Toronto Zoo Toronto Zoo - Canada's Largest Zoo

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I believe the tamandua was named simon. I though i saw him with the spider monkeys once.The jaguars names are Luca(spots) and Zambuca(black) am i correct, i was also wondering where the golden monkeys,giant pandas,bongos,and where the former red panda exhibit was?Oh ya,what year was Eurasia opened?Thanks so much again for taking time to awnser these questions
 
Yes, the tamandua was "Simon" (he passed away very recently at the Sedgewick County Zoo), and the jaguars are Luca and Zambucca (they are brother and sister).

The giant pandas were the special exhibit in 1985 - they lived in what is now the dhole exhibit. It was actually built specially for the pandas, and there is still some Chinese writing inside the house as labels for doors! (The pandas were accompanied by Chinese keepers).

When the zoo first opened, the red pandas were exhibited in the IndoMalaya paddocks (the space currently occupied by the Indian rhino house). They were also exhibited in the giant panda/dhole exhibit when their larger relatives departed. The present red pandas exhibit(s) were opened in 1993.

I believe the golden monkeys were displayed in the lion-tailed macaque exhibit (1986).

Are you familiar with the layout of the original Africa pavilion (before the gorilla rainforest exhibit was built)? The bongo exhibit is now completely gone, but it used to be at the midsection of the pavilion, along the northeast side. In the pavilion today, as you come from the elephants, there is a large garden just past the elevator (and just before Lake Malawi). This garden used to be the meerkat exhibit. From here, the pathway used to curve steeply downwards towards the outside of the pavilion (in the general direction of Indo). The bongo exhibit was the largest display in the building. From the outside of the pavilion, you can still see where the double doors used to be (at the end of the pathway around the bongo exhibit), as well as a single door to the left (from the bongo indoor to the bongo outdoor enclosure) and another to the right (between the old Aldabra tortoise inside and outside displays).
 
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could you give me a list of animals that haved died out,phased out o sent out that u remember
 
Why did the zoo decide to get rid of the Aldabra tortoise, and the Bongo, and where were the Giant Panda's and Koala Bears housed while at the zoo?
 
ZooGoer2000, the list of animals that were once housed at the Toronto Zoo but which are no longer present is staggeringly large, and there is no master list for every species once kept at the zoo.

Some of the former highlights of the zoo's mammal collection include:
Grizzled grey tree kangaroo, wallaroo, Tasmanian devil, kowari, Eastern quoll, woolly opossum, grey-headed flying fox, Indian fruit bat, common tree shrew, brush-tailed porcupine, tamandua, slow loris, potto, Senegal galago, ring-tailed lemur, Guereza colobus, vervet monkey, Debrazza's guenon, patas monkey, Hamadryas baboon, gelada baboon, Japanese macaque, Liberian mongoose (the only one of its kind ever kept in captivity), cusimanse, European genet, zorilla, hog-nosed badger, fennec fox, raccoon dog, bat-eared fox, bobcat, Chinese leopard, aardvark, South American tapir, Damara zebra, Grant's zebra, dromedary, pronghorn, Chinese water deer, Siberian roe deer, Pere David's deer, barasingha, white-tailed deer, mule deer, water buffalo, Congo buffalo, nilgai, sitatunga, nyala, bongo, springbok, white-tailed gnu, gemsbok, Nubian ibex, Dall's sheep.

The list above is off the top of my head, and is probably far from complete ... please don't inquire as to where they all went! My knowledge of the other taxa (birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, inverts) is much less thorough.

Meaghan, I hope you had a good day at the zoo (hopefully the rain held off for you!). If you find your bongo pictures, it would be great it you could post them in the gallery.

Quartz, the tortoises and bongo were moved in preparation for the reconstruction of the Africa Pavilion. The zoo has had koalas visit three times, on temporary loan from the San Diego Zoo. The first time (1988) they were exhibited in the "Village Edge" pavilion (now Malayan Woods), in a display approximately where the clouded leopard exhibit is today. The two other times (1996 and 2002) they were in the current tree kangaroo exhibit at the entrance to the Australasia Pavilion.
 
do you happen to know what year each zone opened?I think the zoo should revamp the Indo-Malaya Pavilion and paddock areas like they did in Africa
 
"Eurasia Pavilion"

With all of the recent interest in the history of the Toronto Zoo, I thought doing some "blasts from the past" might be fun. When the Toronto Zoo first opened in 1974, there were four major indoor pavilions: Africa, IndoMalaya, North America, and Eurasia. In the intervening years, the North American Pavilion was expanded to include South America, and is now known as "The Americas". In the early 1980's the Eurasian pavilion was converted to what is now Australasia.

Here is the 1977 guidebook tour through the original Eurasia pavilion (with original capitalizations and bolding), along with some notes and links to some old photos:

"Walk into the Eurasian Pavilion and into a Mediterranean setting. Many of the plants in this region are delicately aromatic, and many produce exotic flowers and delicious fruits: Limes, Banana trees, Loquats, Figs, Rosemary, Jasmine, and Hong Kong orchids. The entrance is an open flight cage.

