Toronto Zoo Toronto Zoo Future Developments 2013

West caucasian tur will remain on exhibit (no longer a phase-out species), aoudad will probably not be back on display, and mouflon will be tried in the drive-through paddocks. As for the chamois, I believe they will remain in the current exhibit as a phase-out species.

As for a new red panda exhibit, I think things will be staying status quo there.

YES!!! You just made my day (even though I just woke up 10 minutes ago:)). The tur were always my favourite species of hoofstock in the zoo. I just love their impressive horns. It's nice that the zoo finally decided to keep a species that isn't very common in zoos (I just wish they did this for the dholes).
I'm guessing that the tur are remaining in their current exhibit and the snow leopards are going where the mouflon/aoudad were. Am I right?
 
YES!!! You just made my day (even though I just woke up 10 minutes ago:)). The tur were always my favourite species of hoofstock in the zoo. I just love their impressive horns. It's nice that the zoo finally decided to keep a species that isn't very common in zoos (I just wish they did this for the dholes).
I'm guessing that the tur are remaining in their current exhibit and the snow leopards are going where the mouflon/aoudad were. Am I right?

That sounds correct, yes
 
Don't give up hope on the dhole either, just because they aren't getting a new exhibit.. doesn't specifically mean they're going out for good! I'm not saying that dhole are for sure staying on, but I wouldn't expect much definite decision in the matter until after Pattie and Martha have passed away. Both are much older, and it wouldn't be ideal to introduce new animals to them. We could probably receive dhole fairly easily (e.g. a male from SDZ and one or two from Minnesota), and the exhibit is in pretty good shape... so just wait it out on that one.
 
I haven't completely given up on the dholes, and I think they'll probably be at the zoo for at least a few more years. Isn't the area where their exhibit is going to become the new Canadian Wilderness area? That's the main reason why I thought that if they aren't getting a new exhibit, it probably means they are going to be phased out.
 
Yes arcticwolf that is correct, it will eventually become the Canadian Wilderness. The camels as well will be receiving upgrades to their current exhibit. WITH that being said, the exhibits in Eurasia not receiving upgrades i.e. red pandas, might possible be given new graphics, paint job, some new amenities, etc., nothing major.
 
Red pandas as stated after, and I think thats it, well the dholes, apes and I don't think the horses are getting much done.
 
Will the new zoomobile drive threw exhibits be open in the spring along with the panda opening? And exactly what exhibits will become drive threw?
 
The zoomobile has one route only, therefore I am assuming that once the zoomobile opens for the season the route will be used, and the animals may or may not be allowed over the pathways. They may to start put a temporary fence up along the route to get the animals used to the zoomobile first before they allow the animals full access.
 
Sorry for the delay in posting information on my trip:
-For Eurasia:
-The fences that they have up around Eurasia are high and have mesh covering them, so I couldn't really see much. Though I did see what I believe to be the new Gift Shop that will be part of the Panda Plaza.
-I saw a keeper and asked about things over in Eurasia and she was kinda tight lipped, I have a feeling that she works there and here charges are part of the phase out happening there, but she said thing were going well and were on time and that it was going to look good, but not much more

- The elephants have a transfer crate in front of their house entrance, so their likely conditioning them for their transport.

-Nile Monitor in the Africa Pavilion has been replaced with several tortoises (can't remember the species)

-The Ring-tailed Lemurs share their enclosure with two Grey-necked crowned cranes

-All signage had been removed for the Spotted-otters in the Africa Pavilion

-New signage is up for our Crested Porcupines for the old Caracal enclosure

-Watched a young-ish male hyena try to mate with the old female for a long time (keeper was out watching the event, the male had several nice nip marks from the female), the female wasn't having any of it

-Female clouded leopard was out and in full view, something I have never seen in the close to 19 years I've been going to the zoo, a volunteer told us she was coming towards the end of her time and that she had been moving out into the open more

-The Indo-Malaya Waterfall pool was divided into two sections by a weighted net, one side held a number (5) jumbo gourami, the other side held what looked like a bottom feeding shark or fish (black, long, stayed at the bottom) no signs so no idea what it is

-Enjoyed a long adventure of types with the Orangs, four were out, they had fun with a bucket full of water

-At the second viewing opportunity for the White-handed Gibbons the central window was boarded up with wood for one reason or another

-The Sumatran tigers were anxious, pacing on either side of the separate enclosures they were in

-The new wombats, or wombat, was out in the indoor enclosure with the other one

-The Fly River Turtles in the Australia Pavilion are HUGE, twice the size since the last time I visited, the Cormorants were no where to be seen, as with the Cockatoos and Victoria Crowned Pigeons

-The Babirusa female and her piglet were in the Malayan Tapir indoor
-On a side note, they need to look into expanding this area or moving one of the animals in my mind, there is simply not enough space for both species. The likely scenario I see is moving the Babirusa to the Gaur exhibit once they are gone

-The map/zoo brochure states part of the zoo's plan is to enhance and EXPAND the hippo (assuming river hippos) and orang enclosures
-no mention of Canada moving

-The birds from the Bird Request from a while back are all there and flying from what I could see, the Acari are especially funny

-All the Americas tanks are either up and running or have signs stating what is going to happen to them

I think that is it, may have forgotten something, we'll see.
 
