Toronto Zoo Toronto Zoo Discussion thread 2021
- Thread starter RNg0905
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@Jefferson, welcome! You have found the perfect place to embrace your love of the zoo. We are happy to have another member! Don't be shy to join in on the discussions we are a friendly bunch. Look forward to getting to know you!
When it comes to the 2 blue and gold macaws I think its become very apparent that the third blue and gold and the green winged macaw have either died or left the zoo. No one has seen them since reopening. Who knows how old they were.
With the spider monkeys it is entirely possible Lucas has left since he is destined for Granby. A transfer for him would be very easy to coordinate and Granby would be anxious to get him and clear him from quarantine. A spider monkey pregnancy is about 7.5 months so if they want a summer infant they need him in their hands ASAP. It is very possible though as @hyena142 mentioned someone was inside either just hanging out or training. I wouldn't be surprised if he left very soon or was already gone. The girls will take a little time as they may be temporarily going to Santa Fe while a new permanent home is found. That pesky border.
If there is work going on in the center exhibit in the Americas primate wing its very possible the zoo has pulled last surviving marmoset, Samantha, so that there is room for the sakis and tamarins while the new waterfall is installed. @hyena142, Samantha was mentioned and seen in a facebook live about a month ago when they visited the tamarins. She could be dead by now since clearly the group is down to the last member. Another poof and they are gone like the meerkats.
The ring necked pheasant not being around is a good sign. I loath when animals are in the wrong geographic region. Rodney was an older bird and his females have all been dead for at least a year. I wouldnt be surprised if hes passed too. If no one hears from a keeper hes gone I would say if no one sees him again by spring we can rule him out completely.
Not sure how soon we will fill the exhibits again. Realistically if they are going to make the arctic fox exhibit a whooping crane exhibit I think a ton of work would need to be done. No clue what the will do with the snowy owl exhibit. I can think of a few simple species they could stick in there. Nothing thrilling for sure.
@Akula, Mila is the great great granddaughter of Tonghua and Pam. She would be a great legacy animal especially since from her line we have had her great great grandparents, grandma Kita, great uncle Vitali, aunt Kira and dad. However that means we need to get rid of both Mazy who will be a non breeder here after (too old, Mila's litter was a hail Mary attempt) and Vasili who is not terribly genetically valuable and already represented genetically at Granby, and Winnipeg by his siblings and 2 more distant relatives in Calgary. Where would we send him within Canada? Unless Parc Safari suddenly wanted a pair of non breeding tigers I think our choices are non existent.
When it comes to the 2 blue and gold macaws I think its become very apparent that the third blue and gold and the green winged macaw have either died or left the zoo. No one has seen them since reopening. Who knows how old they were.
With the spider monkeys it is entirely possible Lucas has left since he is destined for Granby. A transfer for him would be very easy to coordinate and Granby would be anxious to get him and clear him from quarantine. A spider monkey pregnancy is about 7.5 months so if they want a summer infant they need him in their hands ASAP. It is very possible though as @hyena142 mentioned someone was inside either just hanging out or training. I wouldn't be surprised if he left very soon or was already gone. The girls will take a little time as they may be temporarily going to Santa Fe while a new permanent home is found. That pesky border.
If there is work going on in the center exhibit in the Americas primate wing its very possible the zoo has pulled last surviving marmoset, Samantha, so that there is room for the sakis and tamarins while the new waterfall is installed. @hyena142, Samantha was mentioned and seen in a facebook live about a month ago when they visited the tamarins. She could be dead by now since clearly the group is down to the last member. Another poof and they are gone like the meerkats.
The ring necked pheasant not being around is a good sign. I loath when animals are in the wrong geographic region. Rodney was an older bird and his females have all been dead for at least a year. I wouldnt be surprised if hes passed too. If no one hears from a keeper hes gone I would say if no one sees him again by spring we can rule him out completely.
