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Cassidy Casuar

Cassidy Casuar

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During my visit to Wellington Zoo today, I was informed that two Brazilian Agouti (Dasyprocta leporina) babies (twins) were born at the zoo earlier this month. I was able to see at least one of these babies in their enclosure, as well as what appeared to be their mother (an adult female that had swollen mammary glands).

Also, in December of last year it was reported that one of the three endemic skink enclosures that is near The Barn appeared to be unoccupied, but during my visit today I observed that all three of these enclosures were occupied. One of these enclosures held Otago Skink (Oligosoma otagense), and the other two held Grand Skink (Oligosoma grande).
 
Wellington Zoo caring for Erect-crested penguin:

From socials:

Down at Te Kōhanga The Nest, we’re currently caring for an Erect-Crested Penguin, one of the most endangered penguin species found in New Zealand.

This young female was found at Tongue Point about 2 weeks ago, and was very thin, dehydrated, and heat stressed when she was brought to us.

Thankfully, this penguin is on the up and up, getting stronger and brighter each day thanks to care from our vets. We’re hoping to release her once she’s had a chance to fully recover and grow all her feathers in so she is equipped to brave the elements!
 
Samantha the chimpanzee has died:

Some very sad news from Wellington Zoo today:

From socials:

We are very sad to announce that this morning we said goodbye to Samantha, a beloved 41-year-old member of our Chimp community at Te Nukuao Wellington Zoo.

Samantha came to the Zoo from Taronga Zoo in Sydney in 1992. She is mother to 2 other members of the community, Malika and Keza, and grandmother to Kitwe, one of the young males with whom she had a particularly strong bond.

Our Animal Care and Veterinary Teams monitor the ongoing health of all Zoo animals. In recent months, Samantha’s health had noticeably deteriorated due to age-related conditions, which were carefully managed with a tailored health care plan and medication. Sadly, this deterioration became more rapid in the last week and a half. As with all the animals we care for, Samantha’s welfare and quality of life are our top priorities, and this week we made the decision it was in her best interest to euthanise her.

We will give the Chimps the opportunity to say goodbye to Samantha. With the loss of any Chimp, there will be changes in social structure, and the Zookeepers will be closely monitoring the Chimps to observe their behaviour as they settle into the new structure.
 
New male Capybara:

The arrival of male Capyabra Fernando has now been announced, with the zoo confirming their intention to breed.

From socials:

Can you hear the drums, Fernando?! The drumroll in question being to welcome in the newest addition to Te Nukuao Wellington Zoo, Fernando the Capybara!

Fernando has joined us from Brooklands Zoo in New Plymouth to keep our female Capybara, Dia, in good company. He is currently on display in the habitat next door while they are being introduced to one another, so you can now officially come down and say haere mai.

After sufficient fence-sniffing has taken place, our Keepers will be able to bring them together - and who knows, maybe we’ll have some little babybaras running around soon! We can’t wait for you to meet him.
 
Sorry, but this capybara transfer reeks of being a last-ditch effort at sustaining capybaras in NZ to prevent more imports from being necessary. Fernando is not a young capybara, and it would not be at all surprising if this attempt at producing more capybaras is fruitless. Wellington Zoo should have been more careful with how they managed the breeding group of capybaras that they had.
 
Cassidy Casuar said:
Sorry, but this capybara transfer reeks of being a last-ditch effort at sustaining capybaras in NZ to prevent more imports from being necessary. Fernando is not a young capybara, and it would not be at all surprising if this attempt at producing more capybaras is fruitless. Wellington Zoo should have been more careful with how they managed the breeding group of capybaras that they had.
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The Capybara pair’s ages are:

1.0 Fernando (2018)
0.1 Dia (2019)

Both are past their prime, but Brooklands Zoo had a lone male; and Wellington had a lone female, so this move allowed two similar aged solitary animals to be paired up, even if breeding is a long shot at their age (I’d be more concerned about the age of the female).

The region has however resorted to inbreeding. Fernando’s father Kosh is also the paternal grandfather of Dia; while Willowbank have recently bred two litters to Pablo and Maria (who are paternal half-siblings sired by Kosh).
 
On November 4th, 2024, the zoo announced they rehabilitated and released southern royal albatross back into the wild.

