@Swanson02 I believe you comments are quite correct. The smaller private zoos have to self improve and attract visitors through the gates to operate. The big government funded zoos have an almost endless money stream payed for be the tax paying public. Its hardly an incentive to have a large range of species when a lesser amount will do to display even to the point of the public might consider it not really worth visiting at some point. I believe when we get a big city zoo spending many millions on say a new African rainforest exhibit but only want to include say 2 species in that display its hardly going to be much of an education to the web of life in such a biome display.
Rockhampton Zoo Rockhampton Zoo News
- Thread starter zooboy28
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Rockhampton zoo have a nice tropical climate which suit many of the primate species they are interested in acquiring and the species they currently have. It's likely they will make a slow but steady expansion to their collection into the future. I hope they do branch out into the tamarin/marmoset species the climate and ease of growing tropical vegetation would be a big plus for them.
Both tamarins and marmosets are ideal for a small zoo like Rockhampton as they don’t require large exhibits.
Cotton-top tamarin and Golden lion tamarin are Critically Endangered and Endangered respectively, so my preference would be to see double the resources (exhibits) allocated to these species rather than four exhibits to house them alongside Emperor tamarin and Red handed tamarin, which are Least Concern.
Historically, Adelaide Zoo has achieved renowned breeding success with Golden lion tamarin through holding multiple pairs.
I thought Adelaide Zoo was perfect for holding/breeding Tamarin species ideal for a small zoo with a good breeding record, I was quite disappointed when they phased out the ultra rare Golden headed ect from their collection.
They were indeed highly successful with Golden lion tamarin, which contributed hugely to conservation efforts of what was then a critically endangered species. It’s since been recognised the importance of future breeding animals being exposed to the rearing of infants (young siblings) early in life, so Rockhampton would ideally construct faculties to house multiple pairs and allow for regular breeding.
Chimpanzee Holly has passed away after a sudden illness:
Sad death at Rockhampton Zoo
Holly leaves behind an almost three year old son, who will hopefully be watched over by the other females - including Leakey, who has a juvenile and infant herself.
Sad death at Rockhampton Zoo
Holly leaves behind an almost three year old son, who will hopefully be watched over by the other females - including Leakey, who has a juvenile and infant herself.
Very sad news indeed.
Very sad news indeed.
It really is. It will have a profound affect on troop dynamics as Holly was one of only two viable breeding females and now all infants in the troop will come from Leakey (1993).
Alon and Leakey are both founders, so this is a genetically valuable pairing, but with their daughters leaving the troop around a decade from now, they’ll need to consider bringing another female in.
Sembe (2008) at Taronga Zoo is the obvious candidate for transfer to Rockhampton. Not only is she the ideal age, she’s related to most of the males in the region at Hamilton, Monarto, Wellington etc. so a pairing with Alon would be preferable.
Update on chimpanzee troop:
From socials:
Many of you have been asking how the rest of the troop is coping, particularly Gandali and Samantha.
Gandali, Holly’s son, is being supplement-fed formula alongside the chimpanzee daily diet, as chimpanzees don't normally wean until 3-4 years old. He is taking the bottled formula well and seems to be enjoying it.
Samantha seems to be coping ok without her best friend, and she has the support and companionship of the whole troop. She can often be seen grooming little Mzuri. She also adores Gandali, and has taken him under her wing.
Gandali’s older half-sister, Capri, and his father, Alon, are also both taking very good care of him. Capri in particular has really stepped up into a maternal figure for him, which is beautiful to see. Alon is frequently seen doing boys' patrols with Gandali and playing peek-a-boo.
From socials:
Many of you have been asking how the rest of the troop is coping, particularly Gandali and Samantha.
Gandali, Holly’s son, is being supplement-fed formula alongside the chimpanzee daily diet, as chimpanzees don't normally wean until 3-4 years old. He is taking the bottled formula well and seems to be enjoying it.
Samantha seems to be coping ok without her best friend, and she has the support and companionship of the whole troop. She can often be seen grooming little Mzuri. She also adores Gandali, and has taken him under her wing.
Gandali’s older half-sister, Capri, and his father, Alon, are also both taking very good care of him. Capri in particular has really stepped up into a maternal figure for him, which is beautiful to see. Alon is frequently seen doing boys' patrols with Gandali and playing peek-a-boo.
