeding news from the same blog posted above

It’s been two years since I’ve written here about Chobby, the male Amur leopard from the Czech Republic who had just joined two females in Grizzly Coast as a potential kitty daddy for his nearly extinct species. It’s been all quiet on the Chobby front since then, until he recently shifted into closer proximity to fellow leopard Polina. Murmurings since then suggested that Chobby was not entirely motivated on the reproduction front. In his defense, female Amur leopards spend only a week in heat each year, in January or February. For Polina, that week was this week, and starting Tuesday, Chobby figured it out.

Yesterday was Day 3 of frequent brief breeding episodes, as I learned over lunch in the volunteer lounge. Hurrying out to the exhibit, I passed fellow volunteer Bob, who said he’d just witnessed three quick encounters. A few minutes after arriving, I witnessed another. I discreetly confined my photos to “before” and “after” for reasons both obvious and complex (I was the lone human at the window just then, and leopards surely have no sense of intimate privacy, and it’s all just part of nature, and yet…). As anyone who’s seen cats mating can guess, this “immediately before” shot implies a tenderness that simply wasn’t there. About 10 seconds later, Chobby bared his teeth on Polina’s neck with a loud snarling growl, then stepped off and strutted away.

While zoo felines were mating, two species of zoo canines were getting acquainted with future intended paramours during their own breeding season. Two male dholes from Sweden joined the females in the new Asian wild dog exhibit yesterday; one male trotted along the fence line with the two girls, approaching and retreating and, just once in my sight, flashing a momentary snarl. (Visually, the scene differed little from the photos in my previous post.) On the Minnesota Trail, a dark new male gray wolf from Canada joined our silvery female at the very back of their exhibit; through concealing trees, I caught glimpses of their contrasting fur as they circled and sniffed and frolicked a little. It was a day of record January warmth in some parts of Minnesota, and on these two zoo trails, the air felt warm with the possible promise of pups and cubs. But only time will tell
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Hopefully we will see kittens sometime this spring from the Amur Leopards.
 
ZooMontana is sending its wolverine, Cass, to the Minnesota zoo, where it will be paired with a female in hopes that they will breed in captivity.
 
The zoo is sending its 2 remaining dolphins away and after 34 years (since the zoo opened) the showcasing of dolphins is now over. Director Lee Ehmke, who has done a fantastic job with this excellent zoo, insists that recent deaths were not a factor but 6 deaths in 6 years did not exactly create public support for the aging Discovery Bay facility.

Minnesota Zoo will end its dolphin exhibit | StarTribune.com
 
Though I never been to this zoo and it is on my list to someday go to this zoo,I wonder what the zoo is planning on doing with the current exhibit?

Indianapolis zoo
All 3 seaworlds
Georgia Aquarium
National Aquarium in Baltimore
Those are the places that come to my mind that have bottlnose dolphins.

Doesn't shredd aquarium in Chicago & Omaha Henry doorly zoo have dolphins but different species?
 
Brookfield zoo does also. More probally do, but i saw something about seeing if dolphins can remember calls from relatives that are at other zoos and it said Brookfield zoo trades dolphins with 5 other zoos. I do not think that seaworld would participate.
 
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