Thanks for the informative update! I have a lot of questions, so if anyone has answers, please post them.
Does anyone know if the spotted necked otters are gone? I know that they were old and would probably pass away soon. Is there a plan to replace them?
Does the zoo still plan on acquiring new clouded leopards once the current one passes?
When you said all of the birds from the Bird Request were out, does that include the red crested cardinals that the zoo was planning on getting?

I think the tortoise species that replaced the monitor are radiated tortoises.
Also, I would think that the larger tapir would move to the gaur exhibit once they leave, because they need much more space than the babirusa. With a larger exhibit, the zoo could finally bring in a breeding female.
 
The Prezwalski Horse, yak, and mouflon exhibits will become drive through.

Weren't the mouflon exhibited close to the west caucasian tur in the exhibit being converted into the snowleopard exhibit. Are they being moved to one of the drive through exhibits or will they be moved to the other exhibit near the tur (that used to hosue the chamois) that has a fake rock mountain?
 
- The elephants have a transfer crate in front of their house entrance, so their likely conditioning them for their transport.

-Nile Monitor in the Africa Pavilion has been replaced with several tortoises (can't remember the species)

-The Ring-tailed Lemurs share their enclosure with two Grey-necked crowned cranes

-All signage had been removed for the Spotted-otters in the Africa Pavilion

-New signage is up for our Crested Porcupines for the old Caracal enclosure

-Watched a young-ish male hyena try to mate with the old female for a long time (keeper was out watching the event, the male had several nice nip marks from the female), the female wasn't having any of it

-Female clouded leopard was out and in full view, something I have never seen in the close to 19 years I've been going to the zoo, a volunteer told us she was coming towards the end of her time and that she had been moving out into the open more

-The Indo-Malaya Waterfall pool was divided into two sections by a weighted net, one side held a number (5) jumbo gourami, the other side held what looked like a bottom feeding shark or fish (black, long, stayed at the bottom) no signs so no idea what it is

-Enjoyed a long adventure of types with the Orangs, four were out, they had fun with a bucket full of water

-At the second viewing opportunity for the White-handed Gibbons the central window was boarded up with wood for one reason or another

-The Sumatran tigers were anxious, pacing on either side of the separate enclosures they were in

-The new wombats, or wombat, was out in the indoor enclosure with the other one

-The Fly River Turtles in the Australia Pavilion are HUGE, twice the size since the last time I visited, the Cormorants were no where to be seen, as with the Cockatoos and Victoria Crowned Pigeons

-The Babirusa female and her piglet were in the Malayan Tapir indoor
-On a side note, they need to look into expanding this area or moving one of the animals in my mind, there is simply not enough space for both species. The likely scenario I see is moving the Babirusa to the Gaur exhibit once they are gone

-The map/zoo brochure states part of the zoo's plan is to enhance and EXPAND the hippo (assuming river hippos) and orang enclosures
-no mention of Canada moving

-The birds from the Bird Request from a while back are all there and flying from what I could see, the Acari are especially funny

-All the Americas tanks are either up and running or have signs stating what is going to happen to them

I think that is it, may have forgotten something, we'll see.

Thanks for the updates! Below are a few clarifications based on my frequent visits:

- The elephants have 3 crates (1 by the house and 2 in the other half of the exhibit), which have been in place for quite some time. 1 of the crates was orginally too small (not sure if its length has been increased yet) and is one of the reasons that the elephants have not been transferred yet.

-The nile monitor has been off display since at least May 2012 (although I think the signage is still there). There are 4 radiated tortoises in that exhibit (1 male, 3 female) now.

- The grey-crowned cranes share the exhibit with the lemurs during the winter and have an outdoor exhibit in the summer. This shared exhibit happened last winter too, as I remember watching the lemurs hanging from the ropes and taking swipes at the cranes.

- Not sure why the spotted-necked otter signage disappeared, but Fred is still around. Ginger passed away a few months ago.

- The female hyena is only 6 years old. Pinduli was born in 2006 at the Denver Zoo. I believe the male is older than that. There have been many observed breeding attempts between these two and the male has several scars as a result.

- The other species of fish in the Indo waterfall area is catfish (not sure exactly what species of catfish, but they are quite large). They have never been separated from the gourami on any of my visits, so maybe there are agression issues between the 2 species.

-The Gibbon viewing glass shattered a few weeks ago. I'm pretty sure it happened overnight and the keepers think it was due to the freezing and thawing of the ground (some areas of the pavilion are built directly on the ground)

-You likely saw both of the new wombats and not Hamlet, who is on exhibit overnight.

