Are there any good tenrec exhibits in zoos that actually tell you about tenrecs?

One of the great pleasures of this website is that I discover animals that I didn't know existed on a regular basis. For example, Gentle Lemur recently posted a great picture of a tailless tenrec (http://www.zoochat.com/62/tailless-tenrec-yawning-264230/).

In my experience tenrecs seem to be quite obscure in zoos, mostly relegated to small exhibits in small mammal houses or children zoos.

Until looking up more information about tailless tenrecs I had no idea that there were 34 tenrec species in African and Madagascar, nor that they fill several ecological niches and body forms similar to hedgehogs, shrews, and otters on other continents.

Are there any good tenrec exhibits out there that showcase the animals and explain effectively what the animals are?

Are there any otter shrew species in zoos? I really want to see an otter shrew after learning about them and that they are tenrecs.

 

The best collection of tenrecs in Europe is in the Madagascar House at Plzen Zoo, but I don't remember any accompanying information about their great variety, including species that resemble moles, water shrews and other shrews and otters. The five species listed are the spiny varieties (highland and lowland streaked tenrecs, greater and lesser hedgehog tenrecs and the common or tailless tenrec). I have never seen a non-spiny species, although I saw a streaked tenrec running across a path near the Hotel Cocobeach in Maroansetra, Madagascar. An anthropologist's guide said it was a rat and I don't think the anthropologist was pleased when I contradicted his guide and said it was a tenrec.

The former fossa enclosure at Colchester Zoo had some photos of tenrecs, if I remember correctly. Gerald Durrell mentions the giant otter shrew in 'The Overcrowded Ark,' But I don't know of any otter shrews that have been kept in zoos. A few years ago, London Zoo considered acquiring various West African animals for a new exhibit. I suggested otter shrews and rock-fowls, but nothing came of these suggestions. As far as I know, my only successful ideas have been naming a giraffe Steffi and having a relatively cheap ramp for wheelchair users visiting the Aquarium, rather than having volunteers leading customers on a long route past the Zoo Hospital.

 

Thanks for the information Dassie rat. This is all interesting. You sound like a dedicated tenrec fan. Somehow this group has managed to escape my notice and it seems like an extremely cool group of animals. That is exciting that you got to see one in the wild.

I imagine that keeping giant otter shrews in zoos might be impossible without an extended learning period that would likely entail the demise of several of them, which is not appropriate for the modern zoo world.

 

For anybody interested I just found this comprehensive briefing on tenrecs, their natural history, and conservation from the IUCN: IUCN/SSC Afrotheria Specialist Group: Tenrecs

 

Thanks, David. I've liked tenrecs since childhood. I remember a trip to the South Shields Museum. One room contained stuffed animals and the only exotic mammal I remembered was a stuffed tenrec. London Zoo used to have the squashed skin of a hedgehog tenrec on the Small mammal Trolley. I'm afraid that many visitors, and a few volunteers, thought it was a hedgehog. I wrote an article called 'In Search of the Squashed Tenrec' for the volunteers' newsletter. This included information about the Fontoynont's tenrec (Dasogale fontoynonti), which was listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the world's rarest mammal, being known from only one specimen. It lost that position when it was discovered to be a young greater hedgehog tenrec.

I have visited various zoos with a friend of mine who once exclaimed, "You care more about tenrecs than you do about me." As far as I know, no heroine has ever used this statement in a Mills and Boon or a Barbara Cartland novel.

 

I always used to wonder as to how that Hedgehog Tenrec skin got into that state. Sometimes I used to draw people's attention to it by expounding on tenrecs' litter sizes, an exercise that got quite a few aghast comments from women..

I have had comments similar to dassierat's made to me, but with the substitution of Snow Leopards as the love rival!!

 

Interesting comment there, David.

This is going off-topic a little, but many monkeys, all the great apes,the Snow Leopard (not bred in captivity until 1959), both Giant and Red Pandas, and the Okapi - amongst others - all required a steep learning curve before their husbandry requirements were cracked.

Are there species where the long-term likely need for captive breeding programmes mean that we have to steel ourselves for likely short-term casualties?