Post Mortem Results for Chimpanzee/Gibbon
https://www.miragenews.com/rockhampton-zoo-receives-post-mortem-results-939763/
Chimpanzee (Holly):
At the time of Holly’s passing she was being treated for a wound to her finger. She was being closely monitored by both keepers and vets, and was on antibiotics to fight infection.
Despite the care she was receiving, the results of her post-mortem show that she developed septicaemia.
Gibbon (Tuson):
Tuson had only been with us a very short time when she started showing signs of illness, and our vet and keepers immediately sought advice from gibbon experts.
She received medical attention for two weeks prior to passing and fulltime vet care for the days prior, however despite the best possible care she passed on the 14th of December 2022.
Her results show she had severe stomach ulcers which led to infection.
https://www.miragenews.com/rockhampton-zoo-receives-post-mortem-results-939763/
Chimpanzee (Holly):
At the time of Holly’s passing she was being treated for a wound to her finger. She was being closely monitored by both keepers and vets, and was on antibiotics to fight infection.
Despite the care she was receiving, the results of her post-mortem show that she developed septicaemia.
Gibbon (Tuson):
Tuson had only been with us a very short time when she started showing signs of illness, and our vet and keepers immediately sought advice from gibbon experts.
She received medical attention for two weeks prior to passing and fulltime vet care for the days prior, however despite the best possible care she passed on the 14th of December 2022.
Her results show she had severe stomach ulcers which led to infection.
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No problem, it’s appreciated Rockhampton have shared these results as so often a zoo announces an animal’s death with a note a post mortem is in progress, only for that to be the last anyone ever hears of it.
Castrated chimpanzee male ‘Jery’ has been brought over from Sydney to be introduced to the group, with the intention of providing a more natural male-bonded environment for Alon who would otherwise have been the only adult male when elderly Cassius passes. Details on social media.
Viann, a female Northern White-cheeked Gibbon has arrived from Perth Zoo. She is reunited with her male offspring Nakai following the death of her long-term mate Phillip at Perth Zoo: https://www.rockhamptonregion.qld.g...nd-son-gibbons-reunite-at-Rockhampton-Zooe-28
Last month Rockhampton Regional Council drastically adjusted the delivery of multi-million dollar projects, opting for a new toilet block over zoo upgrades.
ABC article:
Zoo upgrade ditched for new toilet block as cost blowouts leave councils reeling
Original Zoo announcement:
https://www.rockhamptonregion.qld.g...ders-open-for-Botanic-Gardens-Zoo-Visitor-Hub
ABC article:
Zoo upgrade ditched for new toilet block as cost blowouts leave councils reeling
Original Zoo announcement:
https://www.rockhamptonregion.qld.g...ders-open-for-Botanic-Gardens-Zoo-Visitor-Hub
That’s disappointing to hear. The article specifically concerns the visitor hub the zoo were planning to build; so it’s unclear if it will affect plans to expand the chimpanzee exhibit or new exhibits - but it seems likely.
Especially with plans for Rockhampton’s youngest females (Capri and Zuri) to transfer out at adolescence, I’ve been hopeful of more females joining the troop - Sembe (2008) at Taronga and Zuri (2012) being prime candidates.
Why Queensland doesn't start treating this zoo like a state government run one like in other states is a massive missed opportunity. Having a thriving zoo up their would attract plenty of visitors from people passing through and people going up to see the Great Barrier Reef.
It does - more or less. The State Labour government, in conjunction with the Labour Regional Council, has tipped millions of dollars into this zoo. The results are very evident - it has improved dramatically.
However, governments, like the rest of us, eventually have to balance their budgets and, for now at least, the gravy train has had to park up for a while.
No doubt it will be back one day.
I didn't know that I just assumed it was council run, its good to hear that they are investing into it. As the only major state with no government run zoo it would be good to see Queenslands gov take on the zoo in the same way Taronga, Perth and Melbourne are run by the state governments. It's not in a bad spot and the state has the monetary ability to do it.
Rockhampton Zoo is set on 4ha of land within the botanic gardens, so there’s not a lot of oppotunity to expand. On the current site, they can never aspire to the collections of Taronga, Melbourne or Perth but they’ve made fantastic progress nonetheless and a realistic focus on small monkey species in recent years.