Farther into the pavilion is a small Papyrus swamp and the Cormorant pool. In the darkened nocturnal area ahead you will see a Chinese Giant Salamander; a weirdly named Scheltopusik, a lizard without legs; Desert Hamsters which can be viewed in their tunnels through glass; and a family of Barn Owls.

The pavilion opens into a larger glass-roofed area that contains a variety of interesting small mammals. Flamingoes winter in the exhibit to your right.

To the left are the dainty Fennec Foxes, small desert carnivores from North Africa and Arabia. Raccoon-like Dogs growl but seem unable to bark. The race exhibited is from Japan. The European Genet is a nocturnal animal related to the mongoose; it will climb trees in search of roosting birds. The Hog-nosed badgers were acquired in a trade with Peking Zoo. The got their name from their long, mobile, naked snouts which they use to root for food. Exit here from the pavilion."



If you are familiar with the current Australasia Pavilion, the layout is relatively still the same, although the Edge of Night/new Great Barrier Reef exhibit was not present (the addition opened in 1983). The entrance still goes through the free-flight aviary, ending in the "Billabong" - most interestingly (for me, at least), the zoo is currently working on bringing in pied cormorants to inhabit the original "Cormorant pool"! The 'nocturnal' area was later turned into the former Barrier Reef area, which now houses the yabbies and stick insects.

The flamingos wintered in what is now the Komodo dragon exhibit -
Flamingos on Flickr - Photo Sharing! - which was usually occupied by a scimitar-horned oryx during the summer. The raccoon dogs lived in the other large exhibit (I'm not sure now how to describe it - it is currently the indoor "mammal" exhibit, but was formerly the swamp wallaby/rabbit display, and has also housed emus, kookaburras, wombats, and Tasmanian devils at various times). See: http://www.mammalogy.org/mil_images/images/mid/270.jpg

The other small carnivores inhabited exhibits in the area where the reptile displays are now. At the time, the Bactrian camels lived in the adjacent paddock (the current kangaroo walk-through); you can see the "Snack Bar" marker on the pole in yellow (left-hand side) and the Siberian tiger fence to the right in the background of this image: Camels on Flickr - Photo Sharing!
(Meaghan already commented on the photo!)
 
Zoogoer2000 said:
do you happen to know what year each zone opened?I think the zoo should revamp the Indo-Malaya Pavilion and paddock areas like they did in Africa
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The zoo was more-or-less complete when it opened in 1974 - all of the major paddocks and pavilions were open, with the exception of the old monorail (and the Canadian Domain exhibits along the track) which opened in 1976. Over time, there have been small changes; Eurasia Pavilion to Australasia, renovations to Malayan Woods, and construction of the Indian rhino house. However, there are still a large number of original zoo buildings from the 1970's.

The zoo has just started on the major revamping of the site, starting with the African Savannah in 1998, followed by the Gorilla Rainforest half of the African pavilion in 2000. Australasia has just been redone, and now the focus is on the North Site project (Tundra Trek, followed by the Boreal Forest and a new Eurasia).
 
I hope they enlarge the area for the new pair of Indian rhinos they had the room to do this last time I was there, maybe in the furture they could run two females if they had more room
 
Thank you so much once again for going above and beyond to give us info.
 
When is eurasia slated to open, will it have a new name and will there be new speceis?
 
The new Eurasia is still in the preliminary planning stages, and it will be 5-10 years before it is complete. All of the species lists are very tentative, and they focus mainly on the current collection.
 
Oh,once the new wolf exhibit opens, will they move the wolves from Canada to Tundra?same question for the Caribou?When the sumatran tigers moved to toronto, they were the brotherly duo Rengat and Rataka from San Antonio but they started to fight so Rataka went to Woodland where he has had 3 litters with his mate and then Brytne arrived the following year from Memphis,isnt Rataka now with Brytne's sister?When did they start breeding them. It also says on the San Fransisco Zoo website that they have a sumatran tiger named Leanne born in 1998 at toronto zoo, but was'nt Bryt and Reng's 2003 litter the first ever born in Canada?
 
As it happened, it did rain the moment I got to the zoo, right to the moment I left :P Mostly I checked out the indoor animals and had a great time with the stingrays and loved the new Australasia exhibits. Since I have a zoo membership, I will be back soon!

Thanks again for the information, Ungulate; I saw pictures of the Raccoon Dogs somewhere and I wondered if it was in the current Australasia exhbit. Just two question; what new species would you like to see at the exhibit, and which exhibits would you like seeing redone?

I was wondering about where the Lion Tailed Macaques were! What a neat project.

Toronto Zoo macaques exhibit going green

Updated: Fri May. 30 2008 5:21:51 PM

The Canadian Press

TORONTO  An exhibit housing lion-tailed macaques at the Toronto Zoo will be retrofitted with green technology in the hopes of reducing emissions, saving money and educating the public at the major tourist attraction, Ontario Energy Minister Gerry Phillips said Friday.