 

In the 1960s and 1970s Jersey had a good collection of tenrecs - Streaked, Common (Tailless) and both the Greater and Pygmy Hedgehog Tenrec. The zoo was very successful in breeding the last two, and exported the progeny all over the world. One of the Pygmy Hedgehog Tenrecs set a new longevity record. Since Jersey concentrates to an extent on Malagasy fauna, I do wish they'd go back into tenrecs. The four species I've mentioned aren't endangered, but they arer extremely interesting. If anybody from Jersey (Durrell) reads this, please do consider tenrecs again.

 

Even if the giant otter shrew's care was perfected and they could possible be bred, I highly doubt that many zoos would be interested in this animals, meaning SSP would not phase them in.

Now I'm only guessing here but since there is not much information on its behavior or other biological interests in this animal, I think its safe to assume its an animal that doesn't do much for a regular visitor. It's nocturnal, just like all the Potamogalinae are and many zoos are no longer interested in maintaing the expensive "Nocturnal Houses."

All of this combined, with zoos not wanting to take too many risks, would mean that this species, even if there care was down to the mark, is a non-interest with many zoos. The best bet for this animal is private breeders or conservationist from its home land taking them in and trying to care for them.

All together tenrecs sadly make an uninteresting animal for most people. Tenrecs are now becoming a "behind-the-scenes" animals and will most likely stay that way until zoos start to add their Madagascan exhibits. Honestly, with all the interest in Madagascar these days and the hundreds of imports that are going out, I would think that tenrecs will make it back on exhibit in no time. Many US zoos have madagascan exhibits in their Master Plans and it seems people really enjoy them. The un-interested zoo visitor will like anything with lemurs.

I absolutely adore the cute little tenrecs. I hope to add a CB female lesser to my group one of these days but for now I can only admire them from a glass barrier. I'm glad to find another person interested in tenrecs as much as I am DavidBrown.

 

I thought that tenrecophiles may be interested in my visit to London's Natural History Museum last night. In the last Friday in September, the museum opens late and various scientists have displays aboutt heir work and interested. One man had made a display about tenrecs and convergent eveolution. He had a few species of tenrecs and showed how they resemble hedgehogs, shrews, moles, otters and rats. I don't think I've seen some of the species before. I identified a web-footed tenrec (Limnogae mergulus) an I was pleased that several children were also interested in the exhibit.

 

Thanks for the review of the event, Dassie rat.

I wish that I could have seen the exhibit, as I have become a rabid tenrecophile. It sounds like it was a fun exhibit.

Zoochat's own stubeanz was involved with the presentation and it sounds like it went really well.

 

Hello David

I thought of you when I went round the exhivbit and I was going to ask the presenter if he knew you. The exhibit had changed when I returned. Does stubeanz have very long hair? If not, I'll try and find out the presenter so you can contact him?

 

Stu had the live tenrecs at the presentation. He and I wrote the series of tenrec stories for kids on Mongabay Kids.

 

Hello David

The tenrecs in the display were all dead. I've still only seen 4 species of live tenrecs - lesser and greater hedgehog, Lowland streaked and common tenrec. I don't think I saw the highland streaked tenrec when I visited Plzen Zoo in 2011.

Which live tenrecs did you see at the demonstration?

 

Hi Dassie, I unfortunately was not there as I live 5000 miles away, by stubeanz did a live presentation with his lesser tenrecs.

 

Hello David

There was a talk about tenrecs last year, but unfortunately I missed it. I hope Friday's display has encouraged people to become more interested in tenrecs.

 

Hi Dassie Rat,

I'm Very happy you saw my covergent evolution table

The man you are referring to is Roberto the curator of mammals at the museum.
He brought with him various tenrec specimens and I'm Surprised you missed the live tenrecs in the vivarium on the same table. I had 4 lesser hedgehog tenrecs a mother and her 3 older offspring from this years breeding season. To say they were popular would be an understatement, I don't think I actually stopped talking the whole 2 hours!

Science Uncovered is a brilliant evening and I'm glad you enjoyed yourself.

Any questions about the display please feel free to ask me

 

Thanks Stubeanz

The live tenrecs must have been in a container to the side, but lots of people were looking at it.

Is there any scope for placing tenrecs, golden moles, elephant shrews and aardvarks near the elephants in the Museum's Mammal Display? It really seems old-fashioned to still have a golden mole included in the Order Insectivora.