Yes there is a binational program for california condors between the US and mexico like the binational program for mexican wolves. Tanya Mueller of the mexico city enviroment office has annouced that the young condors will be eventually released in the San pedro martir biosphere area in Baja California to join other condors there. Chapultepec is the only mexican zoo with california condors. More links here Nacen dos cóndores de California en Zoológico de Chapultepec ? La Jornada Noticias MVS
Historic event and I am glad you get to have that fun in Mexico! Will be nice to see the chicks eventually go to the San Pedro BA.
This year Chapultepec Zoo is expected to receive 5 Peninsular pronghorn from the conservation breeding stations. A similar number will travel to LA Zoo and 2 will be retained for management purposes (as per the 17 May minutes of the Zoo Commisioners' meeting see the 2016 LA thread). Zoologico de San Juan in Mexico City previously held the species. Estimado carlos mentioned Mexico City is to humid for them though (?!).
I suppose that the pronghorn will be going to San Juan de Aragon zoo which has a large space for them, rather than Chapultepec, but i will keep zoochat updated on that. the pronghorn at Aragon did live for over a decade, so maybe the desert pronghorn can survive our humidity and rainy periods. The US and Mexico have various sucessfull binational breeding programs now, mexican wolf or lobo, california condor, peninsular pronghorn. I wonder why Canada and the US have not made binational breeding programs for say polar bears or walrus.
The zoos only Gorilla, Bantu has died after being anesthetized. He was due to be transported to Guadalajara to join two females when he went into cardiac arrest and didn't recover Mexican zoo shocked after beloved gorilla dies
Sad that Bantu has passed away. The great ape area of chapultepec is being renovated, so a temporary move for Bantu was possible. an attempt to pair bantu with Arila, a female gorilla from nearby zacango zoo failed. Arila went to chapultepec but Bantu did not accept her. Bantu would have gone to Guadalajara zoo to pair with Faustina, a female gorilla that was born there. Faustina lives with her mother Chencha and is younger than Arila who has lived alone at zacango for many years. Now that Bantu has died, chapultepec director Jose Bernal must face the critics who ask for his resignation. was bantu a good candidate if he had already rejected Arila ? Yet, i can understand Bernal´s decision since this was perhaps the best chance to bred Bantu with Faustina. Bantu was certainly the most popular resident at Chapultepec. His parents came from the Cincinatti zoo. Bantu will be greatly missed.
Juan Arturo Rivera, head vet and general director of all mexico city zoos has been suspendened while a federal investigation is being carried out on the death of Bantu, the gorilla. I have met Dr. Rivera and he is a dedicated professional who works with the highest standards. Here is a special communication from the AZCARM on this delicate situation https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B9MOWgEWMkCFbFZrNW1QV085bzA/view?pref=2&pli=1
A well respected wildlife / zoo vet should not be treated this way and it is really well out of order if out of all the thousands of patients and cases treated he should be suspended over this one incident. A total disgrace in my opinion. AZCARM is right to defend his reputation! A side note: I do wish though that after so many defaults and major incidents in Mexican national and federal policies heads would roll within the political, policial-judicial and economic elite!
Estimado Kifaru, You are totally correct, while many mexican politicians remain unpunished for open corruption, Dr. Rivera is being singled out as responsable for Bantu´s lamentable death.
Article about the death of Bantu with some big failures : The death of Bantú the mountain gorilla exposes authorities’ negligence and incompetence - The Yucatan Times
Germplasm store : https://www.newsghana.com.gh/mexico-city-zoo-builds-germplasm-store-to-spare-exposed-species/
Since Bantu´s death times have been very hard for Chapultepec zoo. Anti zoo activists and opportunistic politicians converged to attack Chapultepec zoo and some even asked for its closing mentioning Buenos Aires zoo, which has actually reopened. I have been busy writing and sending letters to newspapers and journals. When these persons attack a beloved institution, remember to answer them, fight back, the written word is powerfull, do not remain passive. Newspaper articles often get the facts wrong and may be unreliable. Bantu was a western lowland gorilla, not a mountain gorilla. The mexico city newpaper El Universal bribed a lab worker to obtain the disgusting photos of Bantu´s necropsy which appear elsewhere on this link. The purpose was to attack the zoo. An all time low for latin american journalism. On August 1st, 2016 the pathology lab of the Facultad de Medicina Veterinaria of the Universiad Nacional de Mexico annouced that analysis of Bantu´s remains showed that he was suffering from myocardial fibrosis, a heart illness that affects male apes in capitivity. This is why he suffered a heart attack after being heavily sedated. The lab mentioned that it supports in - situ and ex situ conservation and supports public policies that are based on scientific knowledge for the welfare of wildlife.
Does this male gorilla, Bantu, was living alone? Because that can cause emotionaly-induced cardiomyopathy because of stress and depression of living alone; gorilla is animal that is not solitary species. It't not bad idea also cocoa to be included in the diet of apes. And other question, how much Western lowland gorillas are in Mexico?
Yes, Bantu lived alone most of his life, though he was reared by his mother at Chapultepec. Attempts to breed him with the female gorilla, Arila, from nearby Zacango zoo, failed because Bantu rejected Arila. Apart from Arila, the only other gorillas left in Mexico are Chencha and Faustina, mother and daughter at the Guadalajara zoo. Bantu was going to be sent to Guadalajara to breed with Faustina when he died under sedation because of the stroke. Now there are no male gorillas left in Mexico. It is very difficult to import gorillas to Mexico, because of very restrictive national legislation considering the import and export of primates.
1) I do hope they now find a way around that as it is not mega difficult to source a suitable silverback for the Guadalajara group. 2) The newspaper reporting, anti-zoo activism and opportunistic politicians of sorts are all tantamount to slander, most of the sensationalist reporting was hearsay and not actual fact and was surely not based on scientific knowledge of gorilla husbandry nor management in captivity. They all should be held accountable for this and be prosecuted under law: Not in the least for having been primarily responsible for suspending a well respected veterinary officer and some other zoo staff members. The bribery case(s) of public officials is a crime thus punishable under law. 3) The Mexican zoo association should bring out all the facts in the open and confront the newspapers, politicians and anti-zoo activists with their damn lies.
Zoológicos de la Ciudad de México buscan certificarse Good news, Chapultepec zoo has finally decided to apply to the AZA. to celebrate i will add new photos to the chapultepec zoo gallery.
This does sound like great news. I'm hoping that many other zoos in Latin America will decide to join in the next few years, so that exchanges with North American zoos can happen more easily and more often.
Chapultepec holds many mexican species that are rare or inexisent in US zoos, mexican brocket deer, mexican howling monkeys and of course volcano rabbits. Exchanges would be interesting.
Article about Xin xin, the giant panda : Latin American Herald Tribune - Worlds Only Non-Chinese-Owned Giant Pandas Reach Advanced Age in Mexico City