The province will contribute money from its Community Conservation Initiative to help fund a geothermal energy system, which will use heat from within the Earth to control temperature in the monkey's habitat.

It's an ideal way for the zoo to showcase an environmentally friendly heating and cooling system to the facility's 1.4 million annual visitors, said Phillips.

"It's going to be a great demonstration project so people come and they'll see what geothermal is,'' Phillips said.

Franz Hartmann of the Toronto Environmental Alliance applauded the zoo's initiative and the government's support, but said the government has to do more.

"We've got a provincial government that has committed to a huge amount of money toward nuclear and frankly, not nearly enough money to supporting green energy initiatives like this,'' said Hartmann.

The Toronto Zoo is a great place to teach people about geothermal energy, and that Ontario has a lot of potential to further develop the environmentally friendly resource, he added.

"This is welcome, but a lot more needs to happen.''

Dave Ireland, the zoo's curator of conservation, said the government is contributing roughly $38,000 to the project, which is expected to cost about $89,000.

The exhibit will include information so the public can learn about geothermal technology and the potential to use sustainable energy sources, said Ireland. Normally, while people may hear about alternative energy technology, it's difficult to show it in use, he added.

"We have a captive audience in these people who are standing here now and are willing to hear a message,'' said Ireland, gesturing to the small crowd bustling around the glass of the lion-tailed macaques exhibit.

Ireland said he hopes the zoo can meld its usual message of animal conservation with energy consumption to make people more conscious of energy use and its effects on other species.

"We're not the only ones out there and ecosystems function to protect us and sustain us,'' Ireland said.

Geothermal heating and cooling systems use various methods to extract energy, in the form of heat, from deep within the Earth. It is a low-emission, sustainable source of energy and gaining popularity in Canada and worldwide.

Lion-tailed macaques are classified as endangered, with only about 400 left in the wild. The monkeys, which live in evergreen forests, are indigenous to the west coast of southern India.

The Toronto Zoo's heating and cooling system is one of 22 projects that have been approved for Community Conservation Initiative funding so far this year. There is still roughly $250,000 left out of the $1-million fund that is open for other projects.

The fund has supported more than 50 conservation projects across the province over the past two years.

Phillips said the system is one more way to cut down on greenhouse gas emissions and deal with climate change.

"It's part of a broader conservation culture that we have to develop,'' said Phillips. "I find the young people have it, and now we have to find a way that all of us get it.''
CTV Toronto- Toronto Zoo macaques exhibit going green - CTV News, Shows and Sports -- Canadian Television
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Zoogoer2000 said:
Oh,once the new wolf exhibit opens, will they move the wolves from Canada to Tundra?same question for the Caribou?When the sumatran tigers moved to toronto, they were the brotherly duo Rengat and Rataka from San Antonio but they started to fight so Rataka went to Woodland where he has had 3 litters with his mate and then Brytne arrived the following year from Memphis,isnt Rataka now with Brytne's sister?When did they start breeding them. It also says on the San Fransisco Zoo website that they have a sumatran tiger named Leanne born in 1998 at toronto zoo, but was'nt Bryt and Reng's 2003 litter the first ever born in Canada?
Click to expand...

Woah! Easy there with the questions!

Yes, I believe the wolves will be moving up to the new Tundra from the Canadian Domain, and no, I don't know what the plans are for the current exhibit. Perhaps they will try to split the pack in two.

Technically, we only have European tundra reindeer at the zoo (you can add woodland caribou to the list above of animals no longer at the zoo). I believe they will move from Eurasia to the new Tundra.

TIGERS: Rengat and Rakata were split up as per the SSP recommendations to breed them. Rakata is in Seattle, but is paired up with Brytne's mother (not her sister).

"Leanne" at the San Francisco Zoo is in fact "Skylar" from the 2003 litter; I am not sure where it says 1998 as her birth year, but in the press release for the tiger cubs, they mention that she is five years old. And yes, I believe that the three cubs born in 2003 were the first litter of Sumatran tigers in Canada.
 
Meaghan,
I'll need to think on that for a bit ...
"What new species would you like to see at the exhibit?" Which exhibit are you thinking of?
 
Zoo I meant, not exhibit. Sorry about the typo! I'm glad to hear there's plans to bring the pied cormorants to your zoo; I remember when I was a kid (still a kid at heart mind you), I used to watch the cormorants being fed.

Some more interesting old school Toronto Zoo pics:

Toronto Metro Zoo on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (somehow I remember these guys)

Toronto Metro Zoo on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (old meerkat exhibit)

Zebras on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (Damaras?)

Lions in their original exhibit (correct me if I'm wrong) before they were housed where the hyenas are now:

Lion on Flickr - Photo Sharing!
Lion on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Old gorilla exhibit:

Gorilla on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

*continues hunt for her Bongo pictures*
 
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