Marwell Wildlife My Monthly Updates 2011 #1

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If the 2011 guide book is anything like the 2010 one and priced at £8 i think no one will buy it and marwell would have wasted a lot of money on printing it who ever makes these books and prices up needs to find a new job i think
 
The idea of an annual guidebook is an excellent one. The realisation of that idea, last year, was appalling - and if this £8 figure is correct, then this year's effort is doomed to failure. I certainly don't want to impugn Zambar's good name, but I just can't believe that anyone at the zoo would be stupid enough to charge that amount of money for a flimsy, rather cruddy guidebook. Surely, there must be more to it than this? So much that has happened at this once very good zoo has been inexplicable, and in relation to all of that a piece of laughable marketing is very small beer, but even so.... Are you sure it wasn't 80 pence, or came with money-off vouchers worth £8, or something like that?
 
I had to blink twice! Then again I wouldn't be surprised if it was cheaper with vouchers or the like, the line for annual pass and ticket holders at the gate was three times as long as paying punters today.
 
Some observations from today's visit to Marwell:

1) Firstly, the 2011 guidebook is £3.50 NOT £8 (although it does say something along the lines of "£8 worth of discount vouchers inside" on the cover)
2) A couple more mara have been born
3) The Amur leopards are due to be mixed for breeding this week
4) The bat house seems very sparse since the deaths of so many Seba's bats last year
5) The three emus have moved into the old roan antelope enclosure, although they were confined to the hardstanding today
6) The male fossa was showing a lot of interest in the female, and she was 'growling' at him and nipping at his neck, but I didn't see any actual mating
7) The young pair of snow leopards were mating
 
mhale said:
Some observations from today's visit to Marwell:

1) Firstly, the 2011 guidebook is £3.50 NOT £8 (although it does say something along the lines of "£8 worth of discount vouchers inside" on the cover)
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Never mind snow leopards mating and cheetah enclosures being built - I'm very glad to read this piece of information! I just couldn't believe the previously-quoted figure. Next question: is it any good?
 
Well, having flicked through it and realising it didn't appear much different to last year's, I didn't buy it, so we'll have to wait and see what others think of it :)
 
Must've been the voucher thing I saw then, thanks for proving me one. :) I'll volunteer to buy and review one proper next time I go then, though obviously not expecting much. :p

I also forgot to mention in my last post that the last of the rodrigues fruit bats died a few weeks ago, so it's just down to seba's.
 
Some notes from today's visit to Marwell:

1) Apparently, the male giant anteater Antonio (previously thought to be a female and called Arica) has moved out of the collection recently, and a new female either has arrived or will be arriving soon to hopefully form a breeding pair with Ernesto
2) There are now a pair of lowland anoas in the enclosure which previously only held the male called Vladimir
3) The pond in the middle of the Life in the Trees exhibit (siamang gibbons, otters and lowland anoas) has been drained, in order to try to find out where the otters escaped from some time ago
4) I caught a glimpse of an offshow violet turaco which is due to go into the free flight aviary at some point
5) I saw the first Bennett's wallaby joey of this year
6) A new small building has been constructed which adjoins the Sulawesi crested macaque house
7) Some of the maras have been moved into an enclosure adjacent to the okapis, which previously held a sarus crane
8) A new young female pure Rothschild giraffe arrived from Leipzig Zoo on Monday. I believe she is called Jade and she is just under 2 years old. She was already mixed with the herd and seemed very calm although I was told that earlier in the week the male Kismet had been bullying her and he had to be separated from the herd. Also, the intention is that another pure Rothschild will be arriving from Woburn at the end of the month and, eventually, the hybrids will be moved on
 
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Thanks for the update Mhale seems like a few collections are going into pure Rothschild Giraffes nowadays Chester,Belfast and now Marwell maybe these are going to Blair Drummond?
 
@Mhale, glad it is working out this year with Rothschildt's giraffe! One new female from the Continent and another due in from Woburn soon.