- Not sure where the cormorants are in Australasia, but both cockatoos and 1 victoria crowned pigeons are still around

- the female babirusas and tapir share one exhibit. The tapir is out in the morning and the babirusa in the afternoon. Not sure where the male babirusa is this winter, but he doesn't go on exhibit.

- The fish tanks in Americas have been like that for what seems like forever. I don't know what the delays are since the new tanks have been installed and as far as I know, the species are already at the Zoo in holding tanks.
 
Thanks for the updates! Below are a few clarifications based on my frequent visits:

- The elephants have 3 crates (1 by the house and 2 in the other half of the exhibit), which have been in place for quite some time. 1 of the crates was orginally too small (not sure if its length has been increased yet) and is one of the reasons that the elephants have not been transferred yet.

-The nile monitor has been off display since at least May 2012 (although I think the signage is still there). There are 4 radiated tortoises in that exhibit (1 male, 3 female) now.

- The grey-crowned cranes share the exhibit with the lemurs during the winter and have an outdoor exhibit in the summer. This shared exhibit happened last winter too, as I remember watching the lemurs hanging from the ropes and taking swipes at the cranes.

- Not sure why the spotted-necked otter signage disappeared, but Fred is still around. Ginger passed away a few months ago.

- The female hyena is only 6 years old. Pinduli was born in 2006 at the Denver Zoo. I believe the male is older than that. There have been many observed breeding attempts between these two and the male has several scars as a result.

- The other species of fish in the Indo waterfall area is catfish (not sure exactly what species of catfish, but they are quite large). They have never been separated from the gourami on any of my visits, so maybe there are agression issues between the 2 species.

-The Gibbon viewing glass shattered a few weeks ago. I'm pretty sure it happened overnight and the keepers think it was due to the freezing and thawing of the ground (some areas of the pavilion are built directly on the ground)

-You likely saw both of the new wombats and not Hamlet, who is on exhibit overnight.

- Not sure where the cormorants are in Australasia, but both cockatoos and 1 victoria crowned pigeons are still around

- the female babirusas and tapir share one exhibit. The tapir is out in the morning and the babirusa in the afternoon. Not sure where the male babirusa is this winter, but he doesn't go on exhibit.

- The fish tanks in Americas have been like that for what seems like forever. I don't know what the delays are since the new tanks have been installed and as far as I know, the species are already at the Zoo in holding tanks.

When I was at zoo camp, we got to go in the fish holding area where I got to see all of the fish that are supposed to be in the Americas. I know that one of the exhibits was going to be turned into a native fish tank for species like bass, perch, and american eels. The person working there said that the exhibits would be open in October 2012, so I don't know what happened with that.
 
Great updates. Sad to hear Ginger passed and that the signs are down. I always enjoy the otters. Such fun watching them frolic. Poor Fred must miss his mate. Maybe the signs are down because hes recently passed himself leaving us spotted otterless. Thats such a small space what might be replacing them? Or what are the chances of replacing them? Based on a current discussion on the us boards started by our friend snowleopard on otters vs meerkats in US zoos it doesnt sound like there are a ton of spotted otters out there. I could be mistaken though and kinda hope I am.
 
A lot of my post was just general observation, though thinking back on it, I don't remember seeing the cardinals.

Either way, what ever species they move, Babirusa or Tapir, there needs to be some changes to the Gaur enclosure. All the buildings were built to handle and move cattle. As such there are some chutes that take up a hell of a lot of space, that could be taken down to expand the amount of space available.

The keeper who was out watching the hyenas said the female was around 11, and the male around 6, so not sure what's going on with the info there but in the world we live in we get so much different info so the age I have could be wrong.
 
Also, not sure if anyone knew this, but or zoo was Street Viewed on Google Maps in 2011, been exploring it, definitely interesting.
 
Sealife its also entirely possible that the keeper just goofed on their information too. We all have said something to someone that came out all backwards and thought we said it right. Brain farts happen. Does anyone know the male hyena's name?

The google street view is pretty cool. Someone mentioned it a little while back and its great except in a few places where i kept getting stuck and had to exit the program. I had thought the zoo needed to invite google in for a long time. I'd toured San Diego Zoo with it before and it helped to convince me that I need to go there sometime. Hope it helps boost attendance even a little. A fun thing I found was you could see the google mapping bike's reflection in a window. For those of you who are intested in what it looks like go to the indo malayan pavillion from the direction of the Malayan woods. As the orangutan statue out front comes into view turn back around and in the windows you should be able to see the google bike. Also you can see its shaddow somewhere up in the savanna section around the cheetahs i think. Its a neat thing to look at sadly though it appears they did it very early in the morning and a lot of the animals arent out on display or hidden. Off the top of my head I think i only saw the red river hogs, warthogs, elephants, giraffes, white rhinos, indian rhino barely, and some pelicans. I havent been all over the zoo to be fair or perhaps i missed some. Its just too bad they didnt get to go into the pavillions that would have been really cool.
 
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