Rajang-GOAT
Well-Known Member
Is there any chance of them, or Whipsnade, getting them back in the nearish future I wonder?
ZSL London Zoo What happened to London Zoos Last Pandas
- Thread starter Cat-Man
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It may well depend on the longevity/ success of this new silverback. Kumbuka aside, London have had some rotten luck with their gorillas since Gorilla Kingdom opened.
As an aside, ZSL had given commission in the 1930s to Berthold Lubektin for a Gibbon House at Whipsnade. Designed in the shape of an amphitheatre (more like an enormous open clam shell!) the design was meant in such a way “as to amplify the gibbons calls” across the zoo.
Thankfully the plans never came to fruition, and the sketches have to be seen to be believed!
Thankfully the plans never came to fruition, and the sketches have to be seen to be believed!
For similar reasons, we should probably be thankful that Lubetkin's plans for an Elephant House at London Zoo never materialised either.
Yes, but from memory only the 2nd 'spare' male Saleh and maybe one female. Not juveniles I don't think. London's success with Orangs stems from that almost chance gift/deposit of around nine animals by the Bornean government in the mid sixties. Two(Napolean and Josephine) were later sent to I think Hong Kong or was it Vienna. Anyway it still left London with over half a dozen, too many to house properly, even after the Sobells were built with its single main exhibit for each species. Free breeders almost anywhere, ZSL were bound to produce many babies from this foundation stock, plus the occassional loan/transfer in and out to other zoos, until finally the decision came to discontinue them- one reason being as a non-group species their management was deemed 'labour intensive'.
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You may well be right. Certainly in the old Monkey house they were not well equipped to take this sudden large influx but being a political-type gift they could hardly refuse. So their later success with them had an almost entirely accidental background.
From memory, the original Orangutan import consisted of the following, kept initially in three groups;
1. Boy(m) & Twiggy(f).largest two, initially lived with hombred female Bulu.
2. Blossom (f) & Bunty(f). middle-sized. Kept with male Gambar(Sumatran) who was originally obtained as partner for Bulu.
3. Napolean(m) Josephine(f) Dodo(m) Saleh(m) Kate(f). Smallest 5.
Later on Napoleon and Josephine were re-exported. Boy died. Gambar was sent to Jersey. Twiggy was sent to Twycross. Dodo became first main breeding male. Saleh was moved to Lubetkin house. Kate, Blossom & Bunty would have been founders/breeders of subsequent group.
1. Boy(m) & Twiggy(f).largest two, initially lived with hombred female Bulu.
2. Blossom (f) & Bunty(f). middle-sized. Kept with male Gambar(Sumatran) who was originally obtained as partner for Bulu.
3. Napolean(m) Josephine(f) Dodo(m) Saleh(m) Kate(f). Smallest 5.
Later on Napoleon and Josephine were re-exported. Boy died. Gambar was sent to Jersey. Twiggy was sent to Twycross. Dodo became first main breeding male. Saleh was moved to Lubetkin house. Kate, Blossom & Bunty would have been founders/breeders of subsequent group.
I remember on my 1st visit to London, that the Orangs as a group were much more impressive than the Chimps or Gorillas-they were active and engaging, whereas the others were sat about, although I did have a nice 121 with one of the gorillas, who was watching me try my new camera out and posed for me.
This would have been circa 1989.
This would have been circa 1989.
After checking through my back copies of the ZSL Annual Reports, I can confirm 1967 was the year that London Zoo received nine young orang-utans (four males and five females).
According to the Annual Report for that year, the orangs were accepted as a gift from "the Government of, and two private owners in, Hong Kong".
Further checking against the Orang-Utan Studbook (which is available on-line) shows all nine orangs arrived at London Zoo on 6th September 1967. And the studbook confirms "Napoleon" and "Josephine" were sent to Vienna on 6th December 1974.
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