Western Giant Eland

28-06-2008

@Kiang. The first Giant eland(western) to europe came in 1958 to Frankfurt and died the same year.

Prague Zoo imported 2.3 of the eastern subspecies in 1971. The first female died the same year, and 1.2 died in 1973. The surviving Male was send to Berlin Animal Park.

This Park has started with Giant elands in 1970 with 2.2. In 1972 two calfs were born, in 1974 and 1975 two more calfs. In 1975, both breeding females died, in 1980 the last german giant eland died.

Antwerp got 4.7 giant eland in 1967, but the animals came not in the City Zoo, they were send to Plankendael. In 1971 the zoo breds the first giant eland in europe, 16 more were born until 1978, but only one pair left to zoo und were send to Pretoria. 10 calfs died in an age under 4 weeks. In November 1980, the last european giant eland died at Plankendael.

Paris Zoo has kept them between 1968 and 1974, but never bred them.

I hope to see giant eland someday in europe.


I don't think so that Leipzig Zoo is planning with zebraduiker, I can ask somebody there next week.

28-06-2008

Zebraduiker, Thank you for that excellent piece on the history of giant eland in Europe, are there any living descendants of the Planckendael line?
With your inside knowledge of Frankfurt zoo, could you give us some similar information on the gerenuks at Frankfurt, the first zoo in Europe to breed them, i believe the now closed Belle Vue zoo in Manchester held them and bred from them too.
Thanks in advance.

28-06-2008

The Pretoria Zoo has bred several times with the pair from Plankendael, but I don't know, if any animal of them is still alive, but I can find out, I have the studbook of giant eland.

Frankfurt got in 1956 a pair of Gerenuks and bred them in 1957 for the first time in the world. They ha da very succesful breeding, after the death of the breeding male, the bred with a son, unfortunately, the breeding was completly inbred. The tried several times, to get new animals from africa, in 1973, they were successful and they could import a male. But it was too late, the females were to old and died shortly after the arrival of the new male. This animal died in 1979, the last gerenuk in europe until now.

I think, theer are plans to import soem gerenuks from the States, but this is very, very difficult. I'm not sure, if Bellevue has bred Gerenuks, but Naples does.