San Diego Zoo San Diego Zoo News 2024

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E Maximus said:
It was one of the newer requirements for pandas to return from my understanding. Without the improvements, they would have been declined the chance for pandas again.
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That does sound correct. But even if in 2019 when the last Pandas left, the exhibits met every requirement that exists today; after 5 years, the facilities would still need major maintenance work and renovations to get them ready to use again. Thing like water supply and climate control systems start to deteriorate after a few months of disuse. When putting in that much work in already it just makes sense to do general upgrades as well.

Xavier GM said:
Are the takins going to be on another exhibit or are they going to be held of-exhibit?
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I would guess that they will probably not go on exhibit in the zoo the zoo itself again. One of the requirements for pandas has always been the existence of a buffer zone around them both to control the number of guests present simultaneously and to prevent stresses caused by other animals. It doesn’t seem as though they would fit in anywhere else in the zoo either. My hope is that they get transferred to the Safari Park at some point.
 
PercideRolo said:
Smol campus, varied terrain, only so much can be done. I understand.
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You shouldn’t give the size of a zoo's campus so much weight. The San Diego Zoo is 99 or 100 acres depending on the source. For comparison, the Milwaukee County Zoo and Brookfield Zoo Chicago are 200 and 216 acres respectively. Both have smaller collections kept in on average smaller exhibits. Most of the land these at facilities is undeveloped and is designated conservation area (both have a combination of forest and wetlands). Regarding your specific critiques: I think most people here would agree that the southern part of the Asian Passages with the bears as well as the adjacent Urban Jungle are outdated and need to be replaced. The lion habitat is definitely on the smaller side but the other feline habitats are well built for the animals they house. The leopards have multiple smaller exhibits connected by elevated passages for the animals to go between them. The Jaguar and Puma exhibits have vertical integration that significantly exceeds that of most other facilities giving these largely arboreal / alpine cats, much more usable space. The cheetah habitat in Urban Jungle may seem small if you don’t know that SDZWA has multiple ambassador animal cheetahs that rotate between there and the Safari Park. At 2.5 acres plus the .5-acre indoor care center, the Elephant Odyssey is larger than almost all others elephant habitats that are not mixed species exhibits (The aforementioned MCZ just opened their new 1.6+.5-acre exhibit). Also keep in mind that all the individuals there either have healthcare needs too advanced to keep with the main herd at the Safari Park or young males too old the keep with the main herd awaiting transfers to other facilities. San Diego is THE master of making the most of available space by keeping you immersed through twists and turns and creative landscaping. Just because you can only see one part of a habitat at a time does not mean that it is the entire habitat.
 
Xavier GM said:
Does anyone has information about this?
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ConcernedThirdParty said:
I would guess that they will probably not go on exhibit in the zoo the zoo itself again. One of the requirements for pandas has always been the existence of a buffer zone around them both to control the number of guests present simultaneously and to prevent stresses caused by other animals. It doesn’t seem as though they would fit in anywhere else in the zoo either. My hope is that they get transferred to the Safari Park at some point.
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The 1.2 golden takin and the 1.0 mishmi and 1.0 Sichuan takins imported from Europe are on permanent quarantine and cannot leave the property due to the import restrictions on Bovids in the United States, and the Zoo has long maintained a breeding herd of Sichuan takin behind-the-scenes, as well. While the takin might not immediately return following the Panda Canyon renovations, I cannot imagine they will not return at some point in the future... It would make little sense for them not to. I cannot see any of the three takin herds being moved to the Safari Park, as they have historically done very poorly at the Park due to the higher temperatures and dryer atmosphere.

In other news, the Zoo has shared a video of a male red-flanked duiker named "Nugget" on their socials. It does not appear he is currently in a publicly visible enclosure; however, this is a "new" (long returning) species for the Zoo.
 
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ConcernedThirdParty said:
You shouldn’t give the size of a zoo's campus so much weight. The San Diego Zoo is 99 or 100 acres depending on the source. For comparison, the Milwaukee County Zoo and Brookfield Zoo Chicago are 200 and 216 acres respectively. Both have smaller collections kept in on average smaller exhibits. Most of the land these at facilities is undeveloped and is designated conservation area (both have a combination of forest and wetlands). Regarding your specific critiques: I think most people here would agree that the southern part of the Asian Passages with the bears as well as the adjacent Urban Jungle are outdated and need to be replaced. The lion habitat is definitely on the smaller side but the other feline habitats are well built for the animals they house. The leopards have multiple smaller exhibits connected by elevated passages for the animals to go between them. The Jaguar and Puma exhibits have vertical integration that significantly exceeds that of most other facilities giving these largely arboreal / alpine cats, much more usable space. The cheetah habitat in Urban Jungle may seem small if you don’t know that SDZWA has multiple ambassador animal cheetahs that rotate between there and the Safari Park. At 2.5 acres plus the .5-acre indoor care center, the Elephant Odyssey is larger than almost all others elephant habitats that are not mixed species exhibits (The aforementioned MCZ just opened their new 1.6+.5-acre exhibit). Also keep in mind that all the individuals there either have healthcare needs too advanced to keep with the main herd at the Safari Park or young males too old the keep with the main herd awaiting transfers to other facilities. San Diego is THE master of making the most of available space by keeping you immersed through twists and turns and creative landscaping. Just because you can only see one part of a habitat at a time does not mean that it is the entire habitat.
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Just get rid of the bears for the moment, and convert Asian Passage into a lion area

