Toronto Zoo Toronto Zoo- Births, Deaths, Arrivals and Departures 2014

Oh I knew what you were saying Cloudedleopard6. I was just saying your first thought could be right as bison do have twins on occasion. They could be twins and the other female is still due. Likewise they could just have been hanging out together with one mother as a guard. Both scenarios are entirely possible. Either way its just great to hear the bisons have 2 healthy calves which might one day be candidates for release.
 
Went to the zoo today. It was pretty fun, but it eventually got jam-packed with people, who were naturally in the way. So, here's what I found out on my visit.

- Both Indian Rhinos, Ashakiran (F) and Vishnu (M), were out in the field together. There was no Keeper around to ask, but I'm assuming they want them to start breeding soon. They were getting along real well, and were pretty comfortable with each other.

- Still no word on the Clouded Leopards, although at this point a staff member said that the Red Panda (Maki) will return to the Red Panda exhibit when Eurasia opens, with or without the Clouded Leopards. Although that can probably change as time goes by.

- While watching the Gorillas in their outside enclosure, I noticed a couple of them had a pretty raspy cough. Most notably Ngozi and Sadaki. Let's hope it doesn't worsen.

- Lemur Twins, Jack (M) and Willow (F), are getting pretty big now. They're sometimes hard to spot among the adults. I'll see if I have a decent picture to post later.

- Both African Otters were together and very playful with each other.

- Giraffe's are still restricted to the first yard. Second and Third yards are still under some minimal renovations. They both look comfortable, showing no signs of distress.

- White Rhinos are also out for future breeding. 3 Rhino were out today. Tom (M), Sabi (F), and Zohari (F). There were 2 Keeper watching the Rhinos to make sure everything was going okay. I spoke with them and found out that this is the second day that the girls have been outside with Tom. They've seen each other in the Rhino house for 3 years, but there has always been a barrier between them. The girls aren't currently cycling, but when they do, the Keepers want them to already be comfortable with Tom's presence so he can take advantage. Currently, the girls are pretty wary of Tom, whereas Tom is pretty mellow. Below are a couple ways of telling the Rhino's apart.
- Tom is 7 years old, clearly bigger that the girls and both his horns have a much boarder base
- Sabi is 4 years old, has shorter tail hair than Zohari, has a noticeable notch in her smaller horn, she's also taller than Zohari, and has hairier ears
- Zohari is 3 and a half years old, long tail hair, smoother horns, and her ear hair is much shorter than Sabi's

- All 3 Ostriches were out today. Orville, Miss Ellie, and the new second female. Don't know the second female's name yet. They all seemed okay with each others presence.

- Still didn't get a good look at the baby Marmoset, due to the mother moving around everywhere.

- River Otters are still being separated. Not sure why. No Keeper around to ask.

- Didn't find out what Hoofstock is replacing the Giraffes in their old exhibit, but commentator was adamant that the Llamas are only temporary.

- Przewalski’s Horse Phoenix (M) is in the drive-thru with the females. I'm assuming to breed. What other reason could there be?

- Found out that the male Yak present at the zoo is Hubert, who the commentator referred to as Saint Hubert (Hubert with french pronunciation). Still no name for the second yak calf, but the commentator referred to it as a female.
 
Another good day for you at the zoo Cypher.

Nice to hear both kinds of rhinos are now in breeding positions. Wouldnt it be cool if two years from now there were three baby rhinos running around? I doubt that will be the case but it would be cool. Sabi and Zohari are still on the young side to breed. The zoos website says females reach maturity at 6-7 so that could still be 2 years away, plus the 16-18 month gestation. No complaints though if one or both get pregnant earlier than expected. Im happy the zoo picked Tom for their breeding partner. There is just something about him I like more than Tony. As for Asha I'm beginning to wonder if she will ever produce a healthy calf. Its been two or 3 years since the stillbirth and nothing. I hope I'm wrong. Rhino calves are pretty great. A calf conceived now would be born in November of 2015.

