Toronto Zoo Toronto Zoo Discussion thread 2021

I was really sad to find out during my recent visit that the African Underground area was closed. Visiting the naked mole rats is really important to me and I hope they're not gonna be gone now, I don't want the precious nakies to leave, especially without me getting to say goodbye to them.. ;n;

Also, hello everyone, I'm new here but certainly no stranger to the Toronto Zoo! I've been visiting every October since 2013 (except in 2020 for obvious reasons) and before that had frequently visited throughout my childhood! Good to finally be on here!
 
Welcome @AJ the TZ Guy! Amazing to have another member join the community. The naked Mole Rats were a fascinating creature but I do believe the mob was getting old overall, so I cannot confirm anything. Overall, glad you have found us and we can’t wait to hear more!
 
Welcome @AJ the TZ Guy! Glad to have another TZ nut on here. We are a very welcoming and friendly group so feel free to jump right in and offer what you can and asking what you need to.

Sadly the mole rats were on phase out and with the Burrows being gutted currently for something none of us have a clue about they are likely gone. I cant see the zoo investing money in another exhibit in the main part of the pavilion for a group they are phasing out and probably could disperse easily. They havent allowed breeding with them for quite sometime. I think the youngest in the group was 10 or so if I remember the Facebook Live on them (springish last year). No idea how old the oldest was but they can live to be 30. It's a shame to lose them but their exhibit was never the best for viewing them. I think there are better ways to do it if they were to redo it. It would have been great to keep them.

Buckle up for a wild ride of phase outs coming. Check back in the I think Births, Deaths and Transfers thread from this year and you can take a look at the Animal Plan. Might as well know who to say goodbye to each time you go if you go just once a year. Helps with disappointment. There was no way you could have known the mole rats were going in 2019 but you can know this is highly likely the last time you will see a tree kangaroo, or that you have already seen the last of the clouded leopards. Finding us also means you will know who is leaving like white rhino Theo, red panda Adira and Indian rhino Asha. There is a longer list. A quick read through this years threads will bring you up to date on the comings and goings we know about. If its a mammal or larger bird or reptile we probably have found out already.

Looking forward to getting to know you! Hope you have found a great place to get your zoo fix year round with like minded zoo fiends.
 
AJ the TZ Guy said:
I was really sad to find out during my recent visit that the African Underground area was closed. Visiting the naked mole rats is really important to me and I hope they're not gonna be gone now, I don't want the precious nakies to leave, especially without me getting to say goodbye to them.. ;n;

Also, hello everyone, I'm new here but certainly no stranger to the Toronto Zoo! I've been visiting every October since 2013 (except in 2020 for obvious reasons) and before that had frequently visited throughout my childhood! Good to finally be on here!
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i also have been visiting for years.
 
@Bisonfan grewt to know another fellow TZ visitor is on board and shares the same Zoo many of us have all adored, really nice to know more people are joining and connecting with other TZ fans or visitors.
 
TZFan said:
Welcome @AJ the TZ Guy! Glad to have another TZ nut on here. We are a very welcoming and friendly group so feel free to jump right in and offer what you can and asking what you need to.

Sadly the mole rats were on phase out and with the Burrows being gutted currently for something none of us have a clue about they are likely gone. I cant see the zoo investing money in another exhibit in the main part of the pavilion for a group they are phasing out and probably could disperse easily. They havent allowed breeding with them for quite sometime. I think the youngest in the group was 10 or so if I remember the Facebook Live on them (springish last year). No idea how old the oldest was but they can live to be 30. It's a shame to lose them but their exhibit was never the best for viewing them. I think there are better ways to do it if they were to redo it. It would have been great to keep them.

Buckle up for a wild ride of phase outs coming. Check back in the I think Births, Deaths and Transfers thread from this year and you can take a look at the Animal Plan. Might as well know who to say goodbye to each time you go if you go just once a year. Helps with disappointment. There was no way you could have known the mole rats were going in 2019 but you can know this is highly likely the last time you will see a tree kangaroo, or that you have already seen the last of the clouded leopards. Finding us also means you will know who is leaving like white rhino Theo, red panda Adira and Indian rhino Asha. There is a longer list. A quick read through this years threads will bring you up to date on the comings and goings we know about. If its a mammal or larger bird or reptile we probably have found out already.

