Auckland Zoo Works begin in earnest on Te Wao Nui

NZ Jeremy

NZ Jeremy

Well-Known Member
I was at the Zoo a couple of weeks ago...

A lot of work has happened in the last 6 months:

- All but three of the reptile enclousres have been removed for new Tamarin and Pygmy Marmoset exhibits, both of which are all but completed...

- Public access has been blocked from the Old Mill Rd entrance of Hippo River along to the rear of the Rainforest at the rear of the Zoo, this walkway formally has given access to The NZ Aviary, the NZ Encounters performance hut, the old Hippo exhibit, the Frog Centre, the Aquarium and the Crocodile (formerly Otter) exhibit...

- Work has begun on the old Camel exhibit and the old off exhibit yards behind it, foliage has also been cleared up into the hilly terrain at the rear of the zoo...

- The Penguin enclosure is being renovated after the death of it's inhabitants earlier this year...

- Some slight renovation was done to the Duck enclosures behind the Kiwi House (I can't tell what they've done but apparently there was some, seems to be a rat problem around that part of the zoo still)...

- The new Crocodile enclosure is completed and houses 4 crocodiles, that I saw, they seemed to be keeping 1 seperate from the others (male for breeding possibly)..?

So I have the following questions still rattling around:

- What is happening to the old reptiles/their enclosures..? A new reptile house in the only remaining old part of the zoo (which is centred around the Japanese garden)..? What is going to happen to this area from the old Lion (current Tiger) enclosure, through Janie's exhibit down to the Galapagos Tortoise exhibits..?

- Why did they close the Aviary and Aquarium so long ago (two years in the case of the Aquarium)..?

- What was the cause of death in the Penguin enclosure and how is the renovation fixing this..?
 
NZ Jeremy said:
I was at the Zoo a couple of weeks ago...

A lot of work has happened in the last 6 months:

- All but three of the reptile enclousres have been removed for new Tamarin and Pygmy Marmoset exhibits, both of which are all but completed...

- The new Crocodile enclosure is completed and houses 4 crocodiles, that I saw, they seemed to be keeping 1 seperate from the others (male for breeding possibly)..?

So I have the following questions still rattling around:

- What is happening to the old reptiles/their enclosures..? A new reptile house in the only remaining old part of the zoo (which is centred around the Japanese garden)..? What is going to happen to this area from the old Lion (current Tiger) enclosure, through Janie's exhibit down to the Galapagos Tortoise exhibits..?

- Why did they close the Aviary and Aquarium so long ago (two years in the case of the Aquarium)..?

- What was the cause of death in the Penguin enclosure and how is the renovation fixing this..?
Click to expand...



-The new tamarin/marmoset exhibit, has been completed and is now open to the public, has yet to have its inhabitants move in, according to the Zoo's website. When I was there in early November though, it was not open to the public, but you could still see most of it, and there were clearly tamarins in it, being monitored by staff/volunteers. I read from this that the exhibit was in some way unsuitable, ie tamarins could escape or were able to come too close to the public, and they have not been officially moved in yet because solutions to this problem/s have not yet been completed. Any one else think/know differently/the same? And where are the pygmy marmosets coming from, how many, and what sort of exhibit will they be in? Enclosed and glass-fronted like Wellington?

-The new alligator (not crocodile) exhibit (which is very nice) has 5 alligators, all of which are female. They can be separated into different parts of the enclosure, and if one was by itself I would guess that this was a) Doris, the original Auckland alligator, maybe being kept separate cos she is bigger/picked on/meaner or something, or b) an unwell alligator.

-I really don't know the answers to your questions, but I'm guessing the old lion pit will stay in use for tigers for he forseeable future. Janies cage, the old mara exhibit and the old wood duck exhibit in that par of the zoo will hopefully become part of an enlarged Australian collection, into which several of the reptiles (e.g. bearded & water dragons) and the bats could be moved, and which could link all the way down to the Brolgas. An additional mammal exhibit(s) (echidna/wombat/koala/Tasmanian devil) would complement this.

-In theory the Rainforest, new 'Tropics' exhibits (tamarins & alligators), the Galapagos Tortoises and Macaws could become a South American themed area, which definately appears to be the direction that part of the zoo is heading in, although some species (siamangs, macaques, otters and bats) would need to be moved for this to occur (presumably a long-term process).

-While I don't know why they closed the aquarium so early, I think the aviary was closed because it needed major structural work anyway. The aquarium may have been closed because they expected work to start on Te Wao Nui much earlier than it did in the end.

I will have a look and try to ask someone about these ideas when I get there a few days after Christmas.:D
 
Is Janie nearing being very close to passing away as if I remember watching The Zoo television program she seemed to look very old
 
She is very old then, and seems to be overweight.

Te Wao Nui looks like it will be a great exhibit and one day I hope to visit Auckland Zoo to see this exhibt/s.
 
Your right zooboy, Alligators... Brain melt there...

The public could walk through the new marmoset and tamarin exhibit when I was there, a little work was still going on and there was little vegetation...
 
I visited yesterday, and in answer to my previous question, the new marmoset exhibit is glass-fronted with the rest mesh covered. Would still like to know when, and where from, these are coming. The tamarin enclosure also looks quite nice, although not particularly spectacular compared with the visitor areas.

The scarlet macaw hybrid was absent from the macaw aviary, and its signs were missing too, anyone know anything about this?

But back to the title of this thread, Te Wao Nui is coming along very quickly! The seal above-water area is now open, but the entry path has been changed dramatically, now facing the old entrance bridge rather than the cafe. The penguin aviary also has a new entry, through a new building, and has been enlarged greatly. Although you could walk through it, it is not yet completed, with no exit yet, just a rolled up bit of mesh.

From there, Snorkel's enclosure is unrecognisable, with only the viewing platform still there, although it now has an additional raised walkway leading downstream across the stream. Further upstream, there is a new bridge leading across to the old llama paddocks, and to the right of this is a new oddly-shaped raised white concrete low barrier encircling a reasonably large area. It couldn't stop much escaping yet, so may be a base for a new aviary, or have a fence on top? I don't know, but its fun to speculate. There are also a number of unusual wooden constructions along a pathway towards the frog building, but have no idea what these are for.

It looks very exciting anyway, and I can't wait to see it finished. Does anyone know what the plan or map looks like or have a copy?
 
zooboy28 said:
I visited yesterday, and in answer to my previous question, the new marmoset exhibit is glass-fronted with the rest mesh covered. Would still like to know when, and where from, these are coming.
Click to expand...

Auckland are getting a female pygmy marmoset from Twycross Zoo and a male marmoset from Mogo Zoo.

:)
 
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