Join our zoo community

Best enclosure / exhibit design in zoos for species extinct in wild.

Discussion in 'General Zoo Discussion' started by Onychorhynchus coronatus, 25 Nov 2020.

  1. red river hog

    red river hog Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    14 Jul 2020
    Posts:
    1,656
    Location:
    over there →
    Here are a few for Scimitar Oryxes.

    This photo is from the Cape May County Park & Zoo. If you look closely, there's a small ditch and a fence cutting horizontally through the middle of the paddock. Behind this is where the oryxes are and they are mixed with Ankole-Watusis. It's one thing to mix an extinct in the wild species with another wild animal, but a domestic is even worse. I also don't like how you can't get very close to them. Their yard is behind the zebra/bongo and giraffe/ostrich paddock. In the past, though, they've bred and released a few.
    [​IMG]
    Photo credit to @jusko88

    Here's the one at the Lehigh Valley Zoo. They, too bred them and there's currently a calf there now.
    [​IMG]
    Photo credit to @zoo_enthusiast

    Both of these were large, but not the greatest.
     
  2. Rayane

    Rayane Well-Known Member 5+ year member

    Joined:
    4 Dec 2017
    Posts:
    667
    Location:
    Switzerland
    Well, Scimitar-horned oryxes and Pere David's deer being huge ungulates, I'm not sure there is anything better than a huge green enclosure, like the ones in Haute Touche or Whipsnade.

    Leipzig exhibits the oryxes with Thomson's gazelles, Giraffes, Grévy's zebras, Nile lechwes and Guineafowls. The enclosure is great but what makes it attractive is the mixed species. It's not near as good as some of the bigger safari exhibits in Europe I believe.
     
  3. Jarne

    Jarne Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    31 May 2020
    Posts:
    838
    Location:
    Belgium
    As far as I know there are at least four mammals that are extinct in the wild and kept in zoos. Barbary lion, south-china tiger, scimitar-horned oryx (though there has been a reintroduction right?) and pere davids deer (also reintroduced, so wether we should consider it EiW is questionable). I've only seen three of these, but nothing special when it comes to exhibits. The best would be a large drive-through enclosure for the deer together with other asian species (don't remember which ones as I was just a child in elementary school). Based on photo's I do find the barbary lion enclosure in Doué-la-fontaine very special. It looks weird but it seems quite functional.
     
  4. Rayane

    Rayane Well-Known Member 5+ year member

    Joined:
    4 Dec 2017
    Posts:
    667
    Location:
    Switzerland
    I don't think there is any actual Barbary lion left, so in my opinion, they're out of discussion. There is a place in South-Africa that keeps and breads South China tiger, I think. But I've never seen any pictures of the facility.
     
  5. Onychorhynchus coronatus

    Onychorhynchus coronatus Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    30 Sep 2019
    Posts:
    8,273
    Location:
    Brazil
    I agree about the Barbary lions and have also heard about that place in South Africa (in a radio programe I think) but never seen any pictures either.
     
    red river hog likes this.
  6. Jarne

    Jarne Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    31 May 2020
    Posts:
    838
    Location:
    Belgium
    The purity of barbary lions is still under discussion. Though when using the new taxonomy of two subspecies it'd also no longer be eligible for this threat.

    Weren't those South-China tigers in South-Africa in reality hybrid tigers?

    Edit: apparently they are semi-pure, I must be confused with another place that actually kept hybrids for rewilding.
    South China tigers lost in the African wilderness - Africa-China Reporting Project
     
  7. red river hog

    red river hog Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    14 Jul 2020
    Posts:
    1,656
    Location:
    over there →
    Ones that haven't been discussed are Wyoming Toad and Kihansi Spray Toad, although they're amphibians which is most of what was covered.
     
  8. Onychorhynchus coronatus

    Onychorhynchus coronatus Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    30 Sep 2019
    Posts:
    8,273
    Location:
    Brazil
    I think they are still worth discussing though, which zoos keep them ?
     
  9. Onychorhynchus coronatus

    Onychorhynchus coronatus Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    30 Sep 2019
    Posts:
    8,273
    Location:
    Brazil
    Not sure about the barbary lion but from what I've read it seems that it is very doubtful about the genetic integrity in respects as to whether there are any lions with substantial barbary lion genes.

    No idea about the tigers though as have barely read up on it.
     
    Last edited: 26 Nov 2020
    red river hog likes this.
  10. Jarne

    Jarne Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    31 May 2020
    Posts:
    838
    Location:
    Belgium
    I do remember some study stating the opposite for at least some of them, though I haven't looked in dept into it. Depends also what you'd call substantial when it comes to hybrids and pureness. Is 70% pure substantial? 80? 90? 99? 99,9? Something that's in some other cases like the European bison also quite interesting.
     
  11. red river hog

    red river hog Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    14 Jul 2020
    Posts:
    1,656
    Location:
    over there →
    Wyoming Toads are at the Detroit Zoo and Toledo Zoo. The Bronx Zoo, Chattanooga Zoo, and Toledo Zoo keep Kihansi Spray Toads.
     
  12. birdsandbats

    birdsandbats Well-Known Member 5+ year member

    Joined:
    17 Sep 2017
    Posts:
    11,359
    Location:
    Wisconsin
    The best exhibit I have seen for Pere David's Deer and Scimitar-horned Oryx are the massive yards at The Wilds.
     
  13. red river hog

    red river hog Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    14 Jul 2020
    Posts:
    1,656
    Location:
    over there →
    The Bronx has a nice exhibit for Pere David's Deer, too.
    [​IMG]
    Photo credit to @uszoo
     
  14. Onychorhynchus coronatus

    Onychorhynchus coronatus Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    30 Sep 2019
    Posts:
    8,273
    Location:
    Brazil
    That is a really nice looking enclosure for these animals, what is the information signage like there and do you think that educationally it is a decent exhibit ?
     
    red river hog likes this.
  15. Onychorhynchus coronatus

    Onychorhynchus coronatus Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    30 Sep 2019
    Posts:
    8,273
    Location:
    Brazil
    Yeah, there is a bit of controversy about it for sure but I haven't looked into it at any depth either (have to admit big cats just don't really interest me so much).

    I believe there are some academics in the UK who would argue the case that the Barbary lion is still extant genetically.

    Definitely the case with a lot of species held out there and on that note I should probably try to get those papers Damian was talking about and have a read of them.
     
  16. Onychorhynchus coronatus

    Onychorhynchus coronatus Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    30 Sep 2019
    Posts:
    8,273
    Location:
    Brazil
    Thanks guys :) I'll check these out.
     
  17. red river hog

    red river hog Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    14 Jul 2020
    Posts:
    1,656
    Location:
    over there →
    Unfortunately I haven't actually seen it in person yet, but I will be going sometime in the spring. It caught my eye when I was watching the zoo's television show. Sorry.
     
  18. Onychorhynchus coronatus

    Onychorhynchus coronatus Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    30 Sep 2019
    Posts:
    8,273
    Location:
    Brazil
    No worries :) when you go in Spring be sure to post some pictures here on this thread.
     
    red river hog likes this.
  19. red river hog

    red river hog Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    14 Jul 2020
    Posts:
    1,656
    Location:
    over there →
    I will!
     
  20. birdsandbats

    birdsandbats Well-Known Member 5+ year member

    Joined:
    17 Sep 2017
    Posts:
    11,359
    Location:
    Wisconsin
    I also saw Wyoming Toads at National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium.