Chester Zoo Bongo at Chester

Hi - just a quick question for anyone that may know... do you know what browse (tree branches etc) the Eastern Bongo (Tragelaphus eurycerus isaaci) are fed at Chester? Just curious! Thanks in advance for anyone who help me out here!

 

This is the only diet I have and I don't know if it is still in use. Unfortunately it does not mention what browse is supplied.

morning
lucerne
1 loaf of wholemeal bread
2 lettuce
1 stick of celery
browse in the summer

afternoon
2 scoops of browser breeder or browser maintenance
2 large cabbages
5 diced apples
1 diced pear
3 diced bananas
5 finely sliced carrots
½ scoop of bran
½ scoop of oats

mineral licks and salt always available

browse given in the afternoon in the summer

 

Wow, many thanks! That's a much better reply than I could have hoped for!

I didn't know Chester used lucerne, I thought it was all ryegrass forage?

 

Hey does anyone know any of the names of the Bongo? As in the pet names? It would be great to find out if they have pet names etc.

 

Nibbles and Ndara are two i know.

 

nice one, thanks Zoomania. If anyone knows any others I'd be interested to know for knowings sake!

 

Names of some of the Eastern Bongo at Chester Zoo

females
Aberdare born Woburn 1987, arrived Chester 1992, died 1997
Diani born 1995 Kundee x Mzima, died 2003
Kisumu born 1996 Kundee x Mzima
Kitalee born 1994 transferred to Belfast Kundee x Aberdare
Mzima born Woburn 1987, arrived Chester 1992
Ndara born 1998 Kundee x Mzima
Nibbles from London

males
Kundee born 1991 Howletts, arrived Chester 1992 transferred to Paignton 1999
Marti arrived 1999 from Marwell
Mokindu born 2004 Marti x Ndara
Nakuru born 1994 transferred to Marwell Kundee X Mzima
Narok arrived 2004 from Port Lympne

 

Thanks bongorob, you're a saint. That's wonderful!

 

... well, I wouldn't go that far- but he's pretty useful sometimes..

 

So was Nakuru, the male that was kept behind the giraffe house (in the tempoary Okapi enclosure) when the other male arrived?

 

That would make sense. I think you're right there.

 

Mzima is probably too old for breeding. What about the other females Kisumu, Ndara and Nibbles (born what year?)?
Why no calves since 2004 (or just not bother to list them)?
What is the reason for keeping hold of 2 bulls (Marti and Narok)?

 

I know Nibbles gave birth to a female in July 2006...

and I remember reading something which said that that birth was the fifth in 3 years(03-06), so I imagine some more would've been born post-2004...

 

One was born in 2007 aswell, it was on Zoo Days.

 

I can also be extremely useless.

 

I did not list any calves born since 2004 because I do not know their names. The question I answered concerned named bongos.

 

hi i no they feed the bongo horse chestnut hope this is a quick help . I no they dont give oak

 

There was a male bongo born 2007 mother nibbles calf tumbo dad narok

 

Just to clear up all the confusion bongos have been born at Chester as follows

1993 1.1 Nakuru and Kitalee
1995 0.1 Diani
1996 0.1 Kisumu
1998 0.1 Ndara
2002 1.0 DNS
2004 1.0
2005 2.1 (1.0 DNS)
2006 1.1
2007 1.0