Rotterdam Zoos Future Plans... » Rotterdam Zoo

Rotterdam Zoos Future Plans...
14-10-2007

Hey, i've founded Rotterdam Zoos future plans on Wikipedia.
Here they are. Enjoy.


A new serval and colobus monkey exhibit. (came summer 2007)

Savannah house with bee-eaters, hyraxes, spurred tortoises and Mhorrgazelles. (november 2007)

Giraffe house with giraffes, nile crocodiles and other crocodiles. (november 2007)

Hippo exhibit. (2010)

New volieres with red ibisses and macaws. (late 2007)

Arctica with arctic foxes, lemmings, snowy owls, beavers, racoons and polar bears. (Polar bears in 2007 and the rest in 2008)

New bear exhibits with brown bears and giant pandas. (2010)

New rainforest exhibit in The Oceanium, with monkeys, fishes,birds, caimans, anacondas and butterflies. (2010)

Himalaya exhibit with takins, red pandas and golden monkeys. (2010)

Orangutan exhibit. (2010)

Madagascar exhibit. (2010)

Renovation of the Australia part. (2010)

If you don't believe me, then you can check this link out.

Diergaarde Blijdorp - Wikipedia

14-10-2007

Many constructions have allready begun, and others are plans and a few are just dreams. As far as i know the Hippo's, orang-utans, madagascar and australia are plans for the far future and there are no real plans yet. The plans for the expansion of the Oceanarium are a little more solid, because the plans are for a large greenhouse dedicated to Surinam (ex-colony of the netherlands) but which species and drawings are not known yet...

The panda's and golden monkey's are just a dream, as far as i know they are not going to pay china for them and since china ain't giving them away anymore i don't think they are coming. Perhaps Shanghai Zoo can help them, and i don't doubt they could be sending some exotic species over (like they allready did with francois langurs, takins and tufted dear) but i doubt they could get golden monkeys or panda's over...

On the other hand, a LOT is being constructed at the moment. A large aviary for migrating birds and bee-eaters has just been finished, a large aviary for macaws and ibisses is almost finished. The construction of the new savannah house exhibit has started with the contruction of the new giraffe stables (soon the greenhouse next to it for slender snouted and nile-crocodiles will be started). If the plans aren't changed, the okapi's will then move to the old giraffe exhibit which has it's stables inside the Rivièra-building which is right next to the gorilla's where they fit better into the Congo theme...

Arctica is well on it's way for the Polar bears which should be finished around easter next year and the rest will be added later on in 2008 (lemmings, snowy owls, polar foxes and polar hares afaik).

15-10-2007

exciting plans. But like jwer said we'll see ho many actually happen.

15-10-2007

Wasn't part of the deal when they exported the Gorillas to Shanghai that they would be getting Golden Monkeys on an exchange basis?

15-10-2007

As far as i've been told, all animal transports between them go without explicit "demands" or arrangements. They can try and help Blijdorp but when it comes to golden monkeys or panda's but that's all government-regulated...

With a 150-year (if i'm correct?) existence coming up i wouldn't put it past them to get either of the species though...

About the others, anything mentioned before 2010 are allready being constructed so they are well on their way...

15-10-2007

When I was at Blijdorp in June they were still building on the new serval exhibit, I suppose they are done with it now?

Good to see as the old serval exhibit was awful.

16-10-2007

I am sorry, but sofar no activity on the new serval exhibit. Same is true for the colobus monkey exhibit. I strongly suspect they have put it back to next year.

This has probably a lot to do with all the construction projects now happening along side one another and that management is otherwise overstretched on these.

Anyway, it would mean that by 2008 the Africa continent would be almost complete. Just the lions relocation and okapi-red river hog/addax swap to happen yet.

20-11-2007

As blijdorp is sort of my home-ground i'll give an update on the buildingactivities.

I'll start with the recently finished projects:
- Chinese alligators have a new enclousure. It's outside in the open air (very uncommon for this country ). In winters the alligators are inside where you can't see them. Blijdorp received a couple from london zoo (who are going to keep phillipinian crocs). Blijdorp had 1 alligator left itself. That will be introduced to the pair later this year.

- A new aviary for migrating birds. This is build on the border of the european section with the african section. It is devided in 2 parts. 1 for dutch migratory birds and 1 for southern european birds. (if there are people interested in a species list just ask) Next to this aviary is a new restaurant.

- On the american side of the park a new enclosure for pudus was build together with 2 enclosures for guinea pigs (1 for the wild species and 1 for the domesticated form.)

- And (hard to have missed) the gorrila enclosure has been adjusted so that bokito and friends are not supposed to escape anymore

Now there are still a lot of construction sites throughout the zoo
- first of all, the serval/colobus enclosures. Those should have been done about a year ago i guess, but they haven't started so far They should be build in front of a building which is a monument. And the commity that protects the monuments is causing some trouble. I thought those problems were cleared, so perhaps they can start this year...

- Between the mirgatory bird aviary and the railwaytracks a Savanna-house is being build. The croccodiles will move there (blijdorp has 2 very old slender snouted crocs. nile crocs will be added). Also a lot of small species will be on display in this house like hyraxes, elefantshrews etc etc.

- Next to this savanna house they are working on a new giraffe exhibit. (this used to be the place of the kangaroes) the giraffes will probably be held in an enclosure together with the mhorrgazelles.

- Also for next year is an polarbear exhibit. (later there will be other species added to this part of the zoo like, polarfox, stellers sea eagle, beaver, snowy owl etc)

- The monumental tower will be rebuild somewhere in the near future. It was lost somewhere during war times i believe.

20-11-2007

Sounds really interesting... My friend went in 2003, And they said how good it was.

Isn't there something unusual about their malayan tapirs? I read that They have a little white mark behind the neck, which has hardly ever been seen in malayans.

Here's the picture:

Tapir Pictures - White-Headed Asian Tapir - Pictures of Asian Tapirs - The Tapir Gallery
Tapir Pictures - Rotterdam Zoo, Netherlands - Pictures of Asian Tapirs - The Tapir Gallery

20-11-2007

Yes, I have read about the strange white markings before.
Madge, the female Malayan Tapir at Twycross Zoo also has the unusual white markings - I guess she could descend from Rotterdam?

20-11-2007

I'm going there soon.... Very soon..

20-11-2007

could the markings come from cross breeding? and has there ever been tapir crosses?

20-11-2007

Yes there have, quite frequently in captivity, between the baird's and Brazilian (Lowland).
Again here are some links for the pictures on the tapir gallery:

The Tapir Gallery - Photos of Living Tapirs - Hybrid, mixed, unknown, and generic tapirs

21-11-2007

The tapirs they have now look quite normal
Except for female ganesha perhaps. She has a light patch on her neck (between the shoulders on the border of the white on the back). but she is bred in antwerpen
The other tapirs Nico (1,0 from antwerpen, ganeshas father), james (1,0 back very recently) and wandaloo (0,1) have normal markings. Wandaloo is easy to recognise. she has some sort of a tumor oh her jaw. It's not... what do you call that in english.. malignant? She can live with it, it's not dangerous.

@ swedish zoo fan: when are you gonna visit blijdorp?

21-11-2007

Oh that'll be a benign tumor then. A malignant one is a tumor getting worse.