Looking forward to getting to know you! Hope you have found a great place to get your zoo fix year round with like minded zoo fiends.
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Oh no, the tree kangaroo's leaving too? The nakies being gone was bad enough news... ;w;
 
Also, as a sidenote, I'm gonna be posting pics of some animals I need help identifying, so if anyone can assist with that, that'd be great--I'm trying to make myself a complete guide to every TZ animal I've taken a photo of since 2015!
 
@AJ the TZ Guy, sadly yes. This is old news though. Puzzle has been slated to go since very early 2019. Collins death sealed the fate of tree kangaroos for Toronto. Puzzle didn't even get to meet him. Getting another male was going to be hard. They had been trying to replace the previous female for years and got nowhere for the longest time. She was a nervous shy animal and the exhibit was just to scary for her, she was better off elsewhere. Don't know if you know this but Collins was a 3rd generation animal at the zoo. His father was our last joey Noru's son and grandson of the late great Harrington and Chrissie. Shame we couldn't have had just one joey from him so we could have had the 4th generation. Sigh....

If you want individuals identified you have come to the right place. There are several here who are very good at ID's. The family tree thread might be something you really want to look at if you want to make your own guide, I put the link in another answer to you. We can help some. Also if you want that guide dont forget to look back at past photos. Some people are good about IDing the animal in their photos so you can pick up visual clues that way too.
 
@Bisonfan, sorry to burst your bubble but yes. Puzzle will be headed to Roger Williams Park Zoo as soon as transporting her is possible. My guess is she will be gone sometime next spring as keepers have said enjoy her while you can this winter. She is fully crate trained and has been since before covid struck. She probably would have been gone in the spring of 2020 if not for covid. This is a personally sucky loss. Almost on par with loosing the river hippos and Indian rhinos in the not too distant future.
 
Welcome @AJ the TZ Guy and @Bisonfan! Glad you guys were able to find us and join in on the TZ craziness.

Yeah Puzzle's been slated to leave for a while, really sucks but it kinda has to happen for a few breeding-related reasons. My fingers are crossed hard we'll get koalas back after she leaves but with how stingy the Aussies are with sending animals off the continent I'm not holding onto hope.

I'm heading out to the zoo for a visit in like an hour, anything you guys want me to investigate?
 
@hyena142, as always it would be great if you could check the spider monkey situation to see if its another missed sighting of Lucas and check if the crate is still in the exhibit. If you dont mind naturally.
 
@TZFan I was planning on checking that out, hopefully they haven't gone inside for the winter yet and I can get some info for you guys
 
@hyena142 if you can you can. If not then no worries. It is a tricky time of year. If he's MIA in the spring we will know for certain he left late summer or early fall of 2021.
 
Alright I just got back, here's what's going on at the zoo

They're about halfway done transferring over to winter mode. The peacocks have replaced the lemurs at the seasonal exhibit, the Kids Zoo is closed, and the Africa birds seem to all have been corralled for the winter with the exception of the two hornbills in the old caracal/porcupine exhibit. The aldabras and Americas pavilion monkeys have gone inside as well. Everything else is still out (rhinos, giraffes, kangaroos, etc.) although I expect they'll be going in before long.

At Indo I finally got to see Budi in person, it's so cool to have a mature male orang back at the zoo. I also spied Henry the wrinkled hornbill so he's still here.

At Africa the giraffe roof construction looks like it's just about done, they were putting some finishing touches on it today. The trio all seemed very interested in seeing what was being done to their house. No zebras this morning, they were doing some weed whacking by the looks of it. The poor cheetah across the way didn't look very pleased that it's nap was being disturbed by the noise. The penguins are still closed for the mystery refurb, I was able to see the seating area from behind the eland so I can put an end to the rumour that it's being demolished.