With lions being such a zoo flagship and a part of the origin story, they should have a great exhibit.
 
tigris115 said:
Just get rid of the bears for the moment, and convert Asian Passage into a lion area

With lions being such a zoo flagship and a part of the origin story, they should have a great exhibit.
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I think the Asian Passage an Urban Jungle should be combined to form an area dedicated to asian wildlife (indian rhino, asian lion, small-clawed otter, gibbons, ungulates and carnivores).
The exhibits of ungulates near the polar bear plunge should be combined to become an african plain exhibit with giraffes, zebras, rhinos, impalas, and other ungulates.
This is all my ideas, I don't think the zoo would ever implement them in the near future, but I think it's a very good idea.
 
ConcernedThirdParty said:
That does sound correct. But even if in 2019 when the last Pandas left, the exhibits met every requirement that exists today; after 5 years, the facilities would still need major maintenance work and renovations to get them ready to use again. Thing like water supply and climate control systems start to deteriorate after a few months of disuse. When putting in that much work in already it just makes sense to do general upgrades as well.



I would guess that they will probably not go on exhibit in the zoo the zoo itself again. One of the requirements for pandas has always been the existence of a buffer zone around them both to control the number of guests present simultaneously and to prevent stresses caused by other animals. It doesn’t seem as though they would fit in anywhere else in the zoo either. My hope is that they get transferred to the Safari Park at some point.
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I would very sad if he SDZ didn't display the takins in the near future. Do there not an iconic animal, I think the takins fit very well on panda trek and aren't super common on zoos.
 
Kudu21 said:
The 1.2 golden takin and the 1.0 mishmi and 1.0 Sichuan takins imported from Europe are on permanent quarantine and cannot leave the property due to the import restrictions on Bovids in the United States, and the Zoo has long maintained a breeding herd of Sichuan takin behind-the-scenes, as well. While the takin might not immediately return following the Panda Canyon renovations, I cannot imagine they will not return at some point in the future... It would make little sense for them not to. I cannot see any of the three takin herds being moved to the Safari Park, as they have historically done very poorly at the Park due to the higher temperatures and dryer atmosphere.
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I have some questions :):
1. Are there other Mishmi takin at the park other than the one male that was imported?
2. In theory, can the golden takin offspring from a few years ago be transferred to other facilities?
3. Are the restrictions on relocation for these takin applicable to all other ungulate imports?
 
Kudu21 said:
The 1.2 golden takin and the 1.0 mishmi and 1.0 Sichuan takins imported from Europe are on permanent quarantine and cannot leave the property due to the import restrictions on Bovids in the United States, and the Zoo has long maintained a breeding herd of Sichuan takin behind-the-scenes, as well. While the takin might not immediately return following the Panda Canyon renovations, I cannot imagine they will not return at some point in the future... It would make little sense for them not to. I cannot see any of the three takin herds being moved to the Safari Park, as they have historically done very poorly at the Park due to the higher temperatures and dryer atmosphere.
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Just shows up the draconian travesty that are exotic wildlife import and export regulations for hoofstock as well as the burocratic oversight for ES and other Acts governing exotic wildlife as well as supposedly zoonosis and vet health guidelines.

For goodness sake, this and this alone totally obstructs any well informed ex situ conservation breeding program as wel as the free animal exchange across Continents. I am inclined to use a few derogatory terms here (but will refrain from doing so). What I will qualify it at is mind-boggling and insane beyond the pale.

Perhaps the SD-Zoo management can just send the animals back to Europe bc the animal transfer and ex situ conservation breeding exchange is a botch up and ATM the animals involved as members of an endangered species cannot contribute to the preservation of their species.
 
wild boar said:
I have some questions :):
1. Are there other Mishmi takin at the park other than the one male that was imported?
2. In theory, can the golden takin offspring from a few years ago be transferred to other facilities?
3. Are the restrictions on relocation for these takin applicable to all other ungulate imports?
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They do, indeed, have additional mishmi takin other than the male imported from Europe. They have a whole breeding herd.

