Exotic Mammals in Australian Zoos

This is a list of all exotic mammals currently found in Australian zoos (and in some cases in private hands and research facilities because these may enter zoos at any point). I have put subspecies only where it is relevant. The localities for some species won't be complete, especially the deer and camelids, so I have made notes to that effect where appropriate.

I have attempted to include origin data for the current stock of all species but this is of course a bit patchy. Some species are well-documented, others are not. The origin data is not intended to be an account of every individual animal except in those cases where only a few unrelated individuals exist - it is instead mostly to do with the origins of the zoo populations as a whole.

However, see also this thread for more specific listings of certain mammal groups in Australasian zoos: Australasian Population List Index

Because adding all the origin data to the list on the original thread made it far too long to be contained within a single post I have had to re-start it as a brand new thread, with the list split into two posts. The third post in the thread is a compilation of "former" exotic mammals in Australian zoos. This is divided into two parts, firstly those which died out post-2000, and secondly those which died out between 1980 and 2000.

The original thread (which is now locked, but in which all posts can still be read) is here: Exotic Mammals in Australian Zoos - old version

That original thread had its genesis in a thread by CGSwans, which can be seen here: exotic mammals in each Australian zoo

A discussion thread was also created when I was looking for some of the origin data, and that can be seen here: Australian zoo mammal histories

Corrections are welcomed.





ELEPHANTIDAE

*Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus) – Australia Zoo; Melbourne; Perth; Sydney Zoo; Taronga; Western Plains Zoo

The first Asian Elephant in an Australian zoo was a female named Jessie imported from India in 1882 for the zoo at Billy Goat Swamp (the fore-runner to Taronga Zoo, which officially opened in 1916 on a different site); she died in 1939.
Of the elephants currently in the country, Melbourne and Taronga/WPZ have breeding herds and have produced numerous calves each.
Australia Zoo currently houses four females (Christina, Megawati, Widya, Rafflesia - all Sumatran Elephants) imported in October 2019 from Indonesia. They previously kept three ex-circus elephants, the last one leaving in 2013 after the deaths of the other two.
Melbourne's breeding herd was composed of a female (Mek Kapah) imported from Malaysia in 1978, three females (Dokoon, Kulab, Num-oi) imported from Thailand in 2006, and a male (Bong Su), imported from Malaysia in 1977. Calves were born from this group but the male Bong Su died in October 2017; a young Taronga-bred male, Luk Chai, was obtained in December 2020 with the aim of future breeding. Eventually the herd will be moved out of the city to Werribee.
Perth houses three elephants: one female (Tricia) imported from Vietnam (via Singapore) in 1963, and a male and female imported from Malaysia in 1992 (male Putra Mas and female Permai).
Sydney Zoo has two young males named Kavi and Ashoka imported from Dublin Zoo (Ireland) in October 2020. An elderly ex-circus female elephant named Saigon which was also kept at Sydney Zoo died in February 2022.
Taronga's group (now split between Taronga and WPZ) was started with a 2006 import from Thailand of one male (Gung) and four females (Tang Mo, Porntip, Thong Dee, Pak Boon). WPZ also has a female Sri Lankan elephant (Anjalee) imported from Auckland Zoo (NZ) in 2022; she was captive-bred in 2006 and imported to NZ in 2015 from Sri Lanka's Pinnawala Elephant Orphange.


EQUIDAE

*Common Zebra (Equus quagga) – Altina; Australia Zoo; Darling Downs; Hunter Valley; Mogo; Monarto; National Zoo; Perth; Sydney Zoo; Taronga; Werribee; Western Plains Zoo; Zoodoo

There are about 70 Zebras in Australia, and they can be roughly divided into three groups of stock (although in general all are treated as one population, and individuals are moved around between zoos).
The first group are the hybrid-subspecies descendants of original imports to the major zoos (Taronga, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth). All had kept Zebras since the early 1900s. Probably Taronga's were the dominant founders but I don't know anything much otherwise. This stock forms the basis of the current groups at Taronga, Western Plains, Mogo and National Zoo.
The second group is from 2.6 Chapman's Zebras imported to Werribee from Rotterdam Zoo (Netherlands) in 1980 (and later a male from Singapore Zoo c.1997). Monarto's current animals are derived from Werribee.
The third and most recent group are ten Grant's Zebras imported by DDZ from various zoos in the USA in early 2014. Some of these went to Zoodoo.
The other zoos have odds and ends: Altina (from Werribee), Australia Zoo (from Werribee), Perth (from National Zoo), etc. There have also been a few imports of individual animals from NZ.

*Persian Onager (Equus hemionus onager) – two males at Western Plains Zoo

The remnant animals in Australia (now just two males) are descended from eight animals, these being 2.2 from Rotterdam Zoo (Netherlands) in 1979, and 1.3 from the USA in 1982. [I have seen several different versions of these numbers and dates - the ones I give were from an article released by the zoo itself]. The last female died in 2021.

*Przewalski's Horse (Equus (ferus) przewalskii) – Altina; Monarto; Werribee; Western Plains Zoo; also about 20 at Fernhill Estate in Mulgoa

The entire world population is descended from just nine founders. The first one in Australia was a male at Adelaide in 1910 (paired with a donkey). The current Australian zoo population is descended from 4.9 animals imported in 1982 to WPZ (via Melbourne Zoo) from the UK (Whipsnade, Marwell, and Midway Manor). First birth was in 1984. Adelaide also imported a pair in 1981 from the UK. The privately-held animals at Mulgoa are from 1.8 imported to the Pearl Coast Zoo from Marwell in 1987/88, which later went to Tipperary. There are about 60 in total held in Australia but a large proportion are post-reproductive or castrated. Animals from Australian zoos have been used in reintroduction programmes to Mongolia.


TAPIRIDAE

*Brazilian Tapir (Tapirus terrestris) – 1.2 at Adelaide

The last remnants of a good-sized population formerly breeding at Adelaide, Melbourne and WPZ. All are related and now elderly.
Adelaide's male was bred at WPZ in 2006 and later kept at Melbourne from 2011 to 2019; and the two females are one born at Marwell Zoo (UK) in 1987 - imported to Adelaide in 1990 - and her daughter born at Adelaide in 2002.
DDZ had a pair until recently: the male was originally WPZ's breeding male (then kept at Alma Park since 2012, then DDZ since 2013, and died at the end of 2021); and the female was bred at Adelaide in 1998 (kept at Taronga since 2006, then DDZ since 2014, and died in Dec 2022).

*Malayan Tapir (Tapirus indicus) – one female at Adelaide

The founder population in Australian zoos was four animals imported in the late 1990s to Taronga and Adelaide. Taronga's pair was a male from Toronto Zoo (Canada) in 1996 [at Hunter Valley Zoo since mid-2015, died August 2018] and a female from Philadelphia Zoo (USA) in 1998 [died 2008]. Adelaide's pair was a male from Singapore Zoo in 1997 [died 2008] and a female from Henry Doorly Zoo (USA) in 1998 [died 2021]. The last remaining animal in the country, a female at Adelaide, was born at that zoo in 2000.


RHINOCEROTIDAE

*Southern White Rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum) – Altina; Australia Zoo; Halls Gap; Mogo; Monarto; National Zoo; Perth; Sydney Zoo; Werribee; Western Plains Zoo

There are about 35 White Rhinos in Australian zoos (as of January 2020). The first animals imported into Australia were three (1.2) to WPZ via Taronga in 1980 from Longleat and Woburn (UK), followed in 1981 by a pair to WPZ (also via Taronga) and a pair to Werribee, all four coming from Whipsnade (UK). A male was imported to Werribee from Emmen Zoo (Netherlands) in 1997, a female to Monarto from Singapore Zoo in 2000, and groups of wild-caught animals were imported from South Africa in 1999 and 2002 to Werribee, WPZ, Perth and Monarto. A number of additional NZ animals have been imported since 1990, including the original pair at Perth in 1990 from the USA via Orana Park. The first birth in Australia was at WPZ in 1981, and they have since bred at all of the listed holding zoos except National (which has only had three males from NZ in April 2014), Mogo (two males from Australia Zoo in Jan 2015), Altina (one male from Auckland Zoo in Sept 2016, and two females from Australia Zoo and Serengeti-Park Hodenhagen [Germany] in Oct 2016), Halls Gap (one of the National Zoo's males in Oct 2018), and Sydney Zoo (one male as of Jan 2022).

*Black Rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis) – Monarto (2.0); Western Plains Zoo (6.3)

Taronga imported several from Kenya and Tanzania between 1947 and 1950, and bred nine at the zoo between 1958 and 1975. Kept at WPZ since 1991 when the last two animals in Australia were sent there from Taronga (two females: one had been bred at Taronga in 1958, and the other had come from Perth in 1981 [imported 1950/51]). In 1992 nine (2.7) wild-caught animals were imported to WPZ from Zimbabwe (2.1 died soon after), followed in 1994 by four males imported from zoos in the USA (one of these males later spent a couple of years at Taronga c.2005/2006). There have been many calves born at WPZ (about a dozen, including those now at Monarto [two males]).

*Indian Rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis) – one pair at Western Plains Zoo, with one male offspring.

The male Dora was imported to Taronga from Nagoya Zoo (Japan) in 2001 and then moved on to WPZ in 2003. A female named Kua was imported from San Diego Zoo (USA) in 2006 but died at Taronga in 2007 before being moved on. A new female, Amala from Oklahoma City Zoo (USA), was imported in 2009. The first breeding was a male calf born in October 2015, which sadly died from a Tetanus infection in Sept 2017. The only other breeding is a second male, born in October 2021.


HIPPOPOTAMIDAE

*Common Hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius) – Monarto; Werribee; Western Plains Zoo

The first Hippo in Australia was at Adelaide in 1900 (died 1901), but the first breeding pair were at Melbourne, imported in 1913. The species has been in the country continuously since then, but there are only eight founders for the entire Australasian population. The current total in Australia is nine animals, all of which are females (0.2 at Monarto [transferred from Werribee in Nov 2023], 0.3 at Werribee; 0.4 at WPZ). The last male in the country died at WPZ in late 2023.

*Pigmy Hippopotamus (Hexaprotodon liberiensis) – one male at Adelaide; one female at Darling Downs; one male at Melbourne; one pair at Taronga

The first individual in Australia was a wild-caught female imported from Liberia to Perth Zoo in 1937 (died 1980). Of the other three major zoos, Taronga's first was in 1954 (from USA, died 1975), Melbourne's in 1970 (from USA, died 1994), and Adelaide's in 1979 (bred at Melbourne, died 2012). Many calves were bred in Australia in at least five zoos between the 1960s to 2000s. Currently there are just five animals in the country, all of which are related.
There are just two female Pigmy Hippos in Australia. Kambiri was born at Taronga in 2010 to Honolulu-born male Timmy, imported in 1981, and Adelaide-born female Petre, who was born in 1984 (to Melbourne-born Henry and Janice) and died at Melbourne in 2016. The second female currently alive in Australia is Kamina, born at Taronga in 2017 and now at Darling Downs (since November 2018).
Two of the males currently in the country are brothers Felix (at Melbourne) and Fergus (at Taronga), bred at Mareeba in 2006 and 2009 respectively (to Melbourne-born male Kumbe and Broome-born female Fluffy). The third male is Obi, now at Adelaide but born at Melbourne in 2015 to Felix and Petre.
In terms of relatedness, a male named Pi, imported from Washington in 1970, sired the fathers of Petre, Kumbe and Fluffy (and the latter two shared the same father).


CAMELIDAE

*Arabian Camel (Dromedary) (Camelus dromedarius) – Altina; Darling Downs; Gorge Wildlife Park; Hunter Valley; Mansfield; Mogo; Oakvale; Shoalhaven; Sydney Zoo; Taralga; Taronga; Tasmania Zoo; Werribee; Western Plains Zoo; Wings Wildlife Park; Zoodoo. [Also undoubtably held on show in other small collections apart for the ones listed here]

Introduced to the wild (via released domestics) in the mid-1800s.

*Guanaco (Lama guanicoe) – one male at Darling Downs; some hybrids at Taralga.

Apart for the single animal at DDZ and at Taralga, the last Guanacos in an Australian zoo were three pairs at Western Plains Zoo until around 2009/2010. The last three animals (1.3) then went to a private holder in Taralga (later opening as the Taralga Wildlife Park). Taronga had them at least as far back as the 1940s, and were probably the original importers.
See a comment in post #1 of this thread - Taralga Wildlife Park Review - where it says that the females which ended up at Taralga were too old to breed and hence the Guanaco left in Australia are actually hybrids produced from the male Guanaco and female Llamas. However I think the male at DDZ is the pure one originally from TWPZ.

*Llama (Lama glama) – Caversham; Darling Downs; Mansfield; National; Oakvale; Taralga; Zoodoo. [Farmed in Australia so undoubtably held on show in other small collections apart for the ones listed here]

*Alpaca (Vicugna pacos) – Adelaide; Altina; Australian Walkabout Wildlife Park; Ballarat Wildlife Park; Caversham; Green Valley Farm; Gumbuya Park; Halls Gap; National Zoo; Oakvale; Symbio; Taronga; Tasmania Zoo; Wagga Wagga Zoo; Wings Wildlife Park; Zoodoo. [Farmed in Australia so undoubtably held on show in other small collections apart for the ones listed here]

Llamas and Alpacas have been kept in Australian zoos and farms at various times since the 1800s, but the current stock is largely the result of private imports from NZ (from Chilean imports) in 1988, followed by direct imports from Peru and Bolivia. There are now something like 200,000 Alpacas in Australia and 7000 Llamas.


CERVIDAE
The following are the collections where we know these deer species are being kept. There are many small collections in Australia which undoubtably hold one or more of these on public show as well. All are also held in private hands (e.g. deer farms).

*Rusa (Cervus timorensis) – Altina; Halls Gap; Mansfield

Introduced to the wild in various areas between the late-1800s and mid-1900s, with stock coming from Java and the Moluccas. Now also farmed commercially.

