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Asian Golden Cats

Discussion in 'Europe - General' started by SumatrIan, 7 Mar 2019.

  1. SumatrIan

    SumatrIan Member

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    Hi, could anyone on here provide me with a list of current and past Asian Golden Cats?

    If this is not possible, I am looking for some information on my local AGC, Ipoh at Thrigby Hall.

    I would like to know his DOB, where he was born and who his parents were.

    If anyone can help me I would really appreciate it,

    Ian
     
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  2. baboon

    baboon Well-Known Member 10+ year member

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    South China subspecies C. t. dominicanorum:
    the last one in captivity died in January 27th, 2018, at Hangzhou zoo, China, at the age of 17. I think the European population is the descendant of the Wassenaar Wildlife Breeding Centre and Rotterdam Zoo (imported from Shanghai Zoo), while the last one died in Cat Survival Trust (moved to there from Thrigby Hall)?
    Tibetan subspecies C. t. tristis:
    China: Chongqing Zoo, 1 male; Chengdu Zoo, 1 female; Zigong zoo, 1 male; Shehong Zoo, 1 male.
    France: Le Parc des Felins, does anyone know how many Tibetan golden cats they have?
    UK: Exmoor Zoo, 1 male and 1 female (from Edinburgh Zoo); Thrigby Hall Wildlife Gardens, 1 male (from Edinburgh Zoo).
    "Nominate subspecies" (inlcuding both Indo-Chinese population and Sumatran subspecies):
    Germany: Zoo Wuppertal, Allwetter zoo Münster, Zoo Heidelberg
    France: Le Parc des Felins (one pair?)
    UK: Belfast Zoo (one pair), Cat Survival Trust (1 male)
    Singapore: Night Safari
    Thailand: Chiang Mai Zoo, Chiang Mai Night Safari, Khao Kheow Open Zoo, Songkhla Zoo, Nakhon Ratchasima Zoo, Khao Pratubchang Wildlife Breeding Center
    Malaysia: Taiping Zoo
    Philippines: Avilon zoo
    Vietnam: Saigon Zoo
    India: Assam State Zoo
    Indonesia: Bogar Safari Park
    Could anyone add the number of cats for the other zoos?
     
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  3. TeaLovingDave

    TeaLovingDave Moderator Staff Member 10+ year member

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    A few corrections.....

    The last dominicanorum in Europe died at Thrigby Hall, and never went to Cat Survival Trust. By the by, the European captive populations of all three subspecies derive in large part from imports by Wassenaar, not merely the South Chinese population.

    It's merely the single male at Thrigby now, I'm afraid; the male at Exmoor died in 2017 and the female moved to Heidelberg (as far as I have been able to discover) shortly thereafter.

    ---

    But to answer the question from @SumatrIan regarding the age of Ipoh and his provenance, I think I can do no better than repost the following detailed run-through I wrote a few years ago, prior to the Exmoor female departing:

    For the record, I believe that the male Tibetan Golden Cat at Exmoor (Khan, born at Wassenaar Wildlife Breeding Centre in c.1999) died in February 2017, leaving a single female (Swai-fai, born at Parc des Felins in 2007) at the collection. Khan was the last Tibetan Golden Cat unrelated to all other individuals in the breeding programme, with Swai-fai, her brother Ipoh (born at Parc des Felins in 2008, and now held at Thrigby Hall) and their direct family at Parc des Felins being the only members of this taxon (Catopuma temminckii tristis) remaining in European collections.

    Swai-fai and Khan each came from Edinburgh Zoo in 2014 when the collection decided to cease keeping Tibetan Golden Cat; however Ipoh remained at the collection offshow until 2015, as the collection naturally had more trouble finding somewhere interested in a single individual than it did an unrelated pair. Swai-fai and Ipoh had arrived at Edinburgh Zoo in 2009 from Parc des Felins, their place of birth, joining an elderly and unrelated male called Bruno (born at Wassenaar in 1995). This male died in 2012, leading the collection to obtain Khan - whose provenance I have already discussed - from Rotterdam, which had been his home since 2006 when Wassenaar closed down.
     
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  4. SumatrIan

    SumatrIan Member

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    Thank you all for the reply's, I'm very grateful
     
  5. Zoofan15

    Zoofan15 Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    My Tho (born 2008 at Wuppertal Zoo) was transferred from Belfast Zoo to Allwetter Zoo Münster in October 2018. They are attempting AI with their male, Hotan (born 2004 at Auckland Zoo)

    Allwetterzoo Münster

    My Tho's previous mate (at Belfast Zoo) was Saigon (born 2005 at Auckland Zoo). Hotan and Saigon are full brothers born to Hari (born 1990 at Melbourne Zoo) and Hoi An (born 2001 at Singapore Zoo).
     