Not sure how soon we will fill the exhibits again. Realistically if they are going to make the arctic fox exhibit a whooping crane exhibit I think a ton of work would need to be done. No clue what the will do with the snowy owl exhibit. I can think of a few simple species they could stick in there. Nothing thrilling for sure.
@Akula, Mila is the great great granddaughter of Tonghua and Pam. She would be a great legacy animal especially since from her line we have had her great great grandparents, grandma Kita, great uncle Vitali, aunt Kira and dad. However that means we need to get rid of both Mazy who will be a non breeder here after (too old, Mila's litter was a hail Mary attempt) and Vasili who is not terribly genetically valuable and already represented genetically at Granby, and Winnipeg by his siblings and 2 more distant relatives in Calgary. Where would we send him within Canada? Unless Parc Safari suddenly wanted a pair of non breeding tigers I think our choices are non existent.
Welcome to the forum @Jefferson. Always great to have another zoo fan amongst us.Also, great trip report.
The zoo is offering free admission to all indigenous people on National Truth and Reconciliation Day (Sep 30) with a variety of events also on offer.
Toronto Zoo | Events
Toronto Zoo | Events
Here's a short article about orang keeper Amanda Carroll and her orang pals. Nothing terribly informative.
Amanda Carroll dreamed of working with animals. Now a keeper at the Toronto Zoo, she tells what its like to train orangutans
Amanda Carroll dreamed of working with animals. Now a keeper at the Toronto Zoo, she tells what its like to train orangutans
hyena142
Well-Known Member
Did a visit today with the mission of seeing everything going back inside for the winter soon. I forgot until I got there that it was Indigenous peoples free day, so it was pretty darn busy considering it's late September. Everyone seemed like they were having a great time though. Here's hoping the zoo sells lots of memberships from this!
The savanna was especially packed so I kinda went through there at turbo speed. Didn't see the marabous but the hornbills and vulture are still outside in the kudus (plus the peacocks are still roaming) so they haven't corralled the birds for the winter yet. Kanzi is back out at the hyenas, there were some volunteers and a keeper keeping an eye on her to see how she manages on such a busy day. She looked like she was having fun interacting with kids. The penguins were completely blocked off, dunno what that was about.
I figured the army of people coming out of the savanna were all heading to Americas/Tundra next, and I wanted to wait them out until a bit later in the afternoon before I did that, so I went to the one place I knew they wouldn't follow: I did the Domain.
So here's some Domain updates for you guys since a lot of us haven't been down there in ages. The raccoons are in the lynx exhibit as we saw on the live chat, their old exhibit is super overgrown now so nothing's going back in there any time soon. All lynx signage is gone from what I can see except the maps, there's still an icon of it on there. Bailey was a no-show at the cougars, there was some food enrichment put out for him that didn't look like it had been touched. No off exhibit sign tho so he might've been hiding. Samson was up and looking around for food at the grizzlies, though Shintay was separated from him for some reason. She was sleeping in the night area while he was in the main exhibit. Thought that was odd. The moose sisters were in their usual spot way in the back of their exhibit. I can confirm there's still a bald eagle down there. Todd the red fox had a permanent looking off exhibit sign where he was supposed to be, so he might already be gone. The red fox signage and the obstacle course they built for him are still there tho so maybe I just caught an off day. This was especially weird, there were zero bison in their main yard. There were a few in the old musk ox yard, but none in the main one. There was a truck parked in there so maybe they were doing some work but I have no idea. My legs hurt now but all in all I've had way worse Domain treks.
Onto Tundra and Americas, I got a great view of the Arctic wolf pack all together. The pheasant is still missing so I think we can write that one off. And last but not least, once again only two spider monkeys on exhibit, so Lucas might've made the transfer to Granby.
Anything else you guys wanna know?
The savanna was especially packed so I kinda went through there at turbo speed. Didn't see the marabous but the hornbills and vulture are still outside in the kudus (plus the peacocks are still roaming) so they haven't corralled the birds for the winter yet. Kanzi is back out at the hyenas, there were some volunteers and a keeper keeping an eye on her to see how she manages on such a busy day. She looked like she was having fun interacting with kids. The penguins were completely blocked off, dunno what that was about.