*Sambar (Cervus unicolor) – Mansfield

Introduced to several parts of the country from the 1860s through to the early 1900s, using stock from India, Sri Lanka and Sumatra. Now also farmed commercially.

*Red Deer (Cervus elaphus) – Altina; Darling Downs; Mansfield; Monarto; Taralga

Introduced widely from the mid-1800s to many parts of the country, with all the stock being English. Now also farmed commercially (in part with imports from NZ after 1985).

*Wapiti (Cervus canadensis) – Altina; Halls Gap; National Zoo

Not found wild in Australia. The species was first imported in numbers from NZ and Canada for commercial deer farming in 1985; however there may have been some in zoos prior to this also (from NZ stock).

*Sika Deer (Cervus nippon) – only on deer farms

Not found wild in Australia. The species was introduced to the wild in the late 1800s but did not establish a permanent population. The current small number on deer farms (in Victoria) originated from embryos and semen imported in the early 2000s, using Red Deer as hosts.

*Fallow Deer (Dama dama) – Adelaide; Altina; Birdland Animal Park; Caversham; Cooberrie; Gorge Wildlife Park; Gumbuya Park; Halls Gap; Hunter Valley; Mansfield; Mogo; National Zoo; Taralga; Tasmania Zoo; Western Plains Zoo; Wildlife HQ; Zoodoo

First released into the wild in the 1830s in Tasmania, and later elsewhere on the mainland until the early 1900s. Now also farmed commercially.

*Persian Fallow Deer (Dama (dama) mesopotamica) – Monarto

All the farmed stock in Australia is hybrid, derived from imported mesopotamica sperm used to artificially inseminate female dama in the 1980s. Monarto's animals are from this hybrid farm stock.

*Spotted Deer (Chital) (Axis axis) – Bredl's Wild Farm

The first deer species to be released into the wild in Australia. There were many releases throughout the 1800s in many parts of the country. All were from India. Now also farmed commercially. The zoos previously listed here - most recently Caversham and Hunter Valley, and prior to them also Taronga - do not keep them any longer.

*Hog Deer (Axis porcinus) – Altina; Halls Gap; Mansfield

Introduced to the wild in Victoria in 1866 (12 animals from India) where they became established. Zoo animals derive from the wild stock.


GIRAFFIDAE

*Giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) – Adelaide; Altina; Australia Zoo; Darling Downs; Halls Gap; Hunter Valley; Melbourne; Mogo; Monarto; National Zoo; Perth; Sydney Zoo; Taronga; Tasmania Zoo; Werribee; Western Plains Zoo

Up until the 1980s all the giraffes in Australia were descended from the herd at Taronga. In the 1920s and 30s many were imported to Australia, but the only zoo to sustain breeding was Taronga and their animals supplied the other zoos. The Taronga herd was descended entirely from three animals (a pair imported from Africa in the 1930s and a female from USA in 1950) until the import of a male from Honolulu Zoo (USA) in 1983 (which was related to the 1950 female). Melbourne's current breeding female came from Ouwehands Zoo (Netherlands) 1997. All further animals which have been imported since the 1990s have been from NZ (from Orana's Rothschild's herd and Auckland's hybrid herd [the latter is also partly descended from Honolulu Zoo animals]). There are about 85 Giraffes in Australia.


BOVIDAE

*Banteng (Bos javanicus) – Altina; Crocodylus; Western Plains Zoo. Also in private hands

The Banteng in Australia are all descended from a group of about 20 domestic animals (“Bali cattle”) released in the Northern Territory in 1849. The current zoo and farm animals derive from the feral population.

*Domestic Water Buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) – Altina; Caversham; Crocodylus; Halls Gap; Mogo; Oakvale; Territory Wildlife Park; Western Plains Zoo; Wings Wildlife Park. [Also probably held in other small collections apart for the ones listed here]

The Australian population is descended from about 80 animals imported from Indonesia to settlements in the Northern Territory between the 1820s and 1850s, which were later released to become feral.

*American Bison (Bison bison) – Altina; Halls Gap; Hunter Valley; Mansfield; Monarto; Werribee; Wings Wildlife Park. Also in private hands.

As with NZ the founder stock was gift pairs from the Canadian government to various Australian zoos in the early 1900s. The only later additions were from NZ (at least one import from Auckland Zoo to Adelaide around the 1950s). There are only about 40 Bison in zoos, but they are also held privately (the farmed stock derives from the zoo stock).

*Barbary Sheep (Aoudad) (Ammotragus lervia) – Altina; Halls Gap; Hunter Valley; Monarto; National Zoo; Western Plains Zoo. Also in private hands.

About 180 in Australian zoos, all descended from imports to Taronga. Originally from just one pair, imported from Africa in 1929. Later imports were two animals in 1952 from National Zoo (USA) and one male and three pregnant females in 1957 from Honolulu Zoo (USA).

*Himalayan Tahr (Hemitragus jemlahicus) – Altina; Halls Gap

Descended from one import of three animals from NZ to Taronga in 1932. I don't think there have been any later additions, and there are only about 20 left in zoos here. The group at Taronga were sent to Hunter Valley in 2016 due to developments there (Tiger Trek and the African Savannah), but they do not appear to be at Hunter Valley now.

*Blackbuck (Antilope cervicapra) – Altina; Darling Downs; D'Aguilar Wildlife; Hunter Valley; Mansfield; Monarto; National Zoo; Werribee; Western Plains Zoo. Also in private hands

The Australian zoo (and private) population derives mostly or entirely from Taronga which was breeding them in large numbers from an original stock of three pairs in the early 1900s. Ultimately they probably originate from the same stock as the wild population in Western Australia (released c.1898). There are about 350 animals held in Australia zoos, as of January 2020.

*Nilgai (Boselaphus tragocamelus) -- only in private hands (still?)

The last on public display appear to have been a pair at Monarto in 2009/2010 (the last of the old Adelaide stock). If there are any Nilgai left in the country in private holdings - there are none left in zoos - they are stock descended from a 1987 import of 1.3 animals from Marwell Zoo (UK) to the Pearl Coast Zoo (closed 1991), which later went to Tipperary Wildlife Sanctuary (closed 2004). Given that most of the species kept at Pearl Coast Zoo / Tipperary have since died out, it is likely that Nilgai have also done so.

*Eland (Taurotragus oryx) – Altina; Monarto; National Zoo; Werribee; Western Plains Zoo

Bred in large numbers at Taronga since initial births in the 1940s (the animals were imported direct from Africa). At one point Taronga only had one breeding female, so the current animals must be extremely inbred. There are c.130 animals in Australian zoos, as of January 2020.

*Bongo (Tragelaphus eurycerus) – Monarto; Taronga; Western Plains Zoo

There are just five Bongo currently in Australia, only one of which is a female (imported in May 2017 from Wellington Zoo [NZ], originally from Singapore Zoo). All the other Bongos in Australia are descended from three animals (2.1) imported from the USA in 1995. (A second female in that import had died without offspring). Most of the animals are at WPZ, with the other two zoos only holding one male each.

*Nyala (Tragelaphus angasii) - Altina; Monarto; Sydney Zoo; Werribee

Seven animals (3.4) were imported from New Zealand in November 2016. A further eight (2.6) were imported from NZ in June 2018, and two (2.0) in April 2022 [these are probably not a complete total of imports from NZ]. Sydney Zoo obtained their first Nyala in April 2022, and Altina in January 2023.
The only other Nyala in Australia in recent decades were two pairs imported to the Pearl Coast Zoo from Marwell Zoo (UK) in 1988. After the zoo's closure in 1991 they went to Tipperary Wildlife Sanctuary, and later may have gone to the Mary River Station (Tipperary closed in 2004). They had all died at some point between 1991 and the 2000s though.

*Common Waterbuck (Kobus ellipsiprymnus) – Altina; Monarto; Werribee

Less than fifteen left in the country, all descended from a trio (1.2) imported by Werribee from Honolulu Zoo (USA) in 1995.

*Addax (Addax nasomaculatus) – Altina; Darling Downs; Monarto; Western Plains Zoo. Also in private hands.

The zoo stock (c.80 animals) is mostly descended from 2.5 imported by Werribee from Fossil Rim (USA) in 1994. The stock in private hands is descended from two imports by the Pearl Coast Zoo of one pair (?) from Midway Manor (UK) in 1988, and 12 animals from the USA via NZ in 1991; these later went to Mary River after the zoo's closure. Altina's animals came from Mary River, as do some additional animals at the other zoos.

*Scimitar-horned Oryx (Oryx dammah) – Altina; Monarto; Werribee; Western Plains Zoo. Also in private hands.

There are c.130 animals in Australian zoos (and more also kept privately). Mostly descended from 5.4 imported to the Pearl Coast Zoo from Marwell Zoo (UK) in 1987, and four from the USA via NZ in 1991. Animals bred at Orana Park (NZ) also appear to have been imported to other zoos in the 1980s and 1990s.


TAYASSUIDAE

*Collared Peccary (Pecari tajacu) – Melbourne

The formerly-large Australasian population was derived solely from one pair imported to Wellington Zoo (NZ) from Canada in 1969 (the last peccary in New Zealand died in 2011). In 2005 there was only one non-castrated male left in Australia (at Melbourne), which was then mated with several of the remaining females. The last individual at Adelaide (a male) was sent to Melbourne in 2015. As of January 2020 there were only four (1.3) animals left in Australia (all at Melbourne), which had decreased to 1.2 by the following year.


PRIMATES

*Sunda Slow Loris (Nycticebus coucang) – Perth

Two animals, a three-year-old male and a ten-year-old female, were imported from Singapore Zoo in April 2018. The female has since died and the zoo now has only the male.
During the 1970s and 80s many zoos kept lorises of various species (N. coucang, N. bengalensis, N. pygmaeus, and Loris tardigradus - although at the time only two species of lorises were scientifically recognised, the Slow Loris N. coucang and the Slender Loris L. tardigradus). Most of the animals were specifically imported by the zoos but some were the results of confiscations of smuggled animals. Before the current two animals imported by Perth, the last lorises in Australia were a Bengal Slow Loris N. bengalensis at Melbourne Zoo and two Sunda Slow Lorises at Melbourne Zoo and Perth Zoo. The Melbourne Zoo's Sunda Slow Loris died in 2014 and the other two animals died in 2015.

*Ring-tailed Lemur (Lemur catta) – Adelaide; Altina; Australia Zoo; Currumbin; Darling Downs Zoo; Gorge; Halls Gap; Hunter Valley; Melbourne; Mogo; Monarto; National Zoo; Oakvale; Perth; Sydney Zoo; Symbio; Taronga; Tasmania Zoo; Western Plains Zoo; Wildlife HQ

Population seems in good shape, with about 130 animals in the country, but I don't have any details otherwise. There have been many imports from Europe and the USA so there are a reasonable number of founders.

*Black And White Ruffed Lemur (Varecia variegata) – Altina; Darling Downs Zoo; Halls Gap; Hunter Valley; Melbourne; Mogo; National Zoo; Perth; Western Plains Zoo; Wildlife HQ

There are about 35 Ruffed Lemurs in Australia but most of the animals in the country were produced from the breeding pairs at Perth and Mogo.

*Golden Lion Tamarin (Leontopithecus rosalia) – Adelaide; Altina; Billabong Koala and Wildlife Park; Darling Downs; Gorge; Halls Gap; Hunter Valley; Mogo; Perth; Symbio; Tasmania Zoo; Wildlife HQ

This species is managed internationally but the Australian population is in pretty poor shape now. Historically they have bred well here, since the initial main import by Adelaide of five pairs from the National Zoo (USA) in 1980 (descendants of which are still in the country), but now there are only about 35 animals, many of them elderly and few breeding. Currently Adelaide and Mogo are having good results. There are several imported animals from the USA, Europe and Singapore along with the Australian-bred ones.

*Emperor Tamarin (Saguinus imperator) – Adelaide; Altina; Darling Downs; Gorge; Halls Gap; Hunter Valley; Melbourne; Mogo; Perth; Tasmania Zoo; Wildlife HQ

The former mixed-subspecies population in Australian zoos was phased out, and new European imports of pure S. i. subgrisescens were made to Melbourne and Perth in the mid-2000s. In 2013 there were some additional animals imported from Europe and South Africa. The last male in NZ, originally from Germany, also went to Australia in 2013. As of January 2020 there are about 45 animals in Australian zoos.

*Cottontop Tamarin (Saguinus oedipus) – Adelaide; Alexandra Park Zoo; Altina; Billabong Koala and Wildlife Park; Crocodylus; Currumbin; Darling Downs; Gorge; Halls Gap; Hartley's Crocodile Adventures; Hunter Valley; Melbourne; Mogo; National Zoo; Perth; Symbio; Taronga; Tasmania Zoo; Wildlife HQ; Zoodoo

In Australasia this species is entirely managed by a studbook system and has a number of international founders. I don't know any details about the population but there are about 90 individuals in Australian zoos.

*Red-handed Tamarin (Saguinus midas) – Crocodylus Park; Darling Downs; Hunter Valley; Tasmania Zoo

Three pairs were imported by Darling Downs Zoo at the start of 2018. Two pairs remained there and one pair went to Hunter Valley Zoo. They have since bred at both zoos. Tasmania Zoo obtained a pair in December 2022, and Crocodylus Park in late 2023.
Previously this species had also been kept at Perth Zoo and the Pearl Coast Zoo. Perth had imported a breeding pair from Skansen Zoo (Sweden) in 1984 and by 1991 they had 3.4 animals according to a TAG Workshop, although by the following year they were recorded as only having 2.0. Those last two animals were later sent to Mogo Zoo, where they died in the early 2000s.

