I had it in my head Jersey already had Visayans, evidently I was mistaken Ah well, guess I'll just carry on dreaming of pygmy hogs...
I'd be quite interested in an on-show species list, if only for reptiles and amphibians if the whole collection is asking too much. Many thanks, and enjoy your visit.
You must go to Sorrel Point to see their released Red-billed Choughs. Ask one of the bird staff for details. There are about 36 adult birds. Several pairs are currently breeding. They return to their release aviary to get extra food in the late afternoon. It is spectacular to see these birds flying along the cliff-tops after an absence of a century. This is really taking conservation out of the cages. I would love to hear if you succeed.
I was inspired by the keeper to go to Sorrel Point on our last visit in 2016 and was delighted to see the Choughs as we walked along the cliffs. We didn't go to the aviary so may do that this time.
Would be good perhaps if there was a little bit of natural 'cross-pollination' with the Brittany population now.
If any wandering choughs from the Brittany population visit Jersey then they will certainly meet up with the released birds, although as yet the Jersey choughs have not shown any inclination to leave the island.
Jersey Zoo has had big cats in the past, snow leopards,and further back Asiatic lions, cheetahs and African leopards, that I know of. When I was first there over 20 years ago the snow leopards had only recently left and I have to be honest, their old enclosure was not grand. Thinking what would be required for a modern big cat exhibit, I wonder what Jersey would have to loose to fit it in. Besides which Jersey has always made a commitment to the smaller, rarer "little brown jobs". I think it unlikely.
Species on-show at Jersey - to the best of our knowledge, we took photos of all the ID signs, but that doesn't mean we actually saw all the individuals. I'm afraid the lists below are only in a random order. Reptiles and Amphibians Lesser Antillean iguana Mountain chicken frog Antiguan anole Cuban iguana Serrated casquehead iguana Mission golden-eyed tree frog Blue poison frog Brazilian poison frog Amazon poison frog Ploughshare tortoise Strawberry poison frog Golden poison frog Emerald tree monitor Komodo dragon Panther chameleon Burmese python Beaded lizard Norther curly-tailed lizard Emerald tree boa Telfair's skink Giant Madagascar day gecko Cane toad Galapagos giant tortoise Radiated tortoise European adder Mammals Andean bear Black and gold howler monkey Slender-tailed meerkat Pied tamarin Black lion tamarin Emperor tamarin Western lowland gorilla Sulawesi crested macaque Visayan warty pig Sumatran orangutan Aye-aye Golden lion tamarin Ring-tailed lemur Alaotran gentle lemur Livingstone's fruit bat Rodrigues fruit bat White-handed gibbon Red brown lemur Narrow-striped mongoose Asian small-clawed otter Birds - to follow
Birds White-rumped shama Pekin robin Palawan peacock pheasant Nicobar pigeon Blue-crowned laughing thrush Chestnut-backed thrush Omel Shan liocichla Red-tailed laughing thrush Emerald dove Collared partridge Sumatran laughing thrush Bali starling Edward's pheasant Asian fairy bluebird Rufous-bellied niltava White-winged duck Pink pigeon Hamerkop Madagascar teal Meller's duck Wrinkled hornbill St Lucia parrot Montserrat oriole Northern bald ibis Marbled teal White-crowned robinchat Ferruginous duck White-naped crane White-backed duck Madagascar fody Hottentot teal White-faced whistling-duck Namaqua dove Madagascar crested ibis Chilean flamingo Blue crane Black bulbul Black-winged stilt African pygmy goose Javan green magpie Red-billed chough
News on the Andean bears - on Tuesday, the female bear, Bahia, was moved to her own enclosure next to the macaques. She'll be sharing it with howler monkeys once she's settled in. Males, Quechua and his son Raymi, remain in the enclosure near the zoo's entrance. Although Bahia and Quechua get on well, the zoo has been monitoring their hormone levels and found that they are possibly both adversely affected by being close to each other. In the wild they would only meet for mating. In addition, following the birth of twins that did not survive earlier this year, Bahia started lactating and Raymi regressed to suckling. Bahia indicated that she'd had enough of him so the separation will give her a break as well as making him independent. The zoo will continue to monitor the bears and hope that, as a result, they'll be able to produce a best practice plan for keeping them. This information came from talking to two very interesting and knowledgeable keepers, so I hope I've understood it correctly. Bears are not my specialist subject! I'll post some photos of the new enclosure later.
We did manage to get to Sorel Point very briefly, in dismal weather, but saw three choughs flying over the quarry
