Also not sure if they still exist, but I believe Melbourne University had/has a colony of laboratory opossums. (Monodelphis domestica).
Also I don’t think melbourne has had golden lion tamarins and emperor tamarins for years now unless they are kept off show.
Thanks for that