Awesome news about the nyala! Do you think that the two females you saw off display are the only nyala at the zoo currently? Or is it possible there might also be a male or a few more females? Strange, interesting news about the macaques, I didn't know Auckland still had some!
There wasn't any noticeable changes for the macaques to the enclosure, didn't get any photos. The whole of the Aussie Walkabout was closed with work happening behind the walkabout and the aviary. Only saw the two females so don't know, there may have been more just weren't visable.
I have been informed that the nyala at Auckland are three males - the ones you saw would have been the two 2015-bred juveniles from Wellington (the third was bred in 2012).
Awesome, three males! On the map it shows the nyala in the rhino enclosure but I wonder if they will also give them access to the giraffe paddock if they don't get along with the remaining springbok. Do think Auckland will get females as well?
Auckland Zoo's (and New Zealand's) last California Sealion, Kipper, was euthanised today. She was born at the Zoo in 1993. From the Zoo's Facebook page:
100% agree with these comments regarding the tiger enclosure and the plans to replace it. It's of historical interest and has been successfully redeveloped to suit tigers with vegetation etc. Does anyone know what's happened to Janie's enclosure? I read it used to be split into four partitions in the 1920s to house vultures, before being renovated into a chimpanzee exhibit.
Sad news, but she lived a long life at the zoo. Kipper would have seen a lot of change in her 22 years. She was born into a large group of eight Californian Sea Lions, which decreased to five during the early 1990s. Scuttles, Sinka, Kline, Keel and Kipper were preparing to make the move to the new enclosure, which was built in 2001, but Kline and Sinka died of old age prior to the move, and Keel in 2004. Since then, Scuttle and Kipper have been joined by several other New Zealand fur seals and a Sub Antarctic fur seal as the zoo decided to phase out the Californian Sea Lions and focus on the native species, in the exhibit rebranded 'The Shores.' Personally, I think the Californian Sea Lions are a loss to the zoo, as they seemed to make better use of the water, and were more engaging at the viewing window, than their native counterparts. RIP Kipper and Californian Sea Lions.
Janie's cage was fully demolished soon after she died I believe. Potentially this area will be incorporated into the refurbished Australian walk-through exhibit.
More history lost Personally I think something could be done with a lot of these exhibits, even if they are not suitable for animals. The chimpanzee cages could be turned into a party zone for kids (the covered, outdoor area would fit a large table). The tiger pit could be fitted with terraced seating and used as an entertainment venue with a stage for music acts, bird flying demonstrations (Macaws etc.), movie nights to raise funds for conservation etc.
Also the public have been asked to suggest a name for both of them; keeping in mind their lively personalities and South American origin. I have already sent a name suggestion email to the zoo!
news article on the quest for names. They are very cute. "Some of Auckland Zoo's latest additions are on the hunt for names. Two male capybara were born on June 7 and took their first steps in their enclosure last week. Now the zoo wants the public to suggest names for the baby brothers. The zoo's primate team leader Amy Robbins said it was important the names reflected the animals' personalities. "They're feisty, full of life, [and] have big personalities for their size." Names should also bear in mind their South American origin, she said. The pair have grown fast, now weighing in at 3.2 and 3.4kg. Robbins said she expected them to keep growing by about 1kg every week. Their dad, Kosh, is from Chester Zoo in England. He was a hit with Auckland's resident female capybara, Rosita and Consuela. Both ladies mated with Kosh, but it was Consuela who gave birth to the brothers in June. Capybara are the world's largest rodent. They live in dense vegetation close to water in South and Central America. They spend a lot of time in the water and their webbed toes make them good swimmers. Robbins said the zoo was stoked to have capybara. "As a team, we're loving working with these guys. They are very curious and easy-going, so are great to manage," she said. Names can be suggested by dropping Auckland Zoo a line on Facebook or Twitter, or emailing [email protected]. Those whose names are chosen will win free passes to the zoo." link to the article is here Auckland Zoo puts out call for baby capybara name suggestions | Stuff.co.nz
Good on ya! This competition will be harder than most as South America encompasses so many countries and languages but I will try and come up with something over the weekend. I'm a big fan of naming offspring with the first letter of their mother's name (Auckland Zoo did this with many animals born in the 1980s and 1990s, as do Taronga and Melbourne Zoo with their chimpanzee and gorilla), so I'll be looking for two South American names beginning with C. Welcome to ZooChat btw, I see you joined exactly 1 year after me. #March
Thank you for the welcome! I am loving using this forum, I am a big zoo enthusiast; I especially love Auckland Zoo Both my names I came up with through Google translate. Just looking around on the zoo's social media sites, I can see so many name suggestions like "mr capybara face, itchy and scratchy, lunch and morning tea, ect. I did come across a few good ones though
Oh and I'm 99% sure that the name competition closes this Friday and the winners are announced on Monday so get your suggestion in as soon as you can!