Glad to hear Maki will be going home sooner rather than later.

Hopefully nothing is seriously wrong with the gorillas.

Interesting to hear Phoenix is back with the ladies. They had a no breed recommendation in the last SSP but that could have changed.

Thanks for finding out which of the yaks is male. Now I can make the changes to my master list.
 
I am assuming that also in the case of the Indian rhino both are put together when the female is not cycling in order to have them comfortable with one another when she is. It means they will win more than a day or so otherwise lost with getting both used to one another.

Incidentally, female rhinos mature between 3-4 years of age and can conceive in their fourth year. It is the males that then to reach maturity only later at about 6-8 years of age depending on character et cetera. It is no use keeping a younger male with more mature females …, that is a no goer.
 
Toronto generally keeps the Indian Rhinos separate. Asha and Vishnu have been together for breeding purposes for at least 5-6 years. Unless breeding is being attempted they are in their own yards. Perhaps they will be changing that though to increase the odds of achieving another pregnancy.

I used the info the zoo had to suggest it could still be awhile. Although I know your a rhino fan, Kifaru Bwana, so I trust what you say more than the zoo's website which could use some updating. Hopefully now that Zohari is 4 and Sabi is approaching 4 everything will happen sooner rather than later. Tom is only 7 but if he's not yet up to par they could swap him for Tony who is 11.
 
We heard that the old giraffe home where the Llamas are right now will get replaced with african water buffalo and the speaker on the zoomobile told us that the water buffalos will be arriving preatty soon :), We also seen Phenix with the girls on Thursday July 17th 2014 :) He looked amazing :)
 
Water Buffalo? Interesting. If that is the case, I wonder how much Buffalo we'll get.
 
Sorry Megakillerwhale but I have to point out you are mistaken. Either you misunderstood the zoomobile commentator or they were misinformed and in turn misinformed you. As cool as it would be for the zoo to get either Cape or Forest Buffalo, or even pick up some Water Buffalo for Eurasia, thats not what we are getting for the new hoofstock.

If those of you how have visited recently took a good close look at the 40th Anniveresry maps you have been getting (I know who needs them when you know the zoo like the back of your hand right?) you would know the new species. Its right on there saying coming soon.

And the new hoofstock for those of you who are dying to know... Watusi! Ya I was a little bummed too. Sure their horns are cool but they aren't rare or endangered. I wanted something... anything where breeding was actually going to contribute to the population. Watusi are domesticated. Stupid lack of AZA membership has likely screwed the zoo yet again... thank you very much city council! The exhibit opening is probably still at least spring 2015 so Im going to continue to hope the zoo can get back into the AZA and the zoo can get something that needs an SSP.
 
I didn't know the zoo came out with a new map. Now I'm even more excited to go there next week.

Watusi are an interesting looking species, but it also disappoints me because they are domesticated. Hopefully they will only be temporary and the zoo will be able to acquire another species soon. If not, maybe they can be mixed with other animals in the future like gazelles or birds to make the exhibit a little more interesting.
 
I'm excited about seeing Watusi, but yeah, I was hoping for an animal that was more on the uncommon side. One where breeding would help with conservation of the species.
 
We just need to all keep hoping we get back into the AZA before the exhibit is ready next spring or summer and the Watusi arrive. If we get lucky there might be a change. And I'm not even fussy about what species so long as it has an SSP so that to zoo is actively participating in conservation. It just feels like a waste of valuable exhibit space to have anything that doesn't need conservation, especially when that exhibit is one of the biggest at the zoo.
 
The Watusi are possibly a place holder until we can get our accreditation back and get something a bit more, special. Afterwards they could be sent to Magnetic Hill Zoo (Moncton) which have a pair, or moved to the Kids Zoo, the Ostrich Paddock, or in the African Antelope paddock, or possibly, now thinking about it, maybe with the Giraffes. Though they are a bit larger and slightly more... dangerous, but another possibility.
 
