ZSL London Zoo ZSL London Zoo News 2014

For those interested, at about 5:20 yesterday, the keepers locked Melati and the cubs out in the paddock by pushing the gate across.
The cubs had been out on their own for a while and were sleeping on the rocks at the back.
But Melati was inside, and when she came out they pushed the gate over, she went crazy at first, but then laid in the grass and stared at the windows.
The keepers said that this is to get them used to being out in the paddock without the option to go back in.
One would suspect with half term just around the corner, they were guaranteeing that they're star attractions were on show every day.
 
They were also having a special evening event yesterday -

On 21 MAY 2014, the Zoological Society of London presents a VERY SPECIAL GALA EVENING of wildlife, adventure, fine dining and entertainment.

For the first time, we are throwing open our doors for a VIP AFTER-HOURS EVENT like no other.
 
The second baby llama (Latte) appears to be no longer visible and ominously the signage now only refers to the birth of one llama. I believe he was born premature and was having to be bottle fed.
 
Sloth baby surprises keepers at London zoo

Two-toed sloths can take up to decade to bond and breed, but 'sneaky' Marilyn and Leander needed just six months to mate

London-zoo-sloths-009.jpg


Sloth baby surprises keepers at London zoo | Environment | theguardian.com

A pair of sloths have speeded up their usual slow courtship to produce London Zoo's first baby sloth – to the surprise of their keepers.

Keepers at London zoo were shocked to discover two-toed sloth Marilyn was pregnant as they were unaware she had mated with male partner Leander, who arrived from Germany in 2012 to be paired with her.

Staff at the zoo had no idea the two had acknowledged each other, but while they were playing it cool in public it seems that after hours the "sneaky" sloths had hit it off.

Two-toed sloths have been known to take nearly a decade to form a bond and breed, but factoring in an estimated 11-month pregnancy, it appears Marilyn and Leander were far from slow off the mark, taking six months to successfully mate.

Zookeeper Tegan McPhail said: "To say we were surprised when Marilyn became pregnant is something of an understatement – we weren't aware that she'd even been near the male.

"When Leander arrived at the zoo at the end of 2012, he and Marilyn just didn't appear particularly interested in each other, but we knew that with sloths these things can take some time.

"However, with the arrival of the first sloth to be born at London zoo, it appears that it was all an act on their behalf and our two very sneaky sloths were getting amorous behind our backs."

Keepers do not know the sex of the new arrival, which is spending its days clinging on to Marilyn, and will not be able to tell if it is a boy or a girl until it is scanned by vets as there are no external differences between males and females.

Sloths are slow-moving, tree-dwelling, nocturnal animals which feed on plants in their native tropical forests in Central and South America.
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They've come a long way since the sloths were housed in a glass case in the moonlight world, and I would hope the spare male will be moved on somewhere more spacious in due course. I recall how surprised they were at how active the sloths were during the day after they opened the Clore Lookout exhibit.
 
The names of the cubs have been revealed as Budi (wise) and Nakal (mischievous) for the boys and Cinta (love) for the girl.
Just glad it's not Snap, Crackle and Pop after they left it up to Milkshake.

http://youtu.be/iu6TQhuo9TU
 
Looking at the 2014 inventory, I had a few questions I wondered if anyone can answer:

Where did the second female tamandua come from, and has it been mixed with the existing animal in the main exhibit? Does this signal an intention to bring a male in at a later date?

Similarly, is the second female giant anteater a birth or a new arrival? Are the other 1.1 the old breeding pair?

Are the Sus scrofa srofa listed as wild boar in fact the Kunekune pigs mislabelled, or have these actually been replaced by wild boar?

How long has London zoo had Damara zebra, and where did these originate from? I'm assuming one of the three remaining chapman's zebras died or left, and so two more zebra were brought in at that point.

Are the 0.2 aardvark the original animals? I'm sure these were believed to have been 1.1.

I'm guessing the female Brolga died, and after they were moved to the Snowdon aviary?

I'm aware some people who post here may know and be able to share this information, which is why I'm asking it.
 
I hadn't noticed that there was another anteater but I did see one being very active outside a couple of weeks ago so I guess a new indivividual explains that.
 
Well, I can answer some of these questions.

Don't know where the second female tamandua came from, but we were aware of her, though she is off show and hasn't been introduced to the rainforest main area. We did think a male was on the cards but haven't heard anything yet.

The second female anteater is a newish arrival; the original breeding pair is still there. I think they are in adjacent pens at the moment while they get used to each other.

According to Wiki, kune kune pigs are "sus scrofa scrofa kunekune" - the kune kune pigs are still there, so that's them.

Don't know about the zebras, sorry. The aardvarks are indeed the original "pair" which turned out to be two females after all!

Yes, the female Brolga died after they moved to the Snowdon, which was a great shame.

Hope that helps!
 
Communityzoo said:
Are the Sus scrofa srofa listed as wild boar in fact the Kunekune pigs mislabelled, or have these actually been replaced by wild boar?
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volvox said:
According to Wiki, kune kune pigs are "sus scrofa scrofa kunekune" - the kune kune pigs are still there, so that's them.
Click to expand...
I thought London Zoo was supposed to be a scientific organisation?! Surely they should know the difference between a wild pig and a kunekune. :rolleyes:

*I don't know what Wiki volvox is reading but the one I see lists kunekune as Sus scrofa domestica (although I see Woburn does think their scientific name is Sus scrofa scrofa kunekune!)
 
Isn't it at least semi-conventional to list the domestic name as a fourth name? I used to see it a lot when ISIS was still publicly available.
 
CGSwans said:
Isn't it at least semi-conventional to list the domestic name as a fourth name? I used to see it a lot when ISIS was still publicly available.
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it is done in such situations as horticulture or reptile breeding, where the name of a morph or cultivar is added to the end, but it is in the manner of Eublepharius macularius "High Yellow" (i.e. the scientific name and then a market name). You can't use Sus scrofa scrofa kunekune because it makes no sense as a scientific name.
 
Nope, I can't find the Wiki page I was looking at either! Just shows what an amateur I am having to resort to Wiki for information... I was just trying to confirm that yes, it's the kune kune pigs the inventory refers to.
 
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