I figured the army of people coming out of the savanna were all heading to Americas/Tundra next, and I wanted to wait them out until a bit later in the afternoon before I did that, so I went to the one place I knew they wouldn't follow: I did the Domain.
So here's some Domain updates for you guys since a lot of us haven't been down there in ages. The raccoons are in the lynx exhibit as we saw on the live chat, their old exhibit is super overgrown now so nothing's going back in there any time soon. All lynx signage is gone from what I can see except the maps, there's still an icon of it on there. Bailey was a no-show at the cougars, there was some food enrichment put out for him that didn't look like it had been touched. No off exhibit sign tho so he might've been hiding. Samson was up and looking around for food at the grizzlies, though Shintay was separated from him for some reason. She was sleeping in the night area while he was in the main exhibit. Thought that was odd. The moose sisters were in their usual spot way in the back of their exhibit. I can confirm there's still a bald eagle down there. Todd the red fox had a permanent looking off exhibit sign where he was supposed to be, so he might already be gone. The red fox signage and the obstacle course they built for him are still there tho so maybe I just caught an off day. This was especially weird, there were zero bison in their main yard. There were a few in the old musk ox yard, but none in the main one. There was a truck parked in there so maybe they were doing some work but I have no idea. My legs hurt now but all in all I've had way worse Domain treks.
Onto Tundra and Americas, I got a great view of the Arctic wolf pack all together. The pheasant is still missing so I think we can write that one off. And last but not least, once again only two spider monkeys on exhibit, so Lucas might've made the transfer to Granby.
Anything else you guys wanna know?
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@hyena142, you brave soul. The domain trek... just so terrible but I get the impulse to avoid the crowds.
The penguins might be closed for the day if they are getting the shade upgrades the others did earlier in the month though it wasnt an off display mentioned on the website. They could also have been simply doing pool cleaning day. Or maybe they were afraid of crowds in those close quarters on a day they expected to be insane. Free does mean insane.
Maybe grizzly Shintay was sleeping off an exam. Dont they try to do a health check on them before hibernation? I think they do.
With the bison dont know how long you were down there but keepers during talks have said they try to catch them up every day to run them through the chutes and with breeding season approaching it would be all the more important they are comfortable. That or it was the first procedure day where they do what they do to sync ovulation. I think they did their reproductive work in October last year so that can make a lot of sense too although just training is most likely.
With the spider monkeys was the crate still in the exhibit or is it gone? That too could signal Lucas has left.
The penguins might be closed for the day if they are getting the shade upgrades the others did earlier in the month though it wasnt an off display mentioned on the website. They could also have been simply doing pool cleaning day. Or maybe they were afraid of crowds in those close quarters on a day they expected to be insane. Free does mean insane.
Maybe grizzly Shintay was sleeping off an exam. Dont they try to do a health check on them before hibernation? I think they do.
With the bison dont know how long you were down there but keepers during talks have said they try to catch them up every day to run them through the chutes and with breeding season approaching it would be all the more important they are comfortable. That or it was the first procedure day where they do what they do to sync ovulation. I think they did their reproductive work in October last year so that can make a lot of sense too although just training is most likely.
With the spider monkeys was the crate still in the exhibit or is it gone? That too could signal Lucas has left.
hyena142
Well-Known Member
the hill always manages to be steeper than I remember
It was so busy that I wouldn't be surprised if the zoo just didn't wanna deal with crowding at the penguins, it's possible they're already indoors and the indoor viewing can be a real tight squeeze considering it's just one window.
Yeah I don't doubt the bison were somewhere, the entire herd didn't vanish lol. They were probably doing a combo of breeding prep and yard maintenance. I'm just glad I saw a few of them in the other exhibit.