Sealife357 said:
The Watusi are possibly a place holder until we can get our accreditation back and get something a bit more, special. Afterwards they could be sent to Magnetic Hill Zoo (Moncton) which have a pair, or moved to the Kids Zoo, the Ostrich Paddock, or in the African Antelope paddock, or possibly, now thinking about it, maybe with the Giraffes. Though they are a bit larger and slightly more... dangerous, but another possibility.
Click to expand...

IMO, Watussis only suit some a form of Kids Zoo (and then only hands off).
 
They actually have a pigeon, and have had turkeys in the past. However the biggest... problem with the Kid Zoo is space. They have very little room for expansion until the pony rides move, and then even then, they still don't have a lot of room. Also they need indoor space for the animals in the winter. The greatest problem for North American zoos.

But it would be nice to see them to get a little more interactive.
 
Went to the zoo today. IT was pretty slow all around. Humidity had the animals doing next to nothing.

- Wombats were pretty active today, running around the inside enclosure. It was fun to watch them.

- Humphrey was having fun playing with his ball in the pool.

- Still hard to see the baby marmoset, with it being so small, and mom being so active.

- White Lions got into a roaring contest with the Tawny Lions off exhibit. It was kind of exciting to watch.

- Tom was out with Sabi and Zohari for the fourth day now. Over heard Keeper talking about them. Apparently Tom is a big chicken and very not confrontational. He's like that because of the female he grew up with. Also, some Keeper want to put the girls out with Tony, because Tony is a bit more aggressive. The thought process behind this is that when they're reintroduced to Tom, they'll be more accepting of him since he's so mellow.

- Only one Indian Rhino was out. I think it was Asha, although it was hard to tell because it was taking a mud bath.

Also found out some pretty interesting things about both species of Rhinos. The Indian Rhinos are trained to have blood and urine samples taken. This way the Keepers know exactly when Asha is cycling. The White Rhino aren't trained for having blood and urine samples taken. They can predict when the females are cycling through behavioural changes, although they are going to begin training for blood and urine sample testing. Odd that they aren't already trained.

- On the zoomobile the commentator said he thinks the new baby yak, after Gemini, is a male, although they weren't 100% sure. So I've heard the baby yak referred to as a male and female. One thing that is consistent is the fact that the baby yak doesn't have a name yet.

I also got a map today, despite not needing it, and if does label Watusi as coming soon in the old Giraffe exhibit. They even got a little silhouette picture of one to make sure no one gets confused.
 
Im glad you had another nice day at the zoo. You certainly pick some wonderful weather days to enjoy things.

There is a way to tell Asha and Vishnu apart besides size and special bits. Vishnu has hairy ears where as Ashas are pretty light on the hair. Hopefully that helps next time.

I like the theory they have for the white rhinos. Let Tony throw his weight around so the girls realize how much nicer Tom is. Funny.

I did find it odd they are advertising the watusi when the exhibit isnt even going to be renovated until probably the fall and not be ready until maybe spring. They could have left it off until they ordered next years maps.
 
Oh, couple things I forgot to mention.

At Da Mao's exhibit, there were about a dozen chairs set up in front of a podium. Not sure what it was for, but I can assume there was an event this morning or this evening.

Also, saw another Ostrich egg in the Ostrich exhibit. Not sure which Ostrich it belonged to, but I was clearly visible from the look out between the White Lions and Olive Baboons.
 
Is it a new egg or possibly the first one? I have no idea if its in the same spot. If its possibly the original then it would belong to Miss Ellie since the new female just recently joined them. However it could be the second females if it is newer, I have no clue how long ostriches go between mating and laying. I doubt it matters though. The zoo doesnt help with eggs and probably brings the adults in at night leaving the nest without a parent to incubate overnight. As cool as it would be to see ostrich chicks I dont know if we will get lucky.
 
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