In theory, yes — the offspring of the imported golden takin could eventually be transferred to another facility. It is only the imported animals that are on permanent quarantine.

I believe that these or similar postentry quarantine regulations exist for most ruminants — certainly all Bovids.
 
Kudu21 said:
They do, indeed, have additional mishmi takin other than the male imported from Europe. They have a whole breeding herd.

In theory, yes — the offspring of the imported golden takin could eventually be transferred to another facility. It is only the imported animals that are on permanent quarantine.

I believe that these or similar postentry quarantine regulations exist for most ruminants — certainly all Bovids.
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Where is the breeding heard of the mishmi takin? Are there kept off-exhibit?
 
Nile Hippo Expert said:
You can only see the mishmi takin breeding herd at the unloading area at the SkyFari ride behind the mountain lions and from the second storey of the tour bus ride, but other than that, no they are not on exhibit.
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An then, what species of takin was on the exhibit?
 
What species does the park have in the large off- section behind EO and Polar Bear Plunge? From my visits I have seen Takin (Golden?, Mishmi, and Sichuan) as well as Visayan Warty Pig (17 according to the last USDA report). I'm assuming the Tufted Deer, Pronghorn, Common Eland, and Red-Flanked Duiker are back there as well plus maybe more?
 
Jonathan Petersson said:
What species does the park have in the large off- section behind EO and Polar Bear Plunge? From my visits I have seen Takin (Golden?, Mishmi, and Sichuan) as well as Visayan Warty Pig (17 according to the last USDA report). I'm assuming the Tufted Deer, Pronghorn, Common Eland, and Red-Flanked Duiker are back there as well plus maybe more?
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The hillside exhibits behind Polar Plunge and Elephant Odyssey are home to the three herds of takin, Visayan warty pigs, peninsular pronghorn, additional Speke's gazelles, and currently the Malayan tapirs, female bontebok, and male okapi. The tufted deer are in the forested yards beneath the stairs up to the Owens Aviary, while the common eland are on exhibit with the Grevy's zebras and the single slender-horned gazelle male in one of the old Horn & Hoof Mesa yards. It appears the red-flanked duiker is currently in one of the other sets of off-exhibit hoofstock yards that are between the Panda and Raptor Canyons and the old Horn & Hoof Mesa yards. These yards can also be seen from the Skyfari and hold additional Speke's gazelles, gerenuk, and tufted deer.
 
Kudu21 said:
They do, indeed, have additional mishmi takin other than the male imported from Europe. They have a whole breeding herd.

In theory, yes — the offspring of the imported golden takin could eventually be transferred to another facility. It is only the imported animals that are on permanent quarantine.

I believe that these or similar postentry quarantine regulations exist for most ruminants — certainly all Bovids.
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I don't understand why all bovids need permanent quarantine? So they cannot leave the zoo only their offsprings.
 
Zoo adventures said:
I don't understand why all bovids need permanent quarantine? So they cannot leave the zoo only their offsprings.
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It is all due to regulations put in place to protect the cattle industry. The cattle industry fears that Bovids imported from overseas will introduce diseases that will spread to cattle and negatively affect their profits. As wholly unrealistic as it is for an exotic Bovid imported to a zoo to ever pass any sort of disease to farmed domestic cattle, the cattle industry has deep pockets and money talks. When money talks, the government listens... As such, no. The individuals that are imported can never leave the institution that they are imported to but future generations can.
 
Kudu21 said:
The hillside exhibits behind Polar Plunge and Elephant Odyssey are home to the three herds of takin, Visayan warty pigs, peninsular pronghorn, additional Speke's gazelles, and currently the Malayan tapirs, female bontebok, and male okapi. The tufted deer are in the forested yards beneath the stairs up to the Owens Aviary, while the common eland are on exhibit with the Grevy's zebras and the single slender-horned gazelle male in one of the old Horn & Hoof Mesa yards. It appears the red-flanked duiker is currently in one of the other sets of off-exhibit hoofstock yards that are between the Panda and Raptor Canyons and the old Horn & Hoof Mesa yards. These yards can also be seen from the Skyfari and hold additional Speke's gazelles, gerenuk, and tufted deer.
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Thank you so much Kudu21 for all the information it's extremely helpful! I'll have to see if I can spot any more species from the Skyfari on my next visit.

On another note now that the Tasmanian Devils have passed in there anything currently living in their habitat or has it remained empty?
 
Hi, I don't know if anyone has a photo of the panda trek construction, but, if someone has it, could you please post it?
I would really want to know how the construction goes.
Thanks.
 
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