It seems a bit of a departure from earlier last year when it was reported all the hybrid females were to stay as the deal to bring in new rothschildis from elsewhere proved too costly and paperly.
 
mhale said:
Some notes from today's visit to Marwell:

1) Apparently, the male giant anteater Antonio (previously thought to be a female and called Arica) has moved out of the collection recently, and a new female either has arrived or will be arriving soon to hopefully form a breeding pair with Ernesto
2) There are now a pair of lowland anoas in the enclosure which previously only held the male called Vladimir
3) The pond in the middle of the Life in the Trees exhibit (siamang gibbons, otters and lowland anoas) has been drained, in order to try to find out where the otters escaped from some time ago
4) I caught a glimpse of an offshow violet turaco which is due to go into the free flight aviary at some point
5) I saw the first Bennett's wallaby joey of this year
6) A new small building has been constructed which adjoins the Sulawesi crested macaque house
7) Some of the maras have been moved into an enclosure adjacent to the okapis, which previously held a sarus crane
8) A new young female pure Rothschild giraffe arrived from Leipzig Zoo on Monday. I believe she is called Jade and she is just under 2 years old. She was already mixed with the herd and seemed very calm although I was told that earlier in the week the male Kismet had been bullying her and he had to be separated from the herd. Also, the intention is that another pure Rothschild will be arriving from Woburn at the end of the month and, eventually, the hybrids will be moved on
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Mhale you are incorrect Jade did not come from Leipzig Zoo,She arrived on 8 March after travelling via road from Burgers’ Zoo in the Netherlands and has settled in very well. Jade is nearly two years old, she was born on 16 April 2009.
 
Kifaru Bwana said:
@Mhale, glad it is working out this year with Rothschildt's giraffe! One new female from the Continent and another due in from Woburn soon.

It seems a bit of a departure from earlier last year when it was reported all the hybrid females were to stay as the deal to bring in new rothschildis from elsewhere proved too costly and paperly.
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I suspect they saw other leading UK zoos addressing the purity problem in their Giraffe groups, and did not wish to be left behind- so reversed their previous decision over this?
 
jordan-12 said:
Mhale you are incorrect Jade did not come from Leipzig Zoo,She arrived on 8 March after travelling via road from Burgers’ Zoo in the Netherlands and has settled in very well. Jade is nearly two years old, she was born on 16 April 2009.
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It appears that what I was told on my visit was wrong. As a Marwell regular, I would be very grateful if anyone with a current giraffe studbook could advise Jade's parentage please :)
 
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Today was a nice, sunny day for a visit to Marwell. The 'Savannah Tracks' cheetah exhibit is due to open next month and it looks like it is on schedule. It will be good to see Turkus, Suki and Juba onshow again.

I was told that an offshow male Western black and white colobus monkey has transferred to Blackpool Zoo.

The pair of violet turacoes are now in the housing adjacent to the free flight aviary, so presumably they will be able to fly into the aviary in the near future.

New arrivals (since the information board was last updated) are as follows:

27/01/11 - 4 Gila Monsters from Rotterdam Zoo
07/02/11 - 2 Violet Turacoes from Paultons Park
08/03/11 - Female Rothschild Giraffe 'Jade' from Burger's Zoo, Netherlands

New births (since the information board was last updated) are as follows:

23/02/11 - 2 Dwarf Mongooses
27/02/11 - 2 Cotton-top Tamarins
13/03/11 - Female Sable Antelope
 
Nisha said:
Mieke passed away on 16th December
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Mieke was 25 years old when she died and was the oldest okapi at the zoo. At the other end of the spectrum, Zukisa gave birth to Kiburi's son (called Micah) on 19th December 2010, but he did not drink and subsequently died on 24th December. What a terrible shame for Marwell to lose two okapis within 8 days :(
 
Just out of interest how are the Okapis grouped at the zoo? They are one of my favourite animals at the zoo, such beautiful creatures.
 
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The okapis are separated by gender, so you've got the boys Kiburi, Isiro and Shomari in the Northern Paddock with the trees at the end whilst the girls Dumela and Zukisa are in the opposite one where the bongos used to be, and are occasionally mixed for breeding.

And I presume you meant to write 'favourite' there, otherwise your very lucky to have such fantastic animals! :D
 
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