We have some amazing zoos in New Zealand. It's good how they're quite diverse, Auckland Zoo has elephants, hippos, orangutans and baboons; Hamilton Zoo and Wellington Zoo have chimpanzee, and Orana Wildlife Park have gorillas. As you can tell I'm more into mammals than birds and reptiles. Thanks for the heads up on the competition closing today, I wasn't aware of that but found some good names to enter. I'm sure there's been a lot of enteries, but if they're as imaginative as the ones you've seen on social media, I doubt we'll be up against much competition. This is a really great forum, so many updates of zoo news, I never need search for it elsewhere, and if you have a question, people on here are really helpful. I'd especially recommend the list of Mammals in NZ Zoos on this forum, and of course my personal favourite thread: Chimpanzee Troop (Australia - Taronga Zoo threads). Chimpanzee's are my obsession and I've been doing lots of reasearch into their history lately.
I love all four of our 'main' zoos in New Zealand but Auckland has to be my favourite. And don't worry I'm much more into mammals than birds and reptiles as well. And thank you for the recommendations, by the way it's my dream to visit Taronga Zoo. I'm very interested in Auckland Zoo's 10 year development plan at the moment; I can't wait to see more news about the Austrailain development they are building currently!
Auckland Zoo has a great history, have you read 'Tiger by the Tail'? It's by a past director, Derek Wood. It's about the history of Auckland Zoo 1922-1992. I think my obsession with Taronga Zoo started by reading 'Postcards from the Zoo' by PR staff member, Darryl Clements, another great read. There's a chapter on the apes, and lots of info and stories on their gorillas. I'm excited about Auckland Zoo's 10 year plan, especially what they have planned for the orangutan. Apparently work will start on a new enclosure in 2017, before the arrival of Sumatran orangutans. I'm guessing that the purebred Borneans will go overseas, most likely to the USA, where there are breeding programmes for them. Orana Wildlife Park are set to open their exhibit for orangutans this year and will be receiving two hybrids from Taronga Zoo (Jantan and Willow). I'm guessing Auckland Zoo will send their hybrid (Wanita) there too. Wanita and Willow are sisters. I see Auckland Zoo have named their capybara Pepe and Pablo. My suggestions were way better #arrogantlad The zoo said they wanted names which reflected the animals personality and then they choose Pepe (Spanish variant of Joseph) and Pablo (Spanish vairant of Paul)???
Yes, I actually own a copy of Tiger by the Tail; it's a very good book in my opinion. I can't wait to see plans for the South East Asia Precinct at the zoo as well; which is going to be home to the orangutans, tigers, otters, and maybe macaques and bird species. From early concept sketches it looks like the orangutans exhibit will be made up of 3-5 islands connected by O-Lines. I also was a bit surprised that the capybara's names don't reflect their personalities, but at least the names are in Spanish and I quite like the names Pepe & Pablo to be honest.