I didn't see a crate but it's possible I missed it so I wouldn't say for sure Lucas is gone yet, it's just something to note that the last two trip reports (mine today and Jefferson's before me) only saw 2 monkeys
It was so busy that I wouldn't be surprised if the zoo just didn't wanna deal with crowding at the penguins, it's possible they're already indoors and the indoor viewing can be a real tight squeeze considering it's just one window.
Yeah I don't doubt the bison were somewhere, the entire herd didn't vanish lol. They were probably doing a combo of breeding prep and yard maintenance. I'm just glad I saw a few of them in the other exhibit.
I didn't see a crate but it's possible I missed it so I wouldn't say for sure Lucas is gone yet, it's just something to note that the last two trip reports (mine today and Jefferson's before me) only saw 2 monkeys
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I dont even like the look of the hill as I go past on the zoomobile. Its been 7 years since I was down there and I will be ok if I never go down there again.
We will know about Lucas in a little bit if you guys keep going and only seeing too and can confirm the crate is definitely gone much like we feel safe in saying the ring necked pheasant is gone. Plus if he is gone Granby could announce his arrival in the next month or so if they choose to say something.
We will know about Lucas in a little bit if you guys keep going and only seeing too and can confirm the crate is definitely gone much like we feel safe in saying the ring necked pheasant is gone. Plus if he is gone Granby could announce his arrival in the next month or so if they choose to say something.
For someone who knows nothing about this, what is the Domain Trek and what would be missed by not going down / up (?) there?
hyena142
Well-Known Member
@Chlidonias The Canadian Domain is a section that's kinda separated from the rest of the zoo. It's in a weird corner off the main path that there's no real reason to go to unless you're doing the Domain, and even worse it's at the bottom of an extremely steep hill. Decades ago you used to ride a monorail to get down there but that's long gone so now it's a one way hike down the hill and then back up it again to get out. It's notorious among us Toronto Zoo hardcores for hurting your legs because of that, it's not a particularly long walk to get back out but man, it feels like it. I only do it once or twice a year because it just saps my energy, and oftentimes it's not worth it because what if you go all the way down there and everything's asleep or hiding and you just wasted time and energy for nothing.
At the moment there's raccoons, a cougar, grizzly bears, a bald eagle, moose and a herd of bison down there, plus a few other minor animals, so you need to face the hill if you wanna see those guys. For years they've been talking about ways to make the Domain experience better, like bringing back the monorail or even scrapping the whole area and moving those animals to another part of the zoo, but none of that's happened.
At the moment there's raccoons, a cougar, grizzly bears, a bald eagle, moose and a herd of bison down there, plus a few other minor animals, so you need to face the hill if you wanna see those guys. For years they've been talking about ways to make the Domain experience better, like bringing back the monorail or even scrapping the whole area and moving those animals to another part of the zoo, but none of that's happened.
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In the domain currently there is 3 raccoons, 1 cougar, 2 grizzlies, 2 moose, 26ish wood bison, 1 bald eagle, 1 red fox and possibly 1 elk (not sure of the subspecies). There is also a good sized pond with wild waterfowl, other birds, and obvious pond life if you have a chance to see the smaller creatures. Until sometime this year there was also 1 Canadian lynx who has disappeared and no one is certain of her fate.
The hill we are talking about is a pretty steep hill. Going down I have always felt like I am working to stop myself from just running down the hill as momentum takes over. The trek back up is pretty taxing. It in no way meets accessibility regulations. Anyone with mobility issues and possibly some medical conditions should avoid it honestly. If you have kids with you I would say don't do it for what few species are down there. Personally I don't see it as worth my time or energy but that could well be because I live in an area where I can see raccoons, black bears, moose, eagles, foxes and elk in my own back yard. Well not literally, I have never seen a moose or elk in the yard. Yes to the rest. Might be more worthwhile to someone who lives in a city where those are more of a rarity and possibly is worth it for a tourist from overseas. It was worth it when the monorail ran. Not only did you get the ride down there and see everything but you also got amazing views of the Rouge Valley. Plus there were more animals, deer (dont remember the species), musk ox, a herd of elk, North American porcupine, caribou and arctic wolves (both now in Tundra Trek). There may have been more I just don't remember. There was talk of taking the new zoomobiles down there as they may be able to handle the weight of guests at that angle which would be great and make the domain more of a worthwhile option. I don't know if thats still the plan in a post covid world. Nothing more has been said about it since sometime last winter. I do hope it is able to go down there because more people would go down there if there was an easy way out.