Wellington Zoo Te Nukuao

Zoofan15 said:
Wellington Zoo caring for Erect-crested penguin:

From socials:

Down at Te Kōhanga The Nest, we’re currently caring for an Erect-Crested Penguin, one of the most endangered penguin species found in New Zealand.

This young female was found at Tongue Point about 2 weeks ago, and was very thin, dehydrated, and heat stressed when she was brought to us.

Thankfully, this penguin is on the up and up, getting stronger and brighter each day thanks to care from our vets. We’re hoping to release her once she’s had a chance to fully recover and grow all her feathers in so she is equipped to brave the elements!
Click to expand...

On April 22nd, the zoo announced they released the penguin back into the wild.

Wellington Zoo Te Nukuao

On June 24th, the zoo announced they rehabilitated and released a giant petrel (species not specified) back into the wild.

32K views · 635 reactions | This month, we kept up our theme of caring for Seabirds as a Giant Petrel (Pāngurunguru) made its way to Te Kōhanga The Nest! This Pāngurunguru was brought to us by an Ōtaki local who found them stormblown on the beach. Seabirds get stormblown when severe weather grounds them and they’re unable to take off, which makes them become progressively weaker while they can’t access food or water. Because of this, the Pāngurunguru’s bloods showed evidence of struggling kidneys and low protein, which suggests they were experiencing dehydration and starvation. Thankfully, after a full health check, treatment, and enough time to recuperate, they were ready to be back on the water! We released them back into the wild last week thanks to the help of the Maritime New Zealand Police boat ️ Over the years, we’ve seen it all: the damage that climate change, fishing nets, pollution, cars, weather, and accidental human carelessness can do. We are so grateful for the support of everyone who helps us support these animals to recover. If you’d like to help us to care for these native species, you can make a donation for a Daily Medicine Kit at the link below https://wellingtonzooshop.com/products/daily-medicine-kit #Pāngurunguru #GiantPetrel #Wellington #MaritimePoliceNZ #NZPolice #NativeBirdsNZ #WildlifeHospital #TeNukuaoWellingtonZoo | Wellington Zoo Te Nukuao

On August 13th, the zoo announced they are currently installing new furniture inside the chimpanzee dayroom. The chimps will still have access to their outdoor exhibit, as well as their bedrooms during construction.

Wellington Zoo Te Nukuao

* Worth mentioning that the zoo transferred 15 tuatara to Brook Waimārama Sanctuary in the South Island in November 2024.
 
I was at the zoo today. I haven't been there since early last year because I've been overseas.

There was a sign at the entrance saying that the "Black and White Ruffed Lemurs are off display while they are introduced to their new friend".

And "The Wild Theatre is closed to visitors - something exciting is brewing!" (which just makes it sound like they are putting a cafe in there).
 
Si the Asian small-clawed otter has died:

From socials:

It is with a heavy heart that we are letting you know that our beloved Otter, Si, passed away over the weekend.

Earlier this year, Si was being treated for kidney stones along with a number of degenerative age-related health conditions, and he was placed on an intensive health care plan by our Mammals and Veterinary Teams to closely monitor his welfare.

Unfortunately, Si started to struggle to keep up with the rest of the group because of his symptoms and his quality of life was affected. As with all the animals we care for, Si's welfare is our top priority, and once it was clear that managing his conditions could no longer effectively prevent him from experiencing physical pain, the decision to euthanise him was made.
 

Hysterectomy for Northern white-cheeked gibbon:

From socials:

You may be familiar with our 33 year old Northern White-Cheeked Gibbon, Robyn - whether you’ve seen her or not, you’ve probably heard her “whoop whooping” song echo through Newtown every morning!

Recently, Robyn has been experiencing increasingly heavy and prolonged menstruation and seemed uncomfortable. Our Veterinary Team performed an ultrasound and after consulting with a human gynaecologist, they determined the problem was a polyp causing inflammation in Robyn’s uterus. Her results showed that she had adenomyosis (a condition similar to endometriosis), and the polyp had been causing endometritis (inflammation of the uterus). Just like we did with Kovu the Ostrich, it was determined that the best path forward was to remove Robyn’s uterus and ovaries entirely to prevent her from experiencing any further pain.

1 mammoth surgery later, Robyn’s procedure was completed and she is now tucked away in her den to avoid any premature tree swinging while she recovers. As a result, both of our Gibbons are currently off display (as Vilson misses Robyn too much when they’re apart ).