*Common Marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) – Altina; Banana Cabana; Billabong Koala and Wildlife Park; Cooberrie; Crocodylus; Darling Downs; D'Aguilar Wildlife; Gorge; Halls Gap; Hunter Valley; Kangaroo Island Wildlife Park; Mansfield; National Zoo; Paradise Country [Gold Coast]; Perth Zoo; Shoalhaven; Symbio; Tasmania Zoo; Wildlife HQ; Wild Cat Conservation Centre; Wings Wildlife Park; Zoodoo. Also in research facilities.

There are about 120 Common Marmosets in Australian zoos but their ancestries are largely unknown and most are probably related. The species was formerly imported into Australia in large numbers as laboratory animals. The zoo population appears to be largely or entirely derived from lab animals as there have been (as far as I know) no imports since the 1970s and at the start of the 1990s the only ones in any ARAZPA zoo were at Gorge.

*Pigmy Marmoset (Cebuella pygmaea) – Adelaide; Billabong Koala and Wildlife Park; Darling Downs; D'Aguilar Widllife; Halls Gap; Hunter Valley; Mogo; National Zoo; Perth; Symbio; Taronga; Tasmania Zoo; Wild Cat Conservation Centre; Wildlife HQ

The three main breeders in the country are Adelaide, Perth and Mogo, which all imported them in the early 2000s (Perth also in the early 1990s). There have been several further imports in the later 2000s from Europe and the USA. There are now about 60 animals in Australian zoos.

*Bolivian Squirrel Monkey (Saimiri boliviensis) – Adelaide; Darling Downs; Hunter Valley; Melbourne; Mogo; National Zoo; Perth; Sydney Zoo; Taronga; Tasmania Zoo; Wildlife HQ; ZooDoo

Composed of remnant older stock from 1970s imports (subspecific-hybrids and mostly post-reproductive) and new stock (pure S. b. boliviensis). The new ones are an import of males from Apenheul (Netherlands) in 2010; an import of two males and twelve females from La Boissierre du Dore (France) in 2014; plus additional animals from NZ (bred from an import of 30 animals to NZ in 2012). When the new imports occurred there were only about a dozen of the older animals left in Australia, of which a few are still alive currently (the older stock was not mixed with the pure subspecies). Total number in Australian zoos is c.55 animals (as of January 2020).

*Black-capped Capuchin (Sapajus (Cebus) apella) – Altina; Banana Cabana; Crocodylus; Darling Downs; Gorge; Halls Gap; Hunter Valley; Kangaroo Island Wildlife Park; Mogo; National Zoo; Perth; Shoalhaven; Sydney Zoo; Tasmania Zoo; Wild Animal Encounters; Wings Wildlife Park; Zoodoo

This species has been kept and bred in zoos and circuses for a very long time, and the population is very inbred. Animals from NZ have been brought in, but I don't know when the last ones from outside the region have been imported. Currently there are about 100 animals in Australian zoos.

*Colombian White-fronted Capuchin (Cebus versicolor) – Gorge; Mansfield

Originally at Perth Zoo (since the 1930s). The last ones (by then just 2.1) from Perth's colony went to Halls Gap in 2010, and from there to Mansfield in 2013. The group at Gorge (six animals) probably also originated at Perth. The White-fronted Capuchins in Australia were of what was once the subspecies Cebus albifrons pleei, later synonymised with C. albifrons versicolor (in 2001), which was later split as a full species (in 2012).

*Geoffroy's (Black-handed) Spider Monkey (Ateles geoffroyi) – Banana Cabana; Billabong Koala and Wildlife Park; Crocodylus; Gorge; Halls Gap; Hunter Valley; Melbourne; Western Plains Zoo; Wildlife HQ

This species has been widely kept in Australian zoos since the early/mid 1900s and the resulting population is a subspecific-hybrid mix. There are about 50 animals in the country, but many are either post-reproductive or are not in effective breeding situations (most are in pairs, trios, or single-sex groups).

*Douroucouli (Aotus sp) – only in a Brisbane research facility of the ADF

The Australian Defence Force (ADF) imported 46 individuals from the USA in 2007/2008 for research into mosquito-borne diseases. Forty others were similarly imported for research purposes in 1982/1985, and there were a few in zoos also at that time. The last zoo to keep them was Perth, which still had one animal at the start of the 1990s. In the 1980s all Aotus were treated as one species, A. trivirgatus, so it is impossible to be precise as to identities. The more recent ones (2007/2008) were imported as Nancy Ma's Douroucouli A. nancymaae but this may or may not be accurate.

*Black And White Colobus (Colobus guereza) – Adelaide; Melbourne; National Zoo

Formerly in two separate breeding groups dating back to the 1980s, at Melbourne (C. g. guereza from the UK) and Perth (C. g. kikuyuensis from the USA). The two groups were later mixed. The only later additions were a male imported to Monarto in 2006 from the USA, and three females to Adelaide in 2020 from France. There are currently about fifteen animals in the country.

*De Brazza's Monkey (Cercopithecus neglectus) – Tasmania Zoo

One pair was imported in July 2023, currently housed at Tasmania Zoo but ultimately bound for Darling Downs Zoo.
The species was formerly well-established in the major zoos since the late 1970s. The CITES Database lists imports to Australia of seven animals from Spain and USA in 1977; three from Canada in 1978; four from Spain in 1979; one from the UK in 1989; and one from Spain in 2001. A halt to breeding by the ZAA in the early 2000s reduced them to a remnant of post-reproductive "retired" animals. By 2015 there were just five animals left, at Mogo, National and Tasmania Zoos; and the last individual died at National Zoo in May 2019.

*Vervet (Chlorocebus sp.) – Werribee

A group of ten was imported in 1996 from the USA. All the current animals (eleven animals in January 2020, down to nine [6.3] as of January 2022) were bred at Werribee.
The animals were imported as C. aethiops (formerly all Chlorocebus were lumped as C. aethiops), later labelled as C. pygerythrus johnstoni by the ZAA and the zoo itself, and now as C. aethiops johnstoni. In the zoo's 2021 inventory they are back to labelling them as C. pygerythrus. However see this post and those following it (Exotic Mammals in Australian Zoos) which discuss why the animals are probably hybrids.
Perth also had a colony of a Chlorocebus species until late 2006 when the remaining four animals (one of which was a baby born that year) were sent to Gorge. These appear to have all since died. These animals were called C. aethiops by the zoo and listed by the ZAA as being C. aethiops johnstoni.

*Mandrill (Mandrillus sphinx) – Adelaide; Tasmania Zoo

Formerly at other zoos also, including Perth until 1994, Taronga until early 2000s (possibly derived from a 1953 import of three animals from Africa) and Melbourne until late 2017 (see below).
Adelaide's troop started in 1964 with 1.2 from Berlin Zoo (Germany), two of which turned out to be hybrids with Drills (Mandrillus leucophaeus). In 1975 they got a pure male from Taronga and paired him with their one pure female (removing all the hybrids, so the troop was thus derived from just two pure animals). In 2008 they replaced their original male with one bred at Melbourne. Currently the zoo keeps just one pair with a male offspring (2.1 animals total).
The retired breeding pair from Adelaide were sent to Tasmania Zoo. The elderly male died in 2015; and in July 2016 an excess male from Adelaide was sent to keep the old female company. In September another old female was sent from Adelaide to Tasmania Zoo as company for this old female. Apparently Tasmania Zoo now only has one animal (a female).
Melbourne's original troop was from a pair from Berlin Zoo, of which the female was a hybrid (Mandrill X Drill). Their later (pure) troop was established with females from Adelaide in 1996 and a male from Jerusalem Biblical Zoo (Israel) imported in 2000. By 2017 there were only three animals left at Melbourne: the male died in July 2017 and both the females were put down for health reasons in Sept 2017.
All current stock in the country thus appears to be descended from only three founders (two males, one female). As of 2022 there are fewer than five animals in the country, with 2.1 at Adelaide and 0.1 at Tasmania Zoo (down to 1.1 at Adelaide and 0.1 at Tasmania Zoo in 2023).

*Hamadryas Baboon (Papio hamadryas) – Adelaide; Banana Cabana; Crocodylus; Darling Downs; Melbourne; Sydney Zoo; Wildlife HQ. Also in research facilities.

There are quite a number of Hamadryas Baboons in Australian zoos (about 65 animals as of January 2020), but a large number are related and historically the populations have been poorly managed with castration of males being commonplace.
Melbourne's group is by far the largest and dominates the zoo population. It was initially started with a female imported through Perth in 1948 and a male from the Ceylon Zoo (Sri Lanka) in 1949; there was probably no new blood until a large group (3.14) was imported from Dierenpark Emmen (Netherlands) in 1998, and then a further two males from the USA in 2012 and six females from Wellington Zoo (NZ) in 2015/16.
Adelaide's former troop was established with 1.3 imported from the Berlin Zoo (Germany) in 1972, but their current animals are from Melbourne and Wellington stock.
Sydney Zoo's baboons are a group of thirteen (8.5) imported from Singapore Zoo in August 2019.
The baboons at the smaller zoos are mostly from Melbourne (or descended from that stock) apart for two females at DDZ which were imported from the Warsaw Zoo (Poland) in 2012.

*Japanese Macaque (Macaca fuscata) – Gorge; Launceston City Park

The enclosure at Launceston in Tasmania held Rhesus Macaques from the late 1800s to 1979, after which the city council imported ten Japanese Macaques from the Japanese Monkey Centre in 1980 (in exchange for Red-necked Wallabies); currently the colony contains about 25 macaques.
The three old animals at Gorge (still alive as of January 2020) are the remnants of the former breeding group at Perth, rather than being surplus from Launceston.

*Crab-eating Macaque (Macaca fascicularis) – Banana Cabana; Green Valley Farm; Tasmania Zoo; Wings Wildlife Park; Zoodoo. Also in research facilities.

This species was widely held in zoos and circuses in the past, but as with all the macaques has been greatly diminished over the last decade due to zoo fears of Herpes B virus. Probably only about 15 left in Australian zoos. Hundreds have also been imported from Indonesia for research facilities.

*Southern Pig-tailed Macaque (Macaca nemestrina) – currently only in research facilities

Over 300 individuals were imported from Indonesia between 2000 and 2009 for research facilities. Formerly they were also widely held in zoos and circuses.

*Rhesus Macaque (Macaca mulatta) – Banana Cabana; Mansfield

This species was widely held in zoos and circuses in the past, but there are only a handful of animals left in zoos now.

*Sulawesi Black Macaque (Macaca nigra) – one female at Tasmania Zoo (still?)

The last remnant of the breeding group formerly at Perth, originating with animals imported from Singapore Zoo and Jersey Zoo (UK) in the 1990s. The last animals (2.2) were sent to Tasmania Zoo in 2008. There were also two Perth-bred males at Mareeba (since 2003), which then went to Tasmania Zoo when Mareeba (by then called Shambala) closed in 2013. The last remaining animal was not seen on a visit to Tasmania Zoo in April 2024 so may have since died.

*Dusky Langur (Trachypithecus obscurus) – three animals at Adelaide

The group at Adelaide is descended from three founder members: a wild-caught female confiscated by airport Customs as a baby in 1989, a female imported from Singapore Zoo in 2001, and a male from Twycross Zoo (UK) in 2004. A male imported from Wuppertal Zoo (Germany) in 1989 died without breeding. There have been a number of babies bred in the group. The 1989 female and 2004 male both died in 2015, the 2001 female died in July 2016, and there are now just three sibling animals left at the zoo.

*Francois' Langur (Trachypithecus francoisi) – National Zoo; Taronga

One pair was imported by Taronga from Nagoya Zoo (Japan) in 2004, a second pair from Beijing Zoo (China) in 2010, and a female from Blijdorp Zoo (Netherlands) in 2012. First bred at Taronga in 2009 and several years since. National Zoo has two surplus males, transferred during 2019 from Mogo which in turn obtained them from Taronga (in late 2016?).

*Siamang (Symphalangus syndactylus) – Adelaide; Darling Downs; Melbourne; Mogo; National Zoo; Tasmania Zoo; Wildlife HQ

Except for Tasmania Zoo which only has a lone male originally bred at Melbourne, all the other holding zoos have breeding pairs (or at least potential breeding pairs). Adelaide currently [January 2020] has just two males, but previously had two family groups, some individuals of which were bred there and others of which were imported from Edinburgh in 2006, San Francisco in 1997 and Auckland in 2006. Melbourne's pair is a male imported from Germany in 1991 and a female bred at WPZ in 1997. Mogo's pair was imported from Edinburgh in 2006. National's pair were obtained in 2016, with a male from Orana Park (NZ) and a female from Mogo. The pair at DDZ came from Adelaide (with a juvenile), in June 2017. Wildlife HQ obtained a pair in Feb 2022, with a male from DDZ and a female from the National Zoo. [Note: listings for the above pairings may no longer be current].
Western Plains Zoo formerly also held Siamang. Their last animals were a pair which came from Adelaide in 1989, which died in 2023.

*Northern White-cheeked Gibbon (Nomascus leucogenys) – Adelaide; Melbourne; Perth; Rockhampton; Tasmania Zoo; Wildlife HQ

Adelaide's pair are a male born at Duisburg Zoo (Germany), imported 2006, and a female born at Melbourne. Melbourne's current pair (arrived 2017) is a Perth-bred female and a male imported to Perth from Toledo Zoo (USA) in 2016; Melbourne's previous pair were both wild-born, the male imported in 1978 from Nagoya Zoo (Japan) [still at the zoo] and the female from Brownsville Zoo (USA) in 1981 [died 2017]. Perth's original pair were wild-caught (imported direct in 1974) - the male is still alive and partnered with a Melbourne-bred female. Rockhampton's non-breeding related pair (arriving October 2022) are a male from Perth and a female from Adelaide. Tasmania Zoo's pair came from Adelaide Zoo in December 2018. Wildlife HQ's pair came from Perth Zoo in August 2022, and are a male imported from France in 2010 and an Adelaide-bred female.

*White-handed (Lar) Gibbon (Hylobates lar) – Gorge; Mogo (off display); Western Plains Zoo

Formerly the commonest of the gibbons in Australia, now just a few elderly animals left. The pair at Western Plains came from Melbourne in 1982, where they had been born. The three males at Gorge are also ex-Melbourne. The two females at Mogo are likely to be ex-Melbourne also (Mogo's are now kept off-display).

*Silvery (Javan) Gibbon (Hylobates moloch) – Mogo; Perth; Tasmania Zoo

The current breeding pair at Perth are a male imported from Belfast Zoo in 2018 and a female bred at Perth in 2010; the former breeding pair here were imported in 1992 - the male was born at Berlin Zoo (Germany) and the female at Assiniboine Park Zoo (Canada) - but these animals died in 2014 and 2018 respectively.
The breeding pair at Mogo are a male bred at Perth and a female from Howletts (UK). Both zoos have bred several young.
Tasmania Zoo's pair is a male imported from USA in 2023, and a female which came from Mogo in March 2021.
Taronga formerly also had a pair, the male from Howletts and the female bred at Perth; after the death of the male in 2009, the female was sent to Howletts.

*Sumatran Orangutan (Pongo abelii) – Adelaide; Melbourne; Perth; Sydney Zoo

Adelaide has 1.1 - the male Kluet was born at Jersey Zoo (UK) in 1995, and imported in 2003 to Taronga. The female is Puspa, who was born at Perth in 1975. Female Karta, born at San Diego Zoo (USA) in 1982 and imported to Adelaide in 1992, died in January 2017.
Melbourne currently only holds one male, named Menyaru, born at Melbourne in 2003 (the breeding pair and their other [female] offspring were moved to Sydney Zoo in 2019).
Perth has a large number (usually between ten and fifteen - currently 2.6 as of January 2020), initially established with one pair (male Atjeh and female Puan) imported in 1968 from the private zoo of the Sultan of Johore. They were imported along with two female Bornean Orangutans (named Binte and Mawas); all three females bred at Perth but all the hybrids were exported to Indian zoos. Currently Perth only has Sumatran Orangutans. Atjeh died in 1996 and Puan died in June 2018. The only Orangutan currently at Perth which wasn't born there is Dinar, born at Toronto Zoo (Canada) in 1987 (imported 2004). Male Hsing-Hsing, born at Singapore Zoo in 1975 (imported in 1983), died in December 2017. Animals bred at Perth have been used for reintroductions to the wild in Sumatra.
Sydney Zoo has three animals which came from Melbourne Zoo in July 2019: male Santan born at Toronto Zoo (Canada) in 1977 (imported to Melbourne in 1987) and female Maimunah born at Zurich Zoo (Switzerland) in 1986 (imported to Melbourne in 1992), and one of their offspring (female Dewi , born 2010).

*Hybrid Orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus X Pongo abelii) – one at Melbourne; two at Mogo (off display)

Melbourne had two hybrid females, Kiani (aka Suma, born 1978), and her daughter Gabby (aka Kamil, born 1990), both of which were bred at Melbourne. Kiani died in January 2024.
Mogo has a male Jantan (born 1987) and a female Willow (born 1985), both of which were bred at Taronga. They were transferred to Mogo from Taronga in September 2018. They are now kept off-display.
All of these hybrid animals are non-breeding.

*Common Chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) – Monarto; Rockhampton; Sydney Zoo; Taronga

The first Chimpanzee in an Australian zoo was probably a female at Taronga in 1909. Today Taronga's breeding group is one of the most successful in the world. Currently about 20-strong, it is descended from six animals imported between 1947 and 1970; many Taronga-bred animals have been exported worldwide. In late 2015 Taronga imported two new females from Givskud Zoo (Denmark) and one female from Warsaw Zoo (Poland).
Monarto's group was started with four males in 2009 (the two from Adelaide and two imported from Wellington Zoo in NZ) and four females in 2010 (imported from Burgers Zoo in the Netherlands). They currently have 5.7 animals (as of January 2020).
Rockhampton originally had two Taronga-descended brothers from Natureland Zoo in Queensland, obtained in 1986 (one died in 2013), but in 2012 obtained the last two animals (0.2) from Mogo Zoo and in 2015 imported two more (1.1) from Ramat Gan (Israel). They currently have 2.4 animals (as of January 2020). The original Chimps at Mogo were a brother-sister pair from Bullens (ex-circus) obtained in 2006, followed by a father-daughter pair imported from Willowbank (NZ) in 2009; the NZ male died in 2009 and the Bullens male in 2011. The Chimp enclosure at Mogo now houses Gorillas.
Sydney Zoo imported 7.4 Chimpanzees from Schwaben Park (Germany) in mid-2019.
Of the other major zoos, Melbourne last held Chimps in 1993 (the remaining going to Taronga); Perth last held them in 1999 (1.2 from Taronga, exported to Ishikawa Zoo in Japan); and Adelaide last held them in 2009 (2.0, one bred at Adelaide and the other bred at Taronga, which went to the new Chimp exhibit at Monarto).

*Western Lowland Gorilla (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) – Melbourne; Mogo; Taronga; Werribee

First kept at Melbourne in 1973 when a wild-caught pair arrived from Gabon, with the first baby born to this pair in 1984; further animals have come from Jersey Zoo (UK), Howletts (UK) and Taronga. They currently hold 1.3 animals (as of January 2020).
Mogo holds a family group from Taronga (since 2013), based around animals imported from Apenheul (Netherlands) in 1996, in addition to a male imported from Howletts (UK) in 2019. They currently hold 1.3 animals (as of January 2020).
Taronga's first gorilla was imported from Africa in 1959; they displayed seven individuals through the 1960s and 70s. Their current animals are a mix of animals from Apenheul (Netherlands), La Vallee des Singes (France), and Melbourne, along with ones bred at Taronga. They currently hold 4.4 animals (as of January 2020).
Werribee holds three surplus males from Melbourne (since 2011).

 

FELIDAE

*generic African Lions (Panthera leo) – Adelaide; Altina; Billabong Koala and Wildlife Park; Darling Downs; Hunter Valley; Mansfield; Melbourne; Mogo; Monarto; National Zoo; Perth; Shoalhaven; Sydney Zoo; Taronga; Werribee; Western Plains Zoo; Zoodoo. Also at Zambi (not open to public).

Lions have been in Australia since the 1800s and the current population (about 70 or 80 animals) is a tangled mess of ex-circus animals, old zoo stock and new imported zoo stock. I wouldn't even know where to start with unravelling it all!

*White Lion (Panthera leo krugeri) – Altina; Crocodylus; Darling Downs; Hunter Valley; Mansfield; Mogo; National Zoo; Shoalhaven; Tasmania Zoo; Zoodoo

All imported White Lions were from South Africa, initially 1.2 by Mogo (in 2004) then 2.2 by Zoodoo/DDZ and 1.1 by National (all in 2009). All others in the country are descended from those imported animals. Dreamworld has also had White Lions on short-term display, on loan from other zoos.

*Sumatran Tiger (Panthera tigris sumatrae) – Adelaide; Australia Zoo; Darling Downs; Dreamworld; Melbourne; Mogo; National Zoo; Perth; Taronga; Tasmania Zoo; Western Plains Zoo

There are about 40 Sumatran Tigers in Australia but there is a high degree of relatedness. The base of the population was a pair each at Melbourne (Frank and Poetry) and Taronga (Nico and Meta) in the 1980s. Poetry and Nico had the same father (at Rotterdam Zoo, Netherlands), and that animal was the brother of Meta's father. Almost all the tigers bred in Australia can be traced back to these four founders in some respect, but there are also seven unrelated imported animals (3 males, 4 females) which have contributed to the zoo population (a fifth female, Malu, imported from NZ in 1997 is from the Nico-Meta bloodline). The only Australian-bred animals which are entirely unrelated to the Melbourne-Taronga lines are litters produced at Dreamworld from male Raja (imported in 2005 from Krefeld Zoo, Germany) and female Soraya (imported in 2003 from Berlin Tierpark, Germany).

*generic Tigers (Panthera tigris) (hybrids and whites) – Ballarat; Dreamworld; Mogo; National, Sydney Zoo. Also at Zambi (not open to public).

Most of the generic Tigers in Australia (the so-called "Bengal Tigers") derive from animals at Bullens (ex-circus). Dreamworld has some Tigers from Bullens but their original animals were 3.3 (including white ones) imported from the USA in 1995; they also imported an orange female from Krakow Zoo (Poland) in 2013 [now at Zambi], and two white females from Hirakawa Zoo (Japan) in 2016. Mogo has 1.1 originally bred at Bullens, as well as 0.1 bred at Mogo from that pair. National Zoo has 2.2, all from Dreamworld. Sydney Zoo's 1.2 Tigers were bred at Mogo in 2007, and came to Sydney Zoo from Australia Zoo in December 2022. Crocodylus also had two animals (1.1) bred at Bullens but they died in 2019 and 2020.

*Snow Leopard (Panthera uncia) – Billabong Koala and Wildlife Park; Melbourne; Tasmania Zoo

The first Snow Leopards in Australia were a pair imported by Melbourne in 1983 from the USA (the male from the Bronx Zoo and the female from the San Antonio Zoo). In total, five males and five females have been imported into Australia, and just over a dozen cubs have been produced. The first cubs were born at Melbourne in 1985; they have also been bred at Mogo (no longer kept there) and Taronga.
Melbourne's most recent breeding pair before the pair currently at the zoo was a male imported from Nindorf (Germany) in 2003, and a female imported from Stuttgart (Germany) in 2003; both of these have since died, the male in 2017 and the female in 2018. Melbourne has now imported a new pair in October 2017, a male from Nuremberg Zoo (Germany) and a female from South Lakes (UK), which have since bred. They also have a female which was bred at the zoo from the previous pair.
Billabong has three animals, all from Taronga: a sibling pair bred in 2005 came to Billabong in 2012 (the female has since died); and in 2015 Taronga's breeding pair moved to Billabong, this pair being a male bred at Mogo in 2003 and a female imported from Mulhouse (France) in 2003.
Tasmania Zoo has one male, obtained from Melbourne Zoo in October 2021 (bred at Melbourne in 2020).

*Sri Lankan Leopard (Panthera pardus kotiya) – Darling Downs Zoo; Mogo Zoo; National Zoo; Tasmania Zoo

The pair at the National Zoo were imported first, with the female coming from Paris (France) in February 2019, and the male from Zoo Santillana del Mar (Spain) in September 2019. The pair at DDZ were imported from Spain in late 2021, originating from Bioparc Valencia (male) and Zoobotanico Jerez (female). Both pairs have since bred successfully. Mogo has one animal (a male) which arrived there in December 2023 from National Zoo. Tasmania Zoo has one animal (a male) which arrived there in January 2024 from DDZ.

*Clouded Leopard (Neofelis nebulosa) – Wild Cat Conservation Centre (not open to the public except by tour)

Two animals - full siblings, born December 2019 - were imported from Germany by the Wild Cat Conservation Centre in early 2020. A further true pair was imported to the same facility in early 2022 from the USA (from Pittsburgh Zoo and Tanganyika Wildlife Park).
The only other animals kept in Australia in recent times was a pair imported to Taronga Zoo from the USA in 1993. This pair never bred. The male died at Taronga Zoo in 2005, and the female died at Melbourne Zoo in 2008.

*Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) – Australia Zoo; Billabong Koala and Wildlife Park; Darling Downs Zoo; Halls Gap; Hunter Valley; Mogo; Monarto; National Zoo; Sydney Zoo; Symbio; Tasmania Zoo; Werribee; Western Plains Zoo; Wild Cat Conservation Centre

There are about 60 Cheetahs in Australia (as of January 2020), two-thirds of which were born in the country. Others have been imported from New Zealand, South Africa, Netherlands, and the UK. I think Monarto and WPZ are the only breeders, their original stocks being imported from South Africa in 2001. All the other zoos were holders of non-breeding animals (but this may no longer be current).

*King Cheetah – two females at Western Plains Zoo

Two sisters born at WPZ in Oct 2009 to "normal" Cheetah parents. One female has since had several litters herself but all have been of normal pattern. The National Zoo formerly held a male King Cheetah, imported from South Africa in 2006; he died in 2008 but his half-sister (of normal pattern) still lives at the National Zoo.

*Caracal (Caracal caracal) – Darling Downs; Hunter Valley; Mogo; Tasmania Zoo; Wild Cat Conservation Centre

One pair was imported by Wild Cat Conservation Centre (then named Wild Animal Encounters) in late 2017 from South Africa (this is not a publicly-open zoo as yet). This pair bred for the first time (two kittens) in early 2020; one of the offspring (a female) was later sent to Hunter Valley in August 2021.
Two female siblings were imported by Tasmania Zoo from South Africa in late 2019.
Five unrelated animals were imported by DDZ in June 2021 from Hamerton Zoo (UK) [although also originating from South Africa]; kittens were bred from these before the end of the year. One of these imported animals (a male) was then sent to Hunter Valley in August 2021 to pair with their female (from the Wild Cat Conservation Centre).

Prior to the current imports there used to be Caracals kept and bred in several Australian zoos. A study on Chronic Kidney Disease in Australian zoo felids, using ZIMS data (Chronic Kidney Disease in Non-Domestic Felids in Australian Zoos), shows at least 38 Caracals having been kept in Australia between the 1960s and 2000s. The last survivors of this population was a pair at Adelaide Zoo, of which the female died in 2007, and the male was sent to Melbourne Zoo in 2008 where he died in late 2013. These were Asiatic Caracals C. c. schmitzii which are from India and the Middle East (the current animals are of the South African subspecies C. c. caracal).

*Serval (Leptailurus serval) – Adelaide; Altina; Crocodylus; Darling Downs; Gorge; Halls Gap; Hunter Valley; Kangaroo Island Wildlife Park; Mogo; National Zoo; Tasmania Zoo; Walkabout Wildlife Sanctuary; Werribee; Wild Cat Conservation Centre; Wildlife HQ; Zoodoo

There are about 25 Servals in Australia, most of which are related to some degree. Almost all of those currently in Australia were originally imported from NZ (mostly bred at Auckland Zoo) or were bred at Mogo Zoo (Mogo's breeding pair was a male imported from Auckland in 2003 and a female imported from South Africa's National Zoo in 2005). There are also Melbourne- and Adelaide-bred Servals in the country. DDZ imported two females from Europe in late 2021.

*Fishing Cat (Prionailurus viverrinus) – one pair at Taronga; one male at Wild Cat Conservation Centre

Of the pair at Taronga, the female was bred at Newquay Zoo (UK) in 2012 and imported to Taronga in late 2015, and the male was bred at Rotterdam Zoo (Netherlands) in 2015 and imported in early 2016. The male at the Wild Cat Conservation Centre was imported in July 2022 (no further information as yet).
The previous Australian population had collapsed by the late 2000s. Animals had been imported in the 1990s to Melbourne and Taronga from the UK, USA, and Canada; both zoos bred them in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The few kept at the other zoos (Perth, Adelaide and Crocodylus) were individuals from those litters. Taronga also imported an additional male in 2005 from Singapore Zoo. The Australian zoo population totalled about a dozen animals at this time but, apart for two sent to NZ in 2009, all eventually died of old age. The last survivor of that population was a female born at Taronga in 2002 which died in late 2015.


URSIDAE

*Polar Bear (Ursus maritimus) – three (2.1) at Sea World

There have been a total of six adult Polar Bears imported to Sea World since 2000. The current three bears are two wild-caught males imported in 2004 from Quebec, and a female born at Sea World in April 2017. The breeding female - born at Leningrad Zoo (Russia) and imported in 2001 - died in December 2019. Three cubs have been born: a male in 2013, which was exported to the Cochrane Polar Bear Habitat (Canada) in 2015; and two in April 2017 (one died soon afterwards).
Polar Bears have formerly been kept in other Australian zoos also, notably Perth (until 1980), Taronga (1984), Melbourne (c.1986) and Adelaide (c.1986).

*Sun Bear (Helarctos malayanus) – National Zoo (1.1); Perth (1.1); Taronga (0.1); Wildlife HQ (0.1)

Most of the Sun Bears in Australia were originally rescue animals from Cambodia. Otherwise, National Zoo's male was born at Wellington Zoo (NZ), Adelaide's former female (died 2013) was born at Singapore Zoo, and Adelaide's former male (died 2018) was a rescue animal from Thailand. Only two cubs have been bred in Australia, a female at Perth in 2008 (now at Wildlife HQ, but previously at the now-closed Alma Park Zoo since 2011) and a female at National Zoo in 2010 (at Taronga since 2012).

*Giant Panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) – two at Adelaide

The current Giant Pandas in Australia are a male and female (Wang Wang and Funi) imported in November 2009 on a ten-year loan from China. Both were born in captivity at Wolong.
The only other Giant Pandas ever exhibited in the country were a pair called Xiao Xiao and Fei Fei in 1988, which were on an Australasian “tour”, staying at three zoos (Melbourne, Taronga and Auckland) for a few months each before returning to China.


CANIDAE

*Dingo (Canis lupus dingo) – very widespread in zoos and other wildlife collections

Introduced to Australia several thousand years ago, probably as a domestic with traders from southeast Asia.

*African Hunting Dog (Lycaon pictus) – Altina; Monarto; National; Perth; Sydney Zoo; Tasmania Zoo; Werribee; Western Plains Zoo; Wildlife HQ

There are about 70 Hunting Dogs in Australian zoos. The species breeds rapidly, they have fairly short lifespans, and packs can only contain one breeding pair. Hence animals tend to be moved between zoos frequently, and stock at any given zoo can change at any time. Several zoos hold only single-sex groups. Almost all the Hunting Dogs currently in Australia were bred in this country (although, notably, Sydney Zoo imported four males from Dvur Kralove [Czech Republic] in July 2019, which were moved on to Altina in late 2021 for breeding purposes).

*Maned Wolf (Chrysocyon brachyurus) – Adelaide; Altina; Crocodylus; Darling Downs; Hunter Valley; Mansfield; Shoalhaven; Tasmania Zoo; Wildlife HQ

Formerly breeding at Perth, Melbourne and Western Plains Zoo until the ZAA lost interest. The original founders were nine animals imported between 1982 and 1998 from the USA, UK, Germany and Brazil. Between 2009 and 2011 all remaining individuals in the country (all related and all born at WPZ) were gathered at Altina, which has also imported a female from Riga Zoo (Latvia) in 2009, a male from Nordens Ark (Sweden) in 2013, and a female from Pueblo Zoo (USA) in 2015. The animals now at the other listed zoos mostly came from Altina: in 2012 (1.2 to Hunter Valley), 2014 (2.0 to Crocodylus), 2015 (2.0 to National - no longer there), 2016 (1.0 to Adelaide, and 2.0 to Shoalhaven), 2017 (0.1 to Adelaide), 2018 (0.2 to Wildlife HQ), 2020 (1.1 to Darling Downs), 2021 (0.2 to Mansfield), and 2023 (0.2 to Tasmania Zoo [from DDZ]). There are about thirty animals in total in Australian zoos (as of January 2020).

*Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes) – Caversham; Cooberrie. Probably kept at other small collections as well.

Introduced in the mid-1800s and now found throughout mainland Australia.

*Fennec Fox (Vulpes zerda) – Adelaide; Billabong Koala and Wildlife Park; D'Aguilar Wildlife; Taronga

Has been kept and bred in Australian zoos throughout the 1900s, but by the early 2000s reduced to just six animals. In 2011 there was an import of new stock to Adelaide (1.2 from Los Angeles Zoo, USA) and Taronga (1.0 from Augsburg Zoo, Germany, and 0.1 from Krakow Zoo, Poland); and in 2023 an additional male was imported by Taronga from Japan. There are currently about 13 animals in Australian zoos (as of January 2020).


HYAENIDAE

*Spotted Hyaena (Crocuta crocuta) – Altina; Mogo; Monarto; National Zoo; Perth; Sydney Zoo

Formerly kept in several Australasian zoos. With regards to the current animals, all stem from five (4.1) imported by Monarto from Singapore Zoo in 2007, apart for three males imported by Sydney Zoo from Singapore in August 2019 and one pair (1.1) imported by Altina "from Africa" in late 2021 (announced in September of that year). All the zoos except Monarto and Altina hold only male animals. There are currently about 20 animals in the country.
A former group was at Perth, with 1.2 imported from Berkeley (USA) in c.1991. One female later went to Whyalla Zoo, and then to Monarto in 2004; the remaining pair at Perth bred several times (all offspring went to Singapore Zoo) and the male was later castrated; all 3 are now dead.


MUSTELIDAE

*Ferret (Mustela putorius furo) – Mansfield (?). Probably kept at other small collections as well.

First brought to Australia in the 1880s for rabbit control but, unlike in NZ, ferrets do not have wild populations in Australia. They are common as pets but are banned in Queensland and the Northern Territory.

*Small-clawed Otter (Aonyx cinerea) – Adelaide; Australia Zoo; Gorge; Halls Gap; Melbourne; Mogo; National Zoo; Perth; Rockhampton; Sydney Zoo; Taronga; Tasmania Zoo; Western Plains Zoo;

There are about 40 otters in Australia. Most of the older stock has been retired to the smaller zoos while the major zoos (Melbourne, WPZ, Taronga, Perth and Adelaide) have breeding stock largely composed of imports from Japan, Singapore, Europe and USA in 2009, 2010 and 2011.


HERPESTIDAE

*Meerkat (Suricata suricatta) – Adelaide; Altina; Australia Zoo; Ballarat; Billabong Koala and Wildlife Park; Billabong Sanctuary; Crocodylus; D'Aguilar Wildlife; Darling Downs; Gorge; Halls Gap; Hunter Valley; Kangaroo Island Wildlife Park; Kyabram; Mansfield Zoo; Melbourne; Mogo; Monarto; National Zoo; Oakvale; Paradise Country; Perth; Rockhampton; Royal Melbourne Childrens Hospital; Shoalhaven; Snakes Downunder; Sydney Zoo; Symbio; Taronga; Tasmania Zoo; Walkabout Park Wildlife Sanctuary; Werribee; Western Plains Zoo; Wildlife HQ; Wings Wildlife Park; Zoodoo. Also at Zambi (not open to public).

Kept continuously since the mid-1970s and 1980s at the four major zoos (Adelaide, Melbourne, Taronga and Perth). The first import in this time frame was by Melbourne from Namibia in 1974. There were many many later imports by various zoos and they are widely bred. There are now around 270 Meerkats in Australian zoos (as of January 2020). At least Adelaide had them for periods prior to this also (with imports in 1906 and 1924).


VIVERRIDAE

*Binturong (Arctictis binturong) – Adelaide; Australia Zoo; Currumbin; Darling Downs Zoo (penicillatus); Hunter Valley; Melbourne; Mogo; Perth; Taronga; Tasmania Zoo (penicillatus); Wildlife HQ

There are about 15 animals in the country currently. For the current stock, all the initial animals were imported from Singapore Zoo [Melbourne in 2003 (1.1), Taronga in 2005 (1.1), Adelaide in 2005 (1.0), Perth in 2016 (1.1), and Melbourne in 2023 (2.0)], except for one later pair imported by Hunter Valley Zoo from Hamerton Zoo (UK) in 2019, and two pairs imported by DDZ from Hamerton in 2022 (these animals were of the Javan subspecies A. b. penicillatus, and one pair was sent on to Tasmania Zoo). There also appear to have been earlier imports in 1998 (one animal) and 1993 (8 animals) but I don't think any of the living animals are derived from those imports.
Australia Zoo, Mogo, and Wildlife HQ hold animals bred at Melbourne and Taronga. Adelaide's current single male, Taronga's current two animals (both males), and Currumbin's current single female were bred at Perth. The Perth pair are currently the only breeding pair in the country, although the pairs of Javan Binturong at DDZ and Tasmania Zoo are potential breeding pairs.


AILURIDAE

*Red Panda (Ailurus fulgens fulgens) – Adelaide; Altina; Australia Zoo; Billabong Koala and Wildlife Park; Currumbin; Halls Gap; Melbourne; Mogo; National Zoo; Perth; Sydney Zoo; Symbio; Taronga; Tasmania Zoo; Wildlife HQ

The first in the country were a pair imported by Adelaide in 1975 from Zoo Neuwied (Germany). There have been at least 17 other animals imported since then, from Switzerland, Netherlands, Sweden, Spain, France, South Africa, USA, Canada, Japan and NZ. Over 130 have been born in Australia (including DNS) during that time. Almost all the Red Pandas currently in Australia were born in Australia. There are about 45 animals in Australian zoos currently (as of January 2020).
Six individuals of Chinese Red Pandas (Ailurus fulgens styani) were also kept in Australia for a short period in the 1980-90s.


PROCYONIDAE

*Brown-nosed (Common) Coati (Nasua nasua) – Adelaide; Gorge; Melbourne

Melbourne imported 1.4 animals in May 2011 from Leipzig Zoo (Germany) in exchange for three pairs of Eastern Quolls (Dasyurus viverrinus). All four females bred before the end of the first year and offspring were distributed to other zoos. There have been no further imports apart for three post-reproductive animals from Singapore Zoo to Melbourne in 2018. As of January 2020 there were about twenty Coatis in Australian zoos, none of which are breeding animals.


PINNIPEDIA

*Californian Sealion (Zalophus californianus) – Sea World; Taronga

Taronga has four captive-bred males (they had six, I'm not sure which of the following two are no longer at the zoo): one came from Wilhelma Zoo (Germany) in 2000, one from Sea World Gold Coast in 2008, one from Cologne Zoo (Germany) in 2009, one from Emmen Zoo (Netherlands) in 2009, and two from Rotterdam Zoo (Netherlands) in 2015. There are thirteen (8.5) at Sea World, some of which have been born there and the rest imported, presumably from the USA, but I can't find any information other than that one came from Napier Marineland (NZ) in 2014.


LAGOMORPHA and RODENTIA

*European Rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus)
*Brown Hare (Lepus europaeus)

Both species are found wild in Australia, since introductions in the early-to-mid-1800s; domestic rabbits are in many collections.

*Black Rat (Rattus rattus)
*Brown Rat (Rattus norvegicus)
*House Mouse (Mus musculus/domesticus)

All three species are found wild in Australia; domestic varieties are found in some collections.

*Northern Palm Squirrel (Funambulus pennantii) – probably now extinct in Australia

Formerly well-established in the wild in Perth, originating from animals deliberately released at the Perth Zoo in 1898, but an eradication programme had reduced them to about ten animals by 2017 and they are now likely extinct there. A smaller population in Sydney, originating from deliberate releases at Taronga in 1942 (from Perth stock), was later eradicated with the last wild records being in 1976. Seven wild animals, resulting from released pets, were also trapped and destroyed in Melbourne in 1997.
Taronga Zoo formerly bred them and kept quite a number through the 2000s, but by 2014 the only animals in ZAA zoos were two at Taronga and one at Tasmania Zoo. ZooDoo in Tasmania obtained three animals in 2006 but they no longer keep them.
They may still be kept in the pet trade within Australia, although they are banned in most (all?) states.

*South African Crested Porcupine (Hystrix africaeaustralis) – Darling Downs; Monarto; Perth; Sydney Zoo; Wildlife HQ; ZooDoo

Monarto imported one pair of two-year-old animals in April 2017 from the Tanganyika Wildlife Park (USA). These bred for the first time later that year (2017). Perth imported one female around July 2017 from the Northumberland Country Zoo (aka Eshottheugh Animal Park) in the UK, and in early 2018 obtained a Monarto-bred male. These bred for the first time later that same year (2018). Darling Downs has two females, both bred at Perth Zoo (obtained in 2019 and 2020). Wildlife HQ has two males, both bred at Perth Zoo (obtained in 2022). Sydney Zoo has two females, both bred at Monarto (obtained in 2022). ZooDoo's animals came from DDZ.

*Guinea Pig (Cavia porcellus) – common in childrens zoos

*Mara (Dolichotis patagonum) – Adelaide; Hunter Valley

Formerly kept in many Australasian zoos, with the last of the old stock (originating at Taronga c.1940s) dying in 2012 at Western Plains Zoo. The current zoo stock comes from two pairs imported by Melbourne from Whipsnade (UK) in late 2012. These were transferred to Adelaide in Oct 2013, and started breeding in early 2014. There have been no further imports. As of January 2020 there were only 14 animals in Australian zoos.

*Capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) – Altina; Crocodylus; Currumbin; D'Aguilar Wildlife; Darling Downs Zoo; Gorge; Hunter Valley; Sydney Zoo; Taronga; Tasmania Zoo; Wildlife HQ; Wings Wildlife Park

Formerly kept in many Australasian zoos, with the last of the old stock (originating at Taronga in the 1930s) dying in c.2005 at Adelaide. The current zoo stock comes from a trio (1.2) imported by Adelaide from Los Angeles Zoo (USA) in Nov 2013. The first young were born at Adelaide in April 2014 (although Adelaide itself no longer keeps the species, with their last one dying in May 2023). Adelaide-bred animals have been distributed around Australia and they have since bred at Altina, D'Aguilar, Hunter Valley, Sydney Zoo, and Tasmania Zoo. Some zoos hold only single-sex groups. The only other import into Australia other than the initial trio in 2013 has been five males from Wellington Zoo (NZ) to Taronga in September 2019. As of January 2020 there are about thirty animals in Australian zoos.

*Brazilian (Red-rumped) Agouti (Dasyprocta leporina) – Darling Downs; D'Aguilar Wildlife; Gorge; Halls Gap; Hunter Valley; National Zoo; Perth Zoo

Until 2016 the entire Australasian population was descended from four animals imported by Auckland Zoo (NZ) in 1949. In 2016 DDZ imported four unrelated individuals from the USA, and these have since bred. (Four unrelated animals from Hungary were also imported to NZ by Wellington Zoo in 2016). Before the four new ones were imported by DDZ there were only six agouti left in Australia (at Melbourne and Taronga). The two animals at National are the only remainder of that old stock (coming there from Taronga in 2016). As of January 2020 there are about twenty animals total in Australian zoos.


MARSUPIALIA

*Goodfellow's Tree Kangaroo (Dendrolagus goodfellowi) – Adelaide; Australian Reptile Park; Ballarat Wildlife Park; Caversham; Currumbin; Featherdale; Gumbuya World; Healesville; National Zoo; Perth; Taronga; Wildlife HQ; WILD LIFE Sydney

First kept in Australia at Taronga in 1967. All the early stock in the country (in the 60s and 70s) was imported from New Guinea but more recently (in the late 1990s and through the 2000s) there have been imports of unrelated animals from zoos in the USA, Ireland, France, Japan and Singapore. Currently there about 20 animals in Australian zoos (as of January 2020).


TACHYGLOSSIDAE

*Barton's Long-beaked Echidna (Zaglossus bartoni) – one male at Taronga

Three animals (1.2) were imported from London Zoo (UK) in 1994. One of the females died some time in the late 1990s. The surviving two were a female which had been at London since 1965 (wild-caught in 1963, and originally kept at Taronga) and a male which had come to London from Dallas Zoo (USA) in 1986 (wild-caught c.1971). The female died at Taronga in July 2015, aged at least 53.

 

This post is in three parts. First is the short list of mammals "new" to Australia since 2000 (a rather arbitrary date chosen for its "roundness"). Second is an annotated list of those mammals which have been "lost" to Australia since the year 2000. Third is an annotated list of mammals which have been "lost" to Australia between 1980 and 2000. Obviously the two lists for "lost mammals" are incomplete because it is based on scattered data, quite often being anecdotal, and new information will continue to be added or corrected as it becomes available.

...............................................


MAMMAL SPECIES NEW TO AUSTRALIA SINCE 2000
("New" meaning not already present in the country at the time of importation, although they may have been kept previously)

*Indian Rhino Rhinoceros unicornis - Taronga/TWPZ, 2001
*Francois' Langur Trachypithecus francoisi - Taronga, 2004
*Dhole Cuon alpinus - Taronga, 2006 (but gone again by 2015)
*Giant Panda Ailuropoda melanoleuca - Adelaide, 2009
*Brown-nosed Coati Nasua nasua - Melbourne, 2011
*Mara Dolichotis patagonum - Melbourne, 2012 (the last of the previous stock died c.2012 so there may have been overlap)
*Capybara Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris - Adelaide, 2013
*Nyala Tragelaphus angasii - Werribee, 2016
*South African Crested Porcupine Hystrix africaeaustralis - Monarto, 2017
*Caracal Caracal caracal - Wild Animal Encounters, 2017
*Red-handed Tamarin Saguinus midas - Darling Downs, 2018
*Sunda Slow Loris Nycticebus coucang - Perth, 2018 (the last previous ones in the country died in 2014 and 2015)
*Mainland Clouded Leopard Neofelis nebulosa - Wild Cat Conservation Centre, 2020 (the last previous ones in the country died in 2005 and 2008)
*De Brazza's Monkey Cercopithecus neglectus - Tasmania Zoo, 2023


...............................................


MAMMALS LOST SINCE 2000

The following is an annotated list of exotic mammals lost to Australian zoos since the year 2000.

For more discussions on these species, please see this thread where a lot of the information was gathered: Australian zoo mammal histories


ELEPHANTS

*African Elephant (Loxodonta africana)
The first African Elephant in an Australian zoo [so not including circus elephants] was the short-lived male Dumbo at Taronga Zoo in 1947 (surviving only six months), followed by females Chori (Taronga 1947-1979) and Cheena (Taronga 1948-c.1970). The only others in Australian zoos have been at Western Plains Zoo. Four animals were imported in December 1977 from Longleat (UK) for the opening of WPZ - male David, died 1987; and females Cheri, died 2007; Yum Yum, died 2010; and Cuddles, died 2017. Others kept at WPZ in the same time-frame were female Toto (imported from the USA in 1982, died 1984) and male Congo (from the USA in 1983, died 2000). There were unsuccessful attempts to breed Congo to the females.


PERISSODACTYLS

*Grevy's Zebra (Equus grevyi)
Imported to the Pearl Coast Zoo from the UK in 1988, from Marwell Zoo (two males) and Midway Manor (four females). After the zoo's closure in 1991 they went to Tipperary Wildlife Sanctuary, and then when that zoo closed in 2004 they (if they still survived then) were probably sold to the Mary River Station. There are no longer any in the country.


ARTIODACTYLS

*White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus)
Presumably from New Zealand stock. The last one in the country was a female at Werribee which died in 2007.

*African Forest Buffalo (Syncerus caffer nanus)
The original stock was imported from the UK in the late 1980s. The last two animals were a female at Werribee which died in 2018, and a male at Western Plains Zoo (probably died around the same general time [2018 / 2019], but "may" still be alive - it is not on display at any rate).

*Gemsbok (Oryx gazella)
Imported to the Pearl Coast Zoo from Marwell Zoo (UK) in 1987 (1.2 animals) and 1988 (0.2 animals). After the zoo's closure in 1991 they went to Tipperary Wildlife Sanctuary, and then when that zoo closed in 2004 they were sold to the Mary River Station. There are no longer any in the country.

*Sitatunga (Tragelaphus spekii)
The formerly-large Australasian zoo population of Sitatunga was descended from one pair of animals imported from the USA by Taronga Zoo in the 1950s. Unconnected to the wider population, the Pearl Coast Zoo imported 2.3 from Marwell Zoo (UK) in 1988 but none of these went to other zoos (after the closure of the Pearl Coast Zoo they ended up at to Tipperary Wildlife Sanctuary and no longer survive). The last Sitatunga in Australia died at Western Plains Zoo in July 2017, aged 27.

*Sable Antelope (Hippotragus niger)
The last one in the country was a female at Werribee which died in 2012 (she had been there alone since at least 2006).

*Greater Kudu (Tragelaphus strepsiceros)
A trio (1.2) was imported by Werribee from Honolulu Zoo (USA) in 1996. The last male in the country was castrated and he died in 2008, at which time there were still seven females. The last female at Werribee appears to have died in 2016. In 1987/88 a trio (2.1) had also been imported from the UK to the Pearl Coast Zoo but these went to the Tipperary Wildlife Sanctuary after the zoo's closure, and then to the Mary River Station (and have since died out there).

*Red Lechwe (Kobus leche leche)
Last held at the Mary River Station, descended from animals sourced from the Pearl Coast Zoo (1.3 imported from the UK in 1988, and 1.0 from the USA via NZ in 1991). There were a few individuals there until quite recently but I have been informed that they are now all dead. I have also read these were Kafue Lechwe (Kobus leche kafuensis).

*Chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra)
From New Zealand stock, originally brought in by Taronga Zoo. The last one died at Monarto Zoo in the early 2000s.


PRIMATES

*Bengal Slow Loris (Nycticebus bengalensis)
During the 1970s and 80s many zoos kept lorises of various species (N. coucang, N. bengalensis, N. pygmaeus, and Loris tardigradus - although at the time only two species of lorises were scientifically recognised, the Slow Loris N. coucang and the Slender Loris L. tardigradus). Most of the animals were specifically imported by the zoos but some were the results of confiscations of smuggled animals. The last Bengal Slow Loris in Australia was at Melbourne Zoo, and it died in 2015.

*White-fronted Lemur (Eulemur albifrons)
Perth Zoo imported ten animals from Germany in 1983 and kept/bred them until the 1990s. The last three were sent to Western Plains Zoo. I think one died there and the last two went to Gorge Wildlife Park around 2009 or 2010. These two were born in 1993 and 1994 at Perth. The female died in 2018 (I think) and the male in early 2019.

*Red Ruffed Lemur (Varecia rubra)
At least one was kept at Perth Zoo in the late 1990s, probably into the 2000s. There is a CITES record for one animal being imported from the USA in 1998 which would have been the Perth Zoo one.

*Black (Golden-rumped) Lion Tamarin (Leontopithecus chrysopygus)
Adelaide Zoo had two pairs, imported in 1995 from Europe and Brazil. There were still two males and one female up until 2009 or 2010. I don't know if all three died or if they were exported at this time.

*Common Squirrel Monkey (Saimiri sciureus)
Formerly common in the major Australian zoos. The last in the country were at Alma Park Zoo, which had a group of ten ex-lab animals near the start of the 2000s. There were still eight in 2008, but all seem to have died by 2011.

*Ebony (Javan) Langur (Trachypithecus auratus)
Melbourne Zoo had a pair in the early-2000s, the male of which died in 2008 and the female in 2010. The CITES database lists three animals having been imported from Singapore in 2000.

*Purple-faced Langur (Trachypithecus vetulus vetulus)
Formerly kept at Adelaide and Perth Zoos, with a pair each at the start of the 1990s. The CITES database lists five animals imported from Sri Lanka in 1980 which would have been the original stock. I don't know what happened to the Adelaide animals (they may have been sent to Perth to form a larger group, but there is a CITES record of two animals being exported from Australia to the USA in 1991). The last two in the country, an old female and a younger male, were exported from Perth Zoo to Edinburgh Zoo (UK) in about 2005 or 2006.

*Lion-tailed Macaque (Macaca silenus)
This species has been kept in all the major zoos through the 1900s. The last two groups (both very inbred) were at Adelaide and Melbourne. Fears about Herpes B in macaques caused breeding to be stopped and the remaining animals were later retired to smaller zoos in the last few years. The last animals in the country were at Rockhampton Zoo. The last male died in 2014, and the last two females died in July 2021.

*Bonnet Macaque (Macaca radiata)
This species was widely held in zoos and circuses in the past, but a phase-out decision of macaques in the mid-2000s by the ZAA (then ARAZPA) saw all the species decline towards total disappearance. The last two old animals in Australia were retired at Banana Cabana (died 2015) and Mansfield Zoo (died some time after 2015).

*Stump-tailed Macaque (Macaca arctoides)
Gone from zoos by the 2000s but in the Australian Zoo Mammal Histories thread tetrapod mentions seeing the last pair in 2001, which were kept by a private keeper outside Sydney (where several surplus primates from zoos were held).

*Tonkean Macaque (Macaca tonkeana)
Perth Zoo had one pair which bred once (a male). By around 2005 just the two males were left, and these were rehomed around 2010 (probably to Mareeba).

*Muller's (Bornean) Gibbon (Hylobates muelleri)
The last one in the country was the female Mary who came to Taronga Zoo from Borneo in 1960 and died in Feb 2015. Her previous mate had died in 1986 and she rejected attempts to pair her with other males. Until 2008 there was also a lone female at Mogo Zoo and until 2010 a lone female at the Cairns Wildlife Safari.


CARNIVORES

*Asian Lion (Panthera leo persica)
A pure male was kept at Taronga Zoo in the 1970s. In c.1991 a hybrid pair (Asian X African) was imported to Western Plains Zoo via Taronga Zoo from the USA, and these survived until the early 2000s with the male, aged 20 years old, dying in 2004. The intention was to later import pure Asian Lions but this never eventuated. A study on Chronic Kidney Disease in Australian zoo felids, using ZIMS data (Chronic Kidney Disease in Non-Domestic Felids in Australian Zoos), shows eight Asian Lions having been kept in Australia between the 1960s and 2000s (including the above hybrids).

*Tigon (Panthera tigris X Panthera leo)
A sibling pair bred at the Ashton's Circus in 1987, which were sent to Canberra's National Zoo in Dec 2000. The female died in 2006 and the male in June 2008.

*Persian Leopard (Panthera pardus ciscaucasica / saxicolor)
Originally being bred at Adelaide Zoo. Their animals were an existing female (I don't know her origin), and a sibling pair (1.1) bred at Cincinnati Zoo (USA) in 1980. A study on Chronic Kidney Disease in Australian zoo felids, using ZIMS data (Chronic Kidney Disease in Non-Domestic Felids in Australian Zoos), shows 19 Persian Leopards having been kept in Australia between the 1960s and 2000s. By 2001 there were only six animals left in the country - three at Perth Zoo (1.2) and three at Adelaide Zoo (1.2). The three at Perth Zoo were a father and his two daughters, all of which were sent to Crocodylus Park, in 2001 (the females) and 2002 (the male). The last three in the country were a female at Crocodylus Park (died 2008), the male at Adelaide Zoo (died April 2010), and a female at Melbourne Zoo (one of the Adelaide Zoo's females; died July 2013)

*generic Leopard (Panthera pardus)
The last of the many Leopards which used to be in Australian zoos [until recent imports of Sri Lankan Leopards in the 2020s] was a black panther at Gorge Wildlife Park which died in June 2017. He was bred at Gorge in 1994, the parents being ex-Melbourne Zoo. A study on Chronic Kidney Disease in Australian zoo felids, using ZIMS data (Chronic Kidney Disease in Non-Domestic Felids in Australian Zoos), shows at least 31 Leopards (excluding Persian Leopards) having been kept in Australia between the 1960s and 2000s (numbers include all animals including cubs which died, and only zoos which have records on ZIMS).

*Jaguar (Panthera onca)
A study on Chronic Kidney Disease in Australian zoo felids, using ZIMS data (Chronic Kidney Disease in Non-Domestic Felids in Australian Zoos), shows at least 32 Jaguars having been kept in Australia between the 1960s and 2000s (numbers include all animals including cubs which died, and only zoos which have records on ZIMS). The last five in the country all died in late 2000s from old age. A female at Darling Downs Zoo which came from Monbulk Animal Kingdom, but was originally bred at Adelaide Zoo in the late 1970s, died in 2008. The pair at Melbourne Zoo both died in 2008. Of the sibling pair at Mogo Zoo, which had came from Notre Dame Zoo (Mulgoa) when it was closed down in 1991, the female died in 2007 and the male in either 2009 or 2010.

*Puma (Puma concolor)
This species was formerly in Australia in a sizeable population, kept and bred at several zoos and circuses in the country. A study on Chronic Kidney Disease in Australian zoo felids, using ZIMS data (Chronic Kidney Disease in Non-Domestic Felids in Australian Zoos), shows at least 52 Pumas having been kept in Australia between the 1960s and 2000s (numbers include all animals including cubs which died, and only zoos which have records on ZIMS). The last major zoo in the country to hold them was Melbourne Zoo (their last animal dying in 2011). The other most recently-held Pumas were a sibling-pair at National Zoo, bred at Melbourne Zoo in 1997 and arriving in Canberra in 2001, of which the male died some time in the mid-2000s and the female in c.2016/2017; two females at Dreamworld since 1995 (bred that year at Bullens), which died in 2016 and 2018 respectively; and the last animal in Australia, a female at Zambi (not open to the public) which had been bred at Bullens in 2001 and died at the start of 2020.

*Asiatic Golden Cat (Catopuma temminckii)
Kept and bred continuously at Melbourne Zoo since 1968 when the first five animals were imported from Europe and the USA. Was also kept at Taronga Zoo and Adelaide Zoo. A study on Chronic Kidney Disease in Australian zoo felids, using ZIMS data (Chronic Kidney Disease in Non-Domestic Felids in Australian Zoos), shows 35 Asiatic Golden Cats having been kept in Australia between the 1960s and 2000s (numbers include all animals including cubs which died, and only zoos which have records on ZIMS). Most of the surviving animals post-2000 were exported to New Zealand zoos. The last one in Australia was a female which died at Melbourne Zoo in 2009.

*Bobcat (Lynx rufus)
Formerly common and widely-bred in Australian zoos. A study on Chronic Kidney Disease in Australian zoo felids, using ZIMS data (Chronic Kidney Disease in Non-Domestic Felids in Australian Zoos), shows at least 51 Bobcats having been kept in Australia between the 1960s and 2000s, although as with many of the species in the paper a majority of the individuals were cubs which did not survive, and the data is solely from those zoos which have records on ZIMS. The last one died at Melbourne Zoo in 2008. Also used to be at Taronga Zoo until at least the 1990s and at the Notre Dame Zoo (Mulgoa) which was closed down in 1991.

*Ocelot (Leopardus pardalis)
Formerly common in Australian zoos (Adelaide in particular was breeding them regularly for many decades). A study on Chronic Kidney Disease in Australian zoo felids, using ZIMS data (Chronic Kidney Disease in Non-Domestic Felids in Australian Zoos), shows 40 Ocelots having been kept in Australia between the 1960s and 2000s, although as with many of the species in the paper a majority of the individuals were cubs which did not survive, and the data is solely from those zoos which have records on ZIMS. Probably all or most Ocelots in the country were directly related. The last two in Australia were a pair of sisters at Crocodylus, one dying in 2013 and the other in c.2017/2018.

*Eurasian Brown Bear (Ursus arctos arctos)
Three animals (ex-circus) were kept at the National Zoo since 2000. The male died in late 2015, one of the two females in 2015 or 2016, and the final female in September 2018. This subspecies would have been kept previously in other zoos also, but I don't know any recent dates.

*Syrian Brown Bear (Ursus arctos syriacus)
The last individual was a female at Melbourne Zoo, born in Bern (Switzerland) in 1987, who died on 9 November 2016. She was the last of many Syrian Brown Bears formerly kept in the country (including at Perth Zoo, Adelaide Zoo, Mogo Zoo, and Cairns Wildlife Safari).

*Kodiak Bear (Ursus arctos middendorffi)
Three siblings were imported to Adelaide Zoo from the Colorado Springs Zoo (USA) in 1978, and then moved on to Taronga Zoo in 1985. Male Barney died in c.July 2005 aged 28, female Cynthia died March 2008 aged 31, and female Bethyl died Oct 2012 aged 35.
As a side-note, Perth Zoo also had a Kodiak X Grizzly subspecific-hybrid which died in January 1987.

*Dhole (Cuon alpinus)
One captive-bred pair was imported to Taronga Zoo in Feb 2006 from Cambodia. One female pup was born in August 2006 and one male pup in July 2007. The father and daughter went to Singapore Night Safari in 2009, and he has since bred with an unrelated female there (in 2011). Both animals remaining at Taronga Zoo (the mother and son) died around Feb 2015.
The previous population of Dholes at Taronga Zoo, which had died out just a few years before the above animals were imported, were the result of one pair which was imported from China in 1983 and one further animal imported from Canada in 1984.

*European badger (Meles meles)
Bred at Melbourne Zoo for many decades. Formerly also kept at Taronga Zoo. The last one in the country was a female which died at Melbourne Zoo in 2009.

*Dwarf Mongoose (Helogale parvula)
The breeding population at Adelaide Zoo declined rapidly from around 15 animals at the start of the 2000s until the final one died in August 2013. The species had been kept at Adelaide Zoo since at least the start of the 1980s.

*White-nosed Coati (Nasua narica)
Formerly kept in a number of zoos. The last one was a male which died at Melbourne Zoo in c.2009/2010. The animals currently in the country are Brown-nosed Coati (Nasua nasua).


PINNIPEDS

*Pacific Harbour Seal (Phoca vitulina richardii)
Difficult to find any information but there appear to have been eight to ten Harbour Seals imported between 1971 and 1990, presumably all from the USA. Melbourne Zoo had Harbour Seals in or before the 1980s, and Taronga Zoo also had them until well into the 1990s (photos from 1996 are in the Taronga Zoo gallery). Sea World Gold Coast had several animals which seem to have been obtained partly from the aforementioned zoos and partly from their own imports - but, again, there is little information available. The last individual in Australia was a male at Sea World which died in 2022.


TREE SHREWS

*Greater Tree Shrew (Tupaia glis)
The last in the country were individuals at Melbourne Zoo, Adelaide Zoo, and Gorge Wildlife Park, which all died in 2016. All the final animals had originally been bred at Adelaide Zoo. The species had apparently been in the country since at least the 1980s, perhaps originally at Melbourne Zoo, although the only CITES records for imports are two animals from the Netherlands in 1990 and four from Germany in 1992.


RODENTS

*American Beaver (Castor canadensis)
The last ones in Australia were at Adelaide Zoo, which imported them in the 1980s. I'm not sure if they ever bred. There were two pairs at the start of the 2000s, from which they dwindled until the last one (a male) died in July 2010. They had also been kept at Melbourne Zoo a couple of decades prior to Adelaide Zoo's import.

*Indian Crested Porcupine (Hystrix indica)
The last ones in the country were a pair at Melbourne Zoo and a female at Taronga Zoo (which had come from Melbourne Zoo in 2005). Also formerly kept at Perth Zoo into at least the 1980s, and at Adelaide until at least the start of the 2000s (it is listed on species available for sponsorship in 2001). Of the final three animals in Australia, the Melbourne male and the Taronga female both died in 2008, and the Melbourne female in 2009.


XENARTHRA

*Hoffman's Two-toed Sloth (Choloepus hoffmanni)
Adelaide Zoo imported a pair (wild-caught in Panama) from Lincoln Park Zoo (USA) in Nov 1972. A female baby was born in Feb 1974, and another female baby in March 1975. The male died in Sept 1974 (before the birth of the second baby), and the original female died in Jan 1976. A new male was imported from Lincoln Park Zoo in the early 1990s. The younger female died some time after, leaving one pair at the zoo for the next twenty-odd years until the male died in Jan 2015. The last female (the first-born young) died in June 2017.


MARSUPIALS

*Matschie's Tree Kangaroo (Dendrolagus matschiei)
This species had been maintained and bred in quite large numbers at several Australian zoos since before the 1960s. Most of them probably originated with imports from Papua New Guinea by Edward Hallstrom of Taronga Zoo. Even into the mid-to-late 1990s there were still a lot in several zoos (c.20 animals). Adelaide Zoo had kept them since at least 1959 and bred close to twenty young since the 1970s. The last three animals in the country were all at Adelaide; the male died in 2008, one of the females (aged 24 years) in 2015, and the last female (aged 21 years) in April 2017.

*Grey Dorcopsis Wallaby (Dorcopsis luctuosa)
Imported from Papua New Guinea by the Australian Reptile Park in the late 1960s. Animals were distributed to Currumbin Sanctuary, Healesville Sanctuary, Adelaide Zoo, Melbourne Zoo, Taronga Zoo, and Perth Zoo. The population survived in most of these zoos until at least the late 1990s. I think they may have still been at Currumbin, at least, until the early 2000s.


...............................................


POST-1980 / PRE-2000

This is a list of exotic mammals known to have been in Australian zoos during this period. Information is scant and the list should not be considered comprehensive, with regards to either the species or the zoos which held them!

A lot of the discussion for these is in the thread here - Australian zoo mammal histories - but I also have made mention of import/export records which I've found through CITES data.



AARDVARK

*Aardvark (Orycteropus afer)
One pair was imported to Melbourne Zoo from Canada in 1976. The female died in 1981 and the male perhaps in the late 1980s.


HYRAX

*Cape Rock Hyrax (Procavia capensis)
Perth Zoo imported two pairs from South Africa via the UK in 1989. Two young were produced, but three of the adults died for various reasons and the remaining three animals were euthanased in 1991 due to disease concerns.


UNGULATES

*Pere David's Deer (Elaphurus davidianus)
Two pairs were sent to Taronga Zoo by the Duke of Bedford in 1949 and they bred well - by 1956 there were fourteen at the zoo. The deer were sent out to Western Plains Zoo after it opened in 1977. They seem to have all died out during the 1980s.

*Indian Muntjac (Muntiacus muntjak)
At Melbourne Zoo (breeding) in the early 1980s.

*Addra Gazelle (Nanger dama)
Five were imported to Orana Park (NZ) in 1991 and two of these were sent on to the Pearl Coast Zoo in 1991 (which closed that same year and the hooved-stock went to Tipperary Wildlife Sanctuary which in turn closed in 2004, by which time the Addra were most likely already dead).

*Lowland Anoa (Bubalus depressicornis)
At Taronga Zoo in the 1980s.


PRIMATES

*Mongoose Lemur (Eulemur mongoz)
Two were imported to Adelaide Zoo from Germany in 1983 (there is also a CITES listing for two animals imported from the Netherlands in 1978). At the start of the 1990s there was still just one pair at Adelaide, which were due to be exported to Kuala Lumpur.

*Black Lemur (Eulemur macaco)
CITES has an import record of eight animals from Germany in 1983.

*Northern Red-fronted Lemur (Eulemur rufus)
Four were imported to Taronga Zoo from Canada in 1979. I don't know if they ever bred, but the last ones at the zoo (1.2) were exported to Sri Lanka in 1992. In the 1980s this species was treated as a subspecies of Brown Lemur (Eulemur fulvus).

*Mouse Lemur (Microcebus sp.)
CITES has an import record of two animals in 1979 from the Netherlands (as Microcebus murinus, because only one species was recognised at the time).

*Senegal Bushbaby (Galago senegalensis)
At Adelaide Zoo until the start of the 1990s (one female still alive in 1991). CITES lists two animals imported into Australia from the USA in 1985.

*Thick-tailed Bushbaby (Otolemur crassicaudatus)
At Perth Zoo and Mugga Lane Zoo in the 1980s. Perth still had 3.3 animals in 1991 according to that year's Primate TAG.

*Slender Loris (Loris sp.)
Four were imported to Adelaide Zoo in 1983 from Sri Lanka, and at the start of the 1990s they still had 2.1 animals. In the 1980s only one species of Slender Loris was recognised, Loris tardigradus (since split into two species).

*Andean Saddleback Tamarin (Saguinus fuscicollis)
CITES records have one imported to Australia from the USA in 1980. I found a record of a undated specimen in the Australian Museum which was obtained from Taronga Zoo.

*Red-bellied Tamarin (Saguinus labiatus)
CITES records have four imported to Australia from the USA in 1980. Likely to have been Taronga Zoo, as this species is listed in the exotic animals for NSW legislation but not for other Australian states.

*Moustached Tamarin (Saguinus mystax)
CITES records have four imported to Australia from the USA in 1980. Likely to have been Taronga Zoo, as this species is listed in the exotic animals for NSW legislation but not for other Australian states.

*Hanuman Langur (Semnopithecus sp.)
At Melbourne Zoo, Adelaide Zoo, Western Plains Zoo, and Natureland Zoo (Queensland), all in the early to mid 1980s. All appear to have been exported rather than simply dying out - CITES lists six animals exported to Israel in 1989 and seven to Germany in 1991 (these latter animals would have been the 2.5 kept at Adelaide Zoo, which were the last ones in the country as per the 1991 Primate TAG). At this time only one species of Grey Langur was recognised, the Hanuman Langur S. entellus (now split into about seven species).

*Silvered Langur (Trachypithecus cristatus)
Kept at Melbourne Zoo, with 3.2 present there at the start of the 1990s. The CITES Database lists an import of four animals from Indonesia in 1979 (under the name T. villosus, which at that time was treated as a synonym for T. cristatus).

*Patas Monkey (Erythrocebus patas)
Four were imported to Taronga Zoo from the USA in 1981. The CITES Database also lists imports of two animals from Germany in 1979; an additional record of four animals imported from Ghana in 1985 is likely to be an inputting error in the database. In or just before 1990 all Taronga's Patas Monkeys were sent to Western Plains Zoo, and then in 2000 the last four animals were exported to the Noumea Zoo (New Caledonia).

*Talapoin (Miopithecus sp.)
At Perth Zoo, with two males imported from Wellington Zoo (NZ) in 1985. No females were obtained and the males died at Perth in the early/mid-1990s. However there is also a CITES record for two further animals imported from Switzerland in 1985, but I don't know where these went if it is accurate. In the 1980s only one species of Talapoin was recognised, Miopithecus talapoin (now split into two species).

*Greater Spot-nosed Guenon Cercopithecus nictitans)
The CITES Database lists an import of three animals from Japan in 1979.

*Lesser Spot-nosed Guenon (Cercopithecus petaurista)
Melbourne Zoo imported two females from the USA in 1982. I'm not sure if there were any others in the country before that, and no more were imported after. It is possible that this import and the earlier one in 1979 listed as being C. nictitans were actually both of the same species (i.e. an identification or data error).

*Blue or Diademed Monkey (Cercopithecus mitis)
Kept at Adelaide Zoo until 1991 when the last three (1.2) animals were exported to Indonesia. Adelaide had originally imported a pair from Belgium in 1963 which first bred in 1964, and which by 1972 had produced five offspring.

*Black Mangabey (Lophocebus aterrimus)
There was a pair at Adelaide Zoo, which died in 1982.

*Gelada (Theropithecus gelada)
At Melbourne Zoo in the 1980s. The CITES Database lists imports of three animals from the Netherlands in 1981, and one animal from the UK in 1982. Two births were recorded by the zoo in 1983. CITES records further show three animals were exported to Switzerland in 1986 and two to the USA in 1989, these probably being the last of the species in Australia. The 1989 export was to the Bronx Zoo, which opened their Baboon Reserve exhibit for Geladas in 1990.

*Guinea Baboon (Papio papio)
At Adelaide Zoo into at least the early 1990s, originating with a pair imported from Belgium in 1963 which first bred in 1965. At the start of the 1990s they had 3.5 animals.

*Chacma Baboon (Papio ursinus)
At Melbourne Zoo and Bullens Animal World (at Wallacia) into the 1980s. Probably other zoos as well.

*Olive Baboon (Papio anubis)
At Melbourne Zoo and Bullens Animal World (at Wallacia) into the 1980s. Probably other zoos as well.

*Hoolock Gibbon (Hoolock sp.)
Perth Zoo had a pair, which were sent to the International Gibbon Centre (USA) in the early 1990s. There is a CITES record of an export to USA of one animal in 1993 - this may have been an error for two animals, or one of the pair may have died before export. In the 1980s only one species of Hoolock Gibbon was recognised, H. hoolock (now split into three species).

*Agile Gibbon (Hylobates agilis)
Perth Zoo kept these in the 1980s but I have no other information.

*Pileated Gibbon (Hylobates pileatus)
Perth Zoo (at least) kept these in the 1980s. There are CITES records for a few exports of individuals during this time.

*Kloss' Gibbon (Hylobates klossii)
Perth Zoo had a lone female until 1984. A paper on its death (Colitis in a Gibbon Associated with Shigella Flexneri Type 3 on JSTOR) says that the animal "had been imported from Singapore 10 years previously" (i.e. c.1974), however the CITES Database has an animal being imported to Australia from Switzerland in 1979 - presumably these were two different animals (the CITES Database records only go back to 1975).


CARNIVORES

*Jungle Cat (Felis chaus)
At Melbourne Zoo, still into the 1980s?

*Leopard Cat (Prionailurus bengalensis)
Still at Melbourne Zoo, at least, into the 1990s. Formerly bred in huge numbers in Australian zoos - a study on Chronic Kidney Disease in Australian zoo felids, using ZIMS data (Chronic Kidney Disease in Non-Domestic Felids in Australian Zoos), shows a whopping 98 Leopard Cats having been kept in Australia between the 1960s and 2000s, with 34 births in the decade between 1975-1984 and 45 births between 1985 and 1994. However note that, as with many of the species in the paper, a majority of those 98 individuals were babies which either did not survive or were euthanised; and also that the data is solely from those zoos which have records on ZIMS.

*Jaguarundi (Puma yagouaroundi)
At Taronga Zoo and Melbourne Zoo into the mid-1980s at least. A study on Chronic Kidney Disease in Australian zoo felids, using ZIMS data (Chronic Kidney Disease in Non-Domestic Felids in Australian Zoos), shows only three Jaguarundis having been kept in Australia between the 1960s and 2000s. The only CITES records of imports are of two animals from the Netherlands in 1978 and one from the same country in 1980.

*Pallas' Cat (Otocolobus manul)
At Adelaide Zoo in the 1980s. Five animals were imported into Australia from the USA (four in 1980 and one more in 1986). The 1986 one was imported from Chicago's Brookfield Zoo in exchange for an Adelaide-bred Polar Bear. From CITES records three Pallas' Cats were exported together to the USA in 1989.

*Hokkaido (Ussuri) Brown Bear (Ursus arctos lasiotus)
A pair was kept at Perth Zoo from at least the 1960s. The only online reference I found other than Zoochat was a newspaper article from December 1963 when they were already at the zoo (they had mauled a boy through the bars of their cage). In a post on another Zoochat thread there is a response quoted from the zoo which says that the female died in 1985 and the male in 1995 (Bear Pit 1935 [Perth Zoo]).

*American Black Bear (Ursus americanus)
At Taronga Zoo into at least the mid-1980s. There is a CITES record of two being exported from Australia to Malaysia in 1992.

*New Guinea Singing Dog (Canis familiaris hallstromi)
At Taronga Zoo into the late-1980s. The first animals brought out of New Guinea were a pair to Taronga Zoo in 1957. Almost all the individuals in the USA are descendents of this pair. Taronga still kept the dogs up until at least 1987 when several animals were exported to Canada.

*Arctic Wolf (Canis lupus hudsonicus)
At Adelaide Zoo.The final members of the pack were exported to Wellington Zoo (NZ) in 1987 and 1992.

*Coyote (Canis latrans)
Melbourne Zoo, at least, still kept these in the early 1980s.

*Black-backed Jackal (Canis mesomelas)
At Melbourne Zoo, Taronga Zoo, and Adelaide Zoo in the early 1980s. Taronga Zoo imported jackals directly from Africa in the 1940s which may have been the origin of at least some of these later animals. In the 1980s Taronga Zoo was keeping them in an ill-conceived mixed-exhibit with Chimpanzees.

*Raccoon Dog (Nyctereutes procyonoides)
At Taronga Zoo in the mid-1980s.

*Striped Hyaena (Hyaena hyaena)
Perth Zoo kept at least two animals, imported from Zurich Zoo (Switzerland) in 1979 and exported to Singapore Zoo in 1991.

*Smooth-coated Otter (Lutrogale perspicillata)
At Melbourne Zoo at least, in the 1980s. There are CITES import records to Australia for one animal from the Netherlands in 1984, two from Indonesia in 1985, and one from Malaysia in 1986.

*Chinese Red Panda (Ailurus fulgens styani)
At Melbourne Zoo, Taronga Zoo, and perhaps some others. Six animals were imported to Australia in the 1980s but none bred successfully. At the end of the 1980s the zoos switched to the currently-held subspecies A. f. fulgens.

*Pardine Genet (Genetta pardina)
One individual kept at the Mugga Lane Zoo in the 1980s into early 1990s. See this thread: Mugga Lane Zoo

*Striped Skunk (Mephitis mephitis)
At the Mugga Lane Zoo in the 1980s.

*Tayra (Eira barbara)
At Adelaide Zoo in the mid-1980s.


RODENTS

*Black-tailed Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicianus)
At Melbourne Zoo until late 1980s. Probably the stock originated at Taronga Zoo which was breeding them from at least the 1930s.

*Prevost's Squirrel (Callosciurus prevostii)
At Taronga Zoo in the early-1980s.

*Springhaas (Pedetes capensis)
At Adelaide Zoo in the mid-1980s.


XENARTHRA

*Giant Anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla)
At Taronga Zoo and Melbourne Zoo until at least the late 1970s. Adelaide Zoo had several through the 1980s: in 1987 they had 1.2 (one being a female from Melbourne Zoo), in 1988 they had 0.2, in 1989 a new male was imported from San Diego (USA) to make 1.2 again, in 1989 it seems both females died, and the male died in Sept 1990.

*Big Hairy Armadillo (Chaetophractus villosus)
At Melbourne Zoo until at least late 1970s, possibly early 1980s. Perth Zoo still had one up until the mid-1990s.


MARSUPIALS

*Ground Cuscus (Phalanger gymnotis)
Imported from Papua New Guinea to the Australian Reptile Park in 1969 and initially bred there. There subsequently appears to have been a reasonably large number in several zoos. Individuals or groups were present at Healesville Sanctuary until at least 1985, at Adelaide Zoo until at least 1990, at the Australian Reptile Park until at least 1995, and at Taronga Zoo until at least 1997.

*Spotted Cuscus (Spilocuscus maculatus)
Imported multiple times from Papua New Guinea from the 1950s through to the mid-1980s, to (at least) Healesville Sanctuary, Australian Reptile Park, and Taronga Zoo. They were still present at Taronga Zoo until the late-1980s and at Perth Zoo until the mid or late-1990s.

 

thanks for that. I did read on the Mogo thread about their new squirrel monkeys from Wellington earlier this month, but somehow completely forgot to add it. And having both Nowra and Shoalhaven on there is exactly the kind of mess-up I need people to point out - I think that must have come from adding Shoalhaven when I found out about the name change, but then obviously not deleting the old name. I'll fix both of those things.

On the NZ forum I have a list of former zoo mammals (back to 1980) and I was thinking about doing the same for Australia but it would be a tonne of work and I'm not as familiar with past Australian collections as I am for NZ. So I'll try and do some of the recent disappearances (say, the last five or ten years) just to keep track of them. The recent ones will be better documented as well, which will mean I can actually find information.

 

For the Sea World polar bears, two were exported to other zoos (to Beijing and Alaska) and one died from kidney failure.

For meerkats, there were zoos keeping them prior to that (Adelaide way back at the start of the 1900s) but the 1980s were when they started becoming common.

And yes, Mansfield does appear to have sambar so I will add that in there.

For Jessie and Billy Goat Swamp, you are correct - originally the zoo was on the other side of the harbour at Billy Goat Swamp (now called Moore Park) and that is where Jessie started out. Taronga Zoo on its new site officially opened in 1916. I'll make a little note to this effect, although I think they can really be considered the same place.

 

sorry, I don't know anything about circus elephants.

 

yes you are correct. I'm not sure why I put Mogo.

 

thanks for that.

Perth's initial White Rhinos were intended to be covered by "A number of additional NZ animals have been imported since 1990" but I can make an additional note in there because the Perth ones were really just passing through NZ - male Memphis came from Memphis Zoo and female Mwiri from the San Diego Wild Animal Park; they were imported to Orana in January 1990 and then on to Perth in May.

I hadn't known when the first ones were imported, so thanks for that. I just knew there were several imports in the early 2000s.

I had found a reference for 1998. Now I need to try and re-find it!

I did wonder about that. The NZ ones were White-nosed Coatis (I found some photos to confirm that) and I thought they had probably come initially from Australia. However the ARAZPA censuses of the mid- to late-2000s had the remaining Australian ones at Melbourne listed as "Common Coati Nasua nasua".

 

okay. I couldn't find the reference I had found earlier saying 1998, so I'll take it that it was a mistake (perhaps confusing the year the owners started the zoo with the arrival of the bears?)

I shall remove the section of the coati post referring to the earlier animals.

 

I was going to say "maybe they still do" (the deer and camelid listings on this thread will not be complete), but having a look at the park's current map and website it looks like they only have native wildlife now (including dingo).

So, in answer, I have no idea

 

in the first major news since this version of the thread was created: the female Long-beaked Echidna at Taronga has died, leaving only one animal outside New Guinea (the male which is still at Taronga): https://taronga.org.au/news/2015-07-30/vale-sheila-long-beaked-echidna

 

emperor tamarins now at Darling Downs Zoo (currently in quarantine) - mentioned in this thread: http://www.zoochat.com/24/future-planning-survey-410826/index3.html