Toronto Zoo Toronto Zoo Births, Deaths and Transfers 2021

Some more sad news, white-handed gibbon Lenny passed away on the 18th at 46 years old. The keepers made the decision to euthanize him after noticing his health was decreasing and discovering a large mass in his abdomen. He died one of the oldest gibbons in an AZA accredited North America zoo. He and Holly have been at the zoo for over 40 years so Indo is really never gonna be the same without him. The keepers gave Holly a chance to say goodbye to her life partner after he passed and she's currently adjusting to life without him. Been a tough year for the zoo :/
 
That's terrible news. I thought it was strange that I didn't see him in Indo yesterday. Now I know why :(
 
That's really sad to hear. I liked Lenny. He had a lot of personality and was a joy to watch at times. It was nice to hear him when he decided to be vocal.
 
Oh no not Lenny! He was my favorite gibbon. Always doing something and he was a very good looking gibbon. Loved the cream coat. I do feel bad for Holly. I know she will adjust but it was Lenny who welcomed her to the zoo. Cant spend a lifetime together and not miss the other one when they are gone. Im glad she got to see him and know he was indeed gone.
 
Maybe add Puppe and Holly together now since they are both old timers and could really use the company for each other. But Take Bucky the babirusa out of the exhibit first. But I would be overjoyed if they tried an Orangutan and Gibbon mix even if it is just two of the gals together. But We know the Toronto Zoo not planning on Mixed exhibits.
 
Good news, red panda Paprika has been released from quarantine is now on display. Adira is still there and always on display. Paprika and Suva are beginning intros for breeding season next month. Not physical contact yet but they can see each other.
 
Sharing some information I just heard from the zookeepers.
Fred the Spotted-necked Otter will stay in the zoo until he passes away, b/c he is too old and has more danger of being transferred.
The 3 Sacred Ibis that initially gonna leave, are still in the zoo right now. The Covid-19 postpones the transfer.
Adira the Red Panda will stay in the zoo until next spring.

Two questions: I hear that Pierre the Common Eland passed away, is that true?
Which zoo do the two White-cheeked Turacos go?
 
Not shocking at all that the zoo wouldn't transfer Fred. Hes at least 21 years old but he's wild born and they estimated he was about 4 at the time of capture. If we call him 21 because he's been at the zoo that long he is 2 years shy of the record, however if he was really 4 at the time of capture he is the record holder of oldest spotted necked otter. Each day they have with him at this point is a blessing.

I think a lot of people will be happy to keep red panda Adira around until the spring. If only we could send her to the US instead so they aren't thinking of breeding her to her great grandfather, which is still better then the nightmare of breeding Suva to aunt Paprika.

Funny I have heard the exact opposite about the sacred ibises. The 4 girls went to Erie in September. Unless there has been a change and they have decided to transfer 3 of the 4 males who are not breeding. They are all extremely valuable so its possible.

It would appear that eland, Pierre did pass sometime between January and summer. Well it was that or he was transferred and being a castrated male that seemed far less likely then him passing. If you heard he passed then he passed. Its the most logical answer.

I cant answer to the turacos. Didnt know they had left but also with news of them clearing out that aviary its not all that surprising.
 
As 2021 draws to a close here is a little recap on the years animal activities.

Births
2 Kangaroo - Melbourne, Adelaide
1 Snow Goose - Ryan Gosling
2 Madagascar Spider Tortoises
1 Golden Lion Tamarin
2 Crested Wood Partridges
3 Amur Tigers - Mila
1 Scarlet Ibis
2 Red Tailed Ratsnakes
4 Tur
29 Loggerhead Shrikes
6 Vancouver Island Marmots
16 Black Footed Ferrets
1 Przewalski’s Horse - Ryder
1 Sunbittern
16 Eastern Massassauga Rattlesnakes
Lots of Moon Jellyfish

Deaths
3 Western Grey Kangaroo - Tully (late fall 2020 or early 2021), Mudgee, Alice
2 Common Marmoset - Terwillegar and Miles
1 Crested Porcupine - Pumpkin
1 Cheetah - Emma
1 Eland - Pierre (highly likely but no formal confirmation)
4 Penguins - Buddy, Squeak, Gozi and Jagu
1 Jaguar - Zambucca
2 Amur Tiger - male and female cubs.
1 Wood Bison - Garth
2 Crested Wood Partridge - 2 of last years chicks.
1 Fairy Bluebird - Ira
1 Tawny Frogmouth - Makepeace
1 Mata Mata
1 Electric Eel - Carmen
1 Secretary Bird - Katani
1 Blue Crowned Motmot - Tom Tom
3 Meerkats - Bill, Tara and Lafayette
1 Ring Necked Pheasant - Rodney
1 Reindeer - Snowy
1 Beaver - June
1 Snow Leopard - Ena
1 Giant Pacific Octopus - Octavia
1 White Handed Gibbon - Lenny