Thanks to the keen eyes of our Primates Team, and the outstanding efforts of the Veterinary team, Robyn is progressing well and we’re hoping she will be back out on the island at the end of the week, so listen out for the whoop whoops soon!
 
Male Black and white ruffed lemur arrives:

1.0 Ankoto (2012) came from Hamilton Zoo to join Wellington Zoo’s males.

From socials:

Haere mai to Ankoto, a 12 year old Black and White Ruffed Lemur who’s come to join Kamory and Ankari in their habitat.

The Lemurs have been off display while they were being introduced to one another, but as you can see, they’re back baby!
 
Wellington Zoo Annual Report 2024-2025:

Document: https://www.wellingtonzoo.com/asset...ngton-Zoo-annual-report-update-v2-Spreads.pdf
  • a total of three Red-rumped Agouti have been born along with the already-reported births of Wellington Green Gecko and Ring-tailed Lemur.
  • two new female Black-handed Spider Monkeys arrived from Auckland Zoo with the handreared female infant Aelina now integrated into the troop.
  • two new Little Penguins were added to the zoo’s colony via their wildlife hospital.
  • two Tuatara arrived from Massey University and seven Whitaker’s Skinks were added to the population. The zoo care for 24 of the 58 known individuals of this species (predominately juveniles currently). Three breeding pairs are set up to be established soon to commence breeding.
  • deaths included a kiwi in July 2024 due to a stomach infection, a 22-year-old male Himalyan Monal named Mohan and a 15-year-old Pygmy Marmoset named Pedro (oldest in the region) on the grounds of welfare following the death of his sibling Tito.
  • a female Ring-tailed Lemur, Marina, was ostracized by the troop. She was euthanised following an unsuccessful reintroduction.
  • a Parma Wallaby died unexpectedly.
  • transfers out included a male Grand Skink and Leopard Gecko back to its private owner, 15 Tuatara were released into Brook Waimārama Sanctuary in Nelson while two female Meerkat moved to Brooklands and their older batch of sheep were retired to a farm.
  • Bashii, their Indonesian-born male tiger was anesthetised for a general check-up and semen collection. It was found to be viable and is being stored for future artificial insemination.
  • 405 native animals were treated at the wildlife hospital; 56% were able to be released after the triage period.
 
Hi everyone. Like my question in the Auckland Zoo thread, I'd like to know, based on your own experience, how much time you think is needed to comfortably visit Wellington Zoo, considering I take a lot of photos and am particularly interested in native New Zealand and Oceania species. I don't think it's a very big zoo, and I believe I could easily see it in half a day, right?

Thanks in advance.
 
aramacao said:
Hi everyone. Like my question in the Auckland Zoo thread, I'd like to know, based on your own experience, how much time you think is needed to comfortably visit Wellington Zoo, considering I take a lot of photos and am particularly interested in native New Zealand and Oceania species. I don't think it's a very big zoo, and I believe I could easily see it in half a day, right?

Thanks in advance.
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I spent three hours there and that included revisits to several areas and an extended amount of time at the chimp feeding. There are very few native species compared to Auckland: kea, little penguin, a couple geckos... that's about it. A half day is absolutely enough.
 
aramacao said:
Hi everyone. Like my question in the Auckland Zoo thread, I'd like to know, based on your own experience, how much time you think is needed to comfortably visit Wellington Zoo, considering I take a lot of photos and am particularly interested in native New Zealand and Oceania species. I don't think it's a very big zoo, and I believe I could easily see it in half a day, right?



Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

The Wellington Zoo website says that there is one Tuatara at the zoo that is on display to the public. I don't know whether that is actually true, but regardless of that, you would have to be extremely unlucky to not have already seen a Tuatara elsewhere by the time you get to Wellington.

I would like to say that there is a remote chance that Wellington Zoo will have Kiwi again by the time that you visit, but I think that even that would be too optimistic. There has been radio silence regarding the plan for them to acquire more Kiwi for a very long time now.
 
aramacao said:
Hi everyone. Like my question in the Auckland Zoo thread, I'd like to know, based on your own experience, how much time you think is needed to comfortably visit Wellington Zoo, considering I take a lot of photos and am particularly interested in native New Zealand and Oceania species. I don't think it's a very big zoo, and I believe I could easily see it in half a day, right?

Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
It is a small zoo and is mostly exotics. It's really a one to two hour zoo. Three hours would be a stretch, but probably allow for three anyway.
 
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