Paignton Zoo Paignton Zoo News 2012

They seem to have hit hard times in the UK recently breeding-wise. Only Blackpool(1), and now Paignton(1 so far) have bred foals in almost a decade. Marwell have bred many in the past but not recently, and there appears not much chance of new foals there at present. The fourth UK holder, Linton zoo in Cambs has not bred them afaik. There also appears to be a shortage of good breeding stallions.
 
Pertinax said:
They seem to have hit hard times in the UK recently breeding-wise. Only Blackpool(1), and now Paignton(1 so far) have bred foals in almost a decade. Marwell have bred many in the past but not recently, and there appears not much chance of new foals there at present. The fourth UK holder, Linton zoo in Cambs has not bred them afaik. There also appears to be a shortage of good breeding stallions.
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The new foal at Paignton was born exactly a year after the one at Blackpool. I know when the other female is due but won't say here. I have heard Linton have been trying to get them breeding but it's all down to them, Marwell would be the obvious choice for the next foal (After Paignton).
 
Name the baby Giraffe

Vote for your choice of name for the giraffe born on Valentine's Day at

info@paigntonzoo.org.uk

Mirek (already one at the zoo - the male Swamp Monkey)
Pavel
Ferda
VALENTINO ;)
Rossi
Rudi
Casa
 
Birds

Further to the queries about parrots above, I made a note of the alleged residents of the Desert and Tropical Houses yesterday.

Desert
Hooded Parrot
Red-billed Quelea
Bourke's Parakeet
Princess of Wales Parakeet
Crested Pigeon
Diamond Dove
Cut Throat Finch
Stone Curlew
Desert Finch

Tropical
Visayan Tarictic Hornbill (a pair in a new netted area, not free-range)
Grey-backed Thrush
Crested Wood Pigeon
Emerald Dove
Pied Starling
Speckled Mousebird
Pekin Robin
Scarlet-faced Liocichla
Black-naped Fruit Dove
Pied Imperial Pigeon
White-rumped Shama
Hooded Pitta
Java Sparrow
Orange-headed Ground Thrush
Pope Cardinal
Crested Quail Dove
Green Turaco
Orange-spotted Bulbul
Chestnut-backed Thrush
Emerald Starling
 
Thank-you Gigit. Obviously it's much easier to see things in the Desert part of the house than in the Tropical part (with the fairly temperate portion between being in the middle for viewing as well). There are some lovely species in the Tropical section. I'm sure I have not seen all of the above, even when I visit the house near to closing time when the birds show themselves a bit more.
 
Are the Hoopoes not in the desert house any longer? They are great to see.
Where has the hornbill aviary been created within the tropical section?
 
When it is so clear that the zoo needs new housing for its Tapirs/capybaras and Takins, why would it spend resources building a coati enclosure? It kind of goes against their own theming as it would be between the wetlands and savannah zones? I know one sub-species (white-nosed?) is rarer (?) than the other but is there a need to breed more coatis? They are very active and fun to watch but that isn't a justification to keep them in modern zoos when there are more pressing concerns.
 
TriGB said:
Are the Hoopoes not in the desert house any longer? They are great to see.
Where has the hornbill aviary been created within the tropical section?
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I didn't see Hoopoes and they're not shown on the sign. The Hornbills are in top right corner of the house (next to the temperate area).
 
TriGB said:
When it is so clear that the zoo needs new housing for its Tapirs/capybaras and Takins, why would it spend resources building a coati enclosure? It kind of goes against their own theming as it would be between the wetlands and savannah zones? I know one sub-species (white-nosed?) is rarer (?) than the other but is there a need to breed more coatis? They are very active and fun to watch but that isn't a justification to keep them in modern zoos when there are more pressing concerns.
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The area above the Takin along the path towards the Barbary Sheep has been cleared of vegetation. I've wondered if plans were afoot for expansion of the Takin enclosure, but it may just be part of the general tidying up of overgrowth that's going on round the zoo.

I don't know the thinking behind the Coatis. The area was earmarked for Binturong and maybe the Coatis became available when that fell through :confused:
 
Gigit said:
I don't know the thinking behind the Coatis. The area was earmarked for Binturong and maybe the Coatis became available when that fell through :confused:
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Binturong are not a great exhibit- they do tend to sleep a lot (unless its a performing one such as at Chessington) whereas Coatis are usually very active. Coatis will soon reduce the enclosure floor to bare soil/rubble though.
 
TriGB said:
When it is so clear that the zoo needs new housing for its Tapirs/capybaras and Takins, why would it spend resources building a coati enclosure? It kind of goes against their own theming as it would be between the wetlands and savannah zones? I know one sub-species (white-nosed?) is rarer (?) than the other but is there a need to breed more coatis? They are very active and fun to watch but that isn't a justification to keep them in modern zoos when there are more pressing concerns.
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I think the old yards should be retained in some form purely for their historical interest. I'm more interested in the educational role of zoos than anything else anyway, so to me showing the public what a Coati is is justification enough (I know what one is because I saw them in zoos in the 1960s, although three weeks ago at Flamingo Land a visitor looked at the species' label, said "Coatis" and proceeded to say they were actually Raccoons). Additionally animals that are fun to watch are essential to attract the average, not particularly zoologically inclined, visitors. Without income zoos cannot undertake any kind of conservation work. As Pertinax says, Binturongs do not make a great exhibit from the point of view of activity. I'm sure we all like to see them, but to most visitors they would just be a pile on uninteresting grey fur.
 
Pertinax said:
Binturong are not a great exhibit- they do tend to sleep a lot (unless its a performing one such as at Chessington) whereas Coatis are usually very active. Coatis will soon reduce the enclosure floor to bare soil/rubble though.
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Irony being, I've seen the binturongs at Edinburgh a lot more often, and with a lot more activity noted, than I have the coatis at Chester!
 
TeaLovingDave said:
Irony being, I've seen the binturongs at Edinburgh a lot more often, and with a lot more activity noted, than I have the coatis at Chester!
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Different zoos, different behaviours perhaps. Most times I've seen them at wherever its been, they have been asleep- though not always of course.;)
 
When Paignton kept Binturong before in the old monkey house they seemed to be very active although their scent was very strong indeed. I used to love watching them move around and find new sun bathing spots.
The Coati move makes sense from the point of view of active, family-friendly species I suppose, but the current Curator would not be brave enough to mix them with other S.American species!
 
TriGB said:
When Paignton kept Binturong before in the old monkey house they seemed to be very active although their scent was very strong indeed. I used to love watching them move around and find new sun bathing spots.
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You're correct, thinking back I remember seeing them in the old Monkey House too and usually active as well.
 
A sign by the zebra enclosure today reads:

'Our foal is receiving treatment from the Vets at the moment. He has thick bandages on both legs to stop him moving around too much. This will help the wounds on his hocks heal faster.
Head of Veterinary Services.'
 
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