Something is going to have to be done about the hill in the next several years. As I said it fails to meet accessibility regulations and the zoo has until 2025 I think to make all pathways comply. The zoo did a report on the pathways a year or two ago and two areas really stood out as being quite difficult to solve the issues with. One was the boardwalk leading from the Indo Malaya pavilion to the African rainforest pavilion (which has a plan for replacement in place) and the Domain hill. The report openly stated they are completely unsure how best to address that area because there incline is so steep and it would be the trickiest one to solve. I'm not sure if the zoomobile going down there would be a loophole to those rules.
The hill we are talking about is a pretty steep hill. Going down I have always felt like I am working to stop myself from just running down the hill as momentum takes over. The trek back up is pretty taxing. It in no way meets accessibility regulations. Anyone with mobility issues and possibly some medical conditions should avoid it honestly. If you have kids with you I would say don't do it for what few species are down there. Personally I don't see it as worth my time or energy but that could well be because I live in an area where I can see raccoons, black bears, moose, eagles, foxes and elk in my own back yard. Well not literally, I have never seen a moose or elk in the yard. Yes to the rest. Might be more worthwhile to someone who lives in a city where those are more of a rarity and possibly is worth it for a tourist from overseas. It was worth it when the monorail ran. Not only did you get the ride down there and see everything but you also got amazing views of the Rouge Valley. Plus there were more animals, deer (dont remember the species), musk ox, a herd of elk, North American porcupine, caribou and arctic wolves (both now in Tundra Trek). There may have been more I just don't remember. There was talk of taking the new zoomobiles down there as they may be able to handle the weight of guests at that angle which would be great and make the domain more of a worthwhile option. I don't know if thats still the plan in a post covid world. Nothing more has been said about it since sometime last winter. I do hope it is able to go down there because more people would go down there if there was an easy way out.
Something is going to have to be done about the hill in the next several years. As I said it fails to meet accessibility regulations and the zoo has until 2025 I think to make all pathways comply. The zoo did a report on the pathways a year or two ago and two areas really stood out as being quite difficult to solve the issues with. One was the boardwalk leading from the Indo Malaya pavilion to the African rainforest pavilion (which has a plan for replacement in place) and the Domain hill. The report openly stated they are completely unsure how best to address that area because there incline is so steep and it would be the trickiest one to solve. I'm not sure if the zoomobile going down there would be a loophole to those rules.
what's the story of all the abandoned building past Canadian domain. like where the monorail runs, past the fenced area, past the stream. they look like animal housing of sorts.
@meadowvale, I apologize if I have the wrong spot in mind. I don't do well with visualizing descriptions of places at times. Are you talking about this area?
Google Maps
Google Maps
@meadowvale, ok cool. This area I think has been used for the male bison at times and at other times housing for surplus hoofstock. My guess is the zebra boys are down in that particular exhibit right now. I can't say 100% thats the space they are in but its largely off display so it wouldnt ruin theming to have zebras down there.
ty kindly
@meadowvale, no problem. Happy to help. Keep an eye out for the next day or two incase I am wrong. If I am someone will probably correct me. There are others who are visiting the zoo who may have more up to date and correct info.
Hey random sounding question for you all. When you go to the zoos Facebook page is it loading right? I am only getting a single post saying the zoos ticketing page is back up and running and then nothing. This is day two where I cant see anything else there, yet I go to any other Facebook page and it loads just fine. Wondering if its me or them.