Lots going on at the Temple Ruin today. Lucas is officially still here, all 3 monkeys were out and active today. They were adding what looked like new dotted stickers to the glass on the jaguars and the monkeys, I guess to stop birds from flying into it? Lastly this isn't really an update but I've never seen it before, the macaws were wandering around on their island today instead of sitting in their perches, that was really interesting.

Nothing to report from Tundra other than the pheasant still being absent

Some news from the GBR in Australasia, they've added something kinda new! Now that the lionfish has been moved to the community tank, its old tank is currently being used for baby moon jellies born from the zoo's group. They aren't using the full tank, just a small part of it themed to look like a porthole. It's kinda hard to describe so here's a pic. Also I know in another thread there's a discussion of if the bamboo shark is back, I can confirm that there's one in the community tank again!

Lastly Eurasia, the snow leopards got a new climbing structure. Ena seemed to be enjoying it, she was sleeping on top of it instead of at her usual spot by the glass. No chamois today, so make of that what you will. As expected Suva was alone at the red pandas, if memory serves me Adira's last day on exhibit was yesterday so now I guess we're just waiting for Paprika's arrival.

Anything else you guys wanna hear about?
 
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TZFan said:
@Bisonfan, sorry to burst your bubble but yes. Puzzle will be headed to Roger Williams Park Zoo as soon as transporting her is possible. My guess is she will be gone sometime next spring as keepers have said enjoy her while you can this winter. She is fully crate trained and has been since before covid struck. She probably would have been gone in the spring of 2020 if not for covid. This is a personally sucky loss. Almost on par with loosing the river hippos and Indian rhinos in the not too distant future.
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Really:oops: the hippos are the best.
 
hyena142 said:
Welcome @AJ the TZ Guy and @Bisonfan! Glad you guys were able to find us and join in on the TZ craziness.

Yeah Puzzle's been slated to leave for a while, really sucks but it kinda has to happen for a few breeding-related reasons. My fingers are crossed hard we'll get koalas back after she leaves but with how stingy the Aussies are with sending animals off the continent I'm not holding onto hope.

I'm heading out to the zoo for a visit in like an hour, anything you guys want me to investigate?
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I can kinda understand why Australia would be reluctant to send anything at the moment, after what happened to them last year and how many koalas died... :c But if a permanent koala exhibit is the plan for the tree roo home once it's vacated, that's nice at least. I'm gonna miss the tree roo though, and I'm happy I got to see it one last time. ;w;

Also I had no idea there was supposed to be a pheasant in the Tundra Trek, I've never seen it during my visits! Is it a new addition?
 
TZFan said:
@Bisonfan, sorry to burst your bubble but yes. Puzzle will be headed to Roger Williams Park Zoo as soon as transporting her is possible. My guess is she will be gone sometime next spring as keepers have said enjoy her while you can this winter. She is fully crate trained and has been since before covid struck. She probably would have been gone in the spring of 2020 if not for covid. This is a personally sucky loss. Almost on par with loosing the river hippos and Indian rhinos in the not too distant future.
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I really hope they decide against the hippos leaving. That's a classic zoo staple animal, people expect to see hippos at the zoo just as much as they expect to see zebras, lions and giraffes, and they're always a delight to visit. At the TZ hippos' age too, I doubt there's as much window of opportunity for breeding, and I'm sure the zoo would want them to go together, which rules out any potential buyers just looking to get one of them.
 
AJ the TZ Guy said:
I can kinda understand why Australia would be reluctant to send anything at the moment, after what happened to them last year and how many koalas died... :c But if a permanent koala exhibit is the plan for the tree roo home once it's vacated, that's nice at least. I'm gonna miss the tree roo though, and I'm happy I got to see it one last time. ;w;

Also I had no idea there was supposed to be a pheasant in the Tundra Trek, I've never seen it during my visits! Is it a new addition?
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They were the ring-necked pheasants who, for a time, were in the Australasia outdoor aviary next to the entrance to the pavilion. I think they were somewhere else before that, too, but I don't remember where
 
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