Notable Departures
3 Bettongs - Jemima to Winnipeg, dont know about the other 2
2 Snow Leopards - Kita to Winnipeg and Mylo to john ball
6 Vancouver Island Marmot - all this years pups to release site
1 Hamerkop - Homer to Calgary
1 Red fox - Todd via escape
1 African otter - Lila to Oregon
17 Black Footed Ferrets - National Black-Footed Ferret Conservation Center for release prep
2 Arctic wolves - to Magnetic Hill
4 Sacred Ibis - females to Erie
1 White Rhino - Theo to Vancouver

Mysterious Disappearances by either death or transfer (these are animals we know are missing but havent heard either way what happened to them)
1 Lynx - Hamilton
1 Spiny Soft Shell Turtle - Shelly (many have reported shes MIA)
1 Cabot's Tragopan - Brittney or Angelina
1 Chinese Soft Shelled Turtle - Glenda

Notable arrivals
Red Fox - Todd
Aplomado Falcon - Zaya
4 Nigerian dwarf goats- Easter Bunny, Mollie Bean, Moonshine and Romeo
1 Hamerkop - MC Hamerkop
1 Snow Leopard - Pemba from Calgary
1 Red Panda - Paprika from Edmonton
1 Timber Rattlesnake - from Pennsylvania
1 Tawny Frogmouth - from Roger Williams
1 Fiji Banded Iguana - Vera

It was a hard year with lots of sad passings and it can feel like a lot when you look at the list but probably just feels more like that when there just aren't many new arrivals and births coming in to balance it out. Also the number of those who passed is actually less then last year to help put they year in perspective. Not that I think I ever record all the births, deaths and transfers out there. I know for a fact I don't.

What was really tough about this year though was the incredible number of phase outs that happened either through death, transfer or escape. We know of 14 and there could be more I either don't remember or hasn't been reported.

Canadian Lynx
Red Fox
Meerkat
Mata Mata
Fairy Bluebird
Electric Eel
Secretary Bird
Blue Crowned Motmot
Ring Necked Pheasant
Reindeer
Giant Pacific Octopus
Cabot's Tragopans
Chinese Soft Shelled Turtle
Spiny Soft Shell Turtle (possibly)

I know this might sound like a doom and gloom year but breeding has been good this year which should set up a great 2022. Stay tuned for a new thread once the new year starts covering the births and transfers we can hope for next year. If the border doesnt lock back down too tight (big if the way Omicron is going) we could see a flurry of transfers to join the births we already expect and the possible babies that will be created prior to spring. Blame covid for the short comings in births and transfers for 2021.

Feel free to add anything I missed.

Happy New Year to all of you! Good riddence 2021 and please be kind to us and the zoo 2022. We have a lot of faith and hope placed in you and what you will bring us.
 
@Jefferson No not Maynard! Ugh he was one of my favourites, it was so exciting whenever you got to see him. Pretty friendly as well, I was lucky enough to have him come right up to the viewing area across from the rhinos to check me out once. RIP

Wasn't really a huge year for births at the zoo but we got a few key babies here and there. Princess Mila was of course the star of the year, she was a big help in getting some semblance of the summer crowds back. It's definitely nice to see the kangaroo mob continuing on, here's hoping the walkabout reopens next year! Always great to see new babies at the tamarins and P-horses as well.

As for deaths while I think we had overall less than last year this year took some big names from us. Losing classic TZ animals like Lenny and I believe the last of the old roo group seriously hurt, as did saying goodbye to icons like Ena, Zambucca, Makepeace, Katani, Pumpkin, the meerkats, 4 penguins, June, Emma and all the rest. And now we lost Maynard too!? Man that stings. Shame we lost the octo so soon after getting a new one again as well. I really hope they refresh the meerkats after Mr. P is done housesitting for them, the Rainforest wouldn't be the same without them. The good news is a certain duo of old-timers (I'm not gonna say names because I'm afraid of jinxing it but you know who they are) are still with us, and we can continue crossing our fingers that they'll make it to the 50th in 2024.

As for transfers, it was sad to say goodbye to the 2017 snow leopard cubs (though I am holding onto hope that Kita will make a return sometime soon) as well as Theo, but that's just how the zoo life is sometimes. I'm glad we got to keep Adira for a few extra months. Also it's weird that we're still hanging onto Amani with Mstari due next year but you won't hear me complaining. The bettong and African otter phase-outs continue to roll along, it'll be a shame to say goodbye to those species. I'm definitely excited to see what the future brings for the hammerkops, red pandas and snow leopards with the new arrivals in those exhibits. The lynx disappearance is still a head-scratcher for me, hopefully that gets cleared up someday. also lol Todd, hope he's living his best live out in the valley somewhere.