    Last edited by a moderator: 3 Apr 2019
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  6. Zoofan15

    Zoofan15 Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    This site also has some interesting info:

    Asiatische Goldkatze

    "The EEP has been run from Zoo Heidelberg since 1993. The first Asian gold cats in Germany, about which there are data, came to the Zoo Wuppertal in 1970. The first registered offspring was in 1971 in the Helsinki Zoo, which got its first golden cat in 1965 and thus was also the first European zoo with golden cats. Meanwhile, the beautiful and rare cats live only in three zoos in Germany - Heidelberg (Swa Fai and Saigon), Münster (Sua Fai and Hotan), Wuppertal (7Exemplare). At the end of 2017, only 22 gold cats lived in 8 zoos in the EEP. In Europe Catopuma t.temmnickii and Catopuma t.tristis are kept."

    "The couple in Heidelberg Swa Fai (born 2008 in the Zoo Nesles in France) and Saigon (born 2005 in Zoo Heidelberg) understand each other well, only for feeding they are separated to avoid aggression such as feed offense."
     
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  7. Tim May

    Tim May Well-Known Member 15+ year member Premium Member

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    This is definitely incorrect, there were Temminck's golden cats in Europe long before 1965. London Zoo, for example, acquired its first in 1867 almost a hundred years before the date quoted.
     
  8. Zoofan15

    Zoofan15 Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    True. Perhaps they meant to say the first recorded:

    "The EEP has been run from Zoo Heidelberg since 1993. The first Asian gold cats in Germany, about which there are data, came to the Zoo Wuppertal in 1970."


    I.e. is there actually any data on captive Temminck's golden cats before 1965?
     
  9. TeaLovingDave

    TeaLovingDave Moderator Staff Member 10+ year member

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    Another inaccuracy - Wassenaar first bred the species in 1967.

    There are plenty of records, yes.
     
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  10. baboon

    baboon Well-Known Member 10+ year member

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    It is so sad that Khan failed to produce any offsprings.
     
  11. Chlidonias

    Chlidonias Moderator Staff Member 15+ year member

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    The Hanoi Zoo also had one when I was there in 2017.
     
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  12. Tim May

    Tim May Well-Known Member 15+ year member Premium Member

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    I realise that the link provided earlier was specifically about golden cats in Europe but it is interesting to note that in his book "The Management of Wild Mammals in Captivity" (1964) Crandall records that the species bred in San Diego Zoo; he doesn't supply the date but he gives Stott (1954) as the source; this obviously predates Wassenaar's breeding by at least thirteen years.
     
  13. Chlidonias

    Chlidonias Moderator Staff Member 15+ year member

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    The San Diego website is sometimes a bit dodgy on historical facts, but:
    Small Cat | San Diego Zoo Animals & Plants

    "In 1934, our first ocelot was born, and in 1938, our first golden cats were born."
     
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  14. Tim May

    Tim May Well-Known Member 15+ year member Premium Member

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    Thanks for this.
     
  15. choloepus

    choloepus Member

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    I realise this is supposed to be about the European population of golden cats, but does anyone know about the North American? I volunteered at Mountain View Conservation Centre in Langley BC in the mid-2000s and they had a male cat named Taka - who I believe at the time was the only one in North America. Does any one have any info about where he came from or may have gone once Mountain View shut down?
     
  16. Arizona Docent

    Arizona Docent Well-Known Member 15+ year member

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    The last golden cat in North America was at the Cincinnati Zoo (which I saw and photographed). I believe the one at Mountain View died before that (though I am not positive). One of the last before that (which I also saw but no good photos) was at Exotic Feline Breeding Compound. This would be around 1990-92 or so. If you go back to the 70's and 80's there were a few more around.
     
  17. KylRoze

    KylRoze New Member

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    Hi all,
    In "Parc des Félins" (Nesles Lumigny, France) they have actually two Catopuma temminckii tristis and one Catopuma temminckii temminckii :
    - Guï, male, dob 23/02/2013 Nesles from Yin (°06/03/199 Wassenaar - +16/02/2019 Nesles) & Markit (°29/04/2001 (?) Wassenaar - +07/2018 Nesles)
    - Phu Len (my avatar :)), male, dob 17/02/2012 Nesles from Yin & Markit
    - Hoi An dob 29/04/2001 (?) Singapour, female.

    In 2018 they were Helmut, male, °24/07/2008 Wuppertal, Catopuma temminckii temminckii. He was no longer there when the park reopened in January 2019 and if anyone knows where he left, I'm interested in the information.

    Photo :
    Helmut
    helmut4.jpg
     
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  18. Willow

    Willow Member

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    There was a male golden cat by the name of Helmut at Zoo Heidelberg that arrived at some point last year. The date of birth I have for him matches the one you give. Sadly, he died in April
     
  19. KylRoze

    KylRoze New Member

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    Thank you Willow for the information.. I'm sad, Helmut was a very beautiful and nice cat :'(
    Do you know what happen ?
     
  20. Willow

    Willow Member

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    I'm afraid I don't know any more information, wish I did
     
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