The last green-winged macaw also vanished this year, you might wanna add that to your list @TZFan unless of course someone saw it and I didn't hear about it.

All in all this was a much smaller year for the zoo on all fronts but I think overall it wasn't terrible. Yes it was bad to lose Lenny, Ena, Zambucca, Maynard and so many others but this year also saw Mila, two baby roos, and the zoo finally reopening after being closed from November to June. 2022 has a lot of promise (looking at you, orangs) so hopefully we'll see less big-name deaths and more exciting new babies and exhibit revamps next year!
 
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Oh of course I would learn that after I post! Lol.

I really did wonder about his health. He is past the average age achieved by a male kudu. We just need to hope that he was healthy enough this past spring or summer to get the job done with Rosalita and Ruby one more time. Oh and that the calves are healthy females to set the zoo up for the future. We can't rely on just Roux with a new bull, as Rosalita and Ruby are already middle aged moms.

I forgot green winged macaw Vinnie and blue and gold macaw... ummm I wanna say Maui's disappearances which would fall in the mystery category. I normally dont have a mystery category so worked from memory on that one.
 
@TZFan did we have any scarlet ibis chicks last year? I believe we have three right now with subadult plumage not just one. It's definitely more than one, but might be two. I'll stick with three and if i have to correct myself I'll do so after checking during my visit tomorrow
 
@Kalvin, if you have seen more chicks its totally possible. My only source of info on the chicks in the Americas was a single Facebook Live in the spring or early summer. I would be very interested to see what you count up. I would think the sunbittern chick from the spring would have adult plumage by now. Sonny and Cheri could have had a second clutch we werent told about. Not sure about how long it would take an ibis chick to go red but with two adult pairs more chicks would absolutely be possible, especially when we are talking about the 4 highest ranking scarlet ibises in North America. Pretty sure they would have the green light to produce quite a few chicks. If it helps for counting purposes I know there should be 3 sunbitterns and 5 ibises. Anything more than that would be news to me.

Now that we have so many more eyes on things with several of you guys visiting far more often I think we will be catching more of these things.

Oh was there two plush crested jay chicks this year? I remember someone saying something but I don't remember if it was this year or last year.
 
Our sunbittern chick does have her adult plumage, in fact she's looking pretty rough at the moment, the only way I'm actually able to tell her apart from her parents is by looking at her beak and leg in photos afterwards. Her band is so dirty it's almost invisible but her beak is sharp and intact unlike her dad's. Cher spent most of the summer sitting on the beam above the door to the primate wing, and I thought she was incubating, but we still only have the three and she seems more comfortable walking around the exhibit now, but still prefers her spot.

A quick google search says that the change from grey to red plumage takes about two years, but I also don't have any photos of young ibises from last year, in any case I'll check tomorrow.

We did have two plush-crested jay chicks born during the closure but none since. A couple of us had suspected that the parents might breed again once they'd seen that having guests around wasn't an issue for their first clutch but no such luck. We'd assumed it was a choice they made but it may actually be stress-based, and maybe the only way they'll breed again is if they blackout the aviary and obscure it from public view during their nesting season. In any case those chicks have their adult plumage and look quite striking - the only way to tell them apart is by leg band colour, and I'd also like to ask a keeper if any of our young birds have names.
 
Ok so it sounds like its one sunbittern chick then for 2021 and possibly multiple scarlet ibis chicks and I forgot about 2 plush jays.

The plush crested jays might not be having privacy concerns. The zoo could be pulling eggs to prevent more chicks. Some times species get a green light to breed like bunnies while other times the SSP will ask a zoo to stop breeding after so many offspring. If I recall correctly our pair are not top of the line jays but they arent garbage either. So it would make sense that the SSP after the two chicks were sexed said ok that's enough thank you. Flip side could be the zoo choosing to prevent more chicks. They now have 4 jays and until the border is more open they will likely have them for the foreseeable future. The zoo knows how many they can comfortably hold and shouldn't want extras.

Hope you catch a keeper tomorrow and can get some questions answered. Also if you run into a rainforest keeper would you mind checking to see which red river hog was injured and how its doing? I mean dont go out of your way to try and find someone. Just if you get lucky. Have a great day by the way! Fantastic way to ring in 2022 with your first zoo visit of the year.
 
Oh jeez, the octopus died again? It feels like they only just got a new one... Guess that explains why she wasn't there during my last visit, same with the electric eel and secretary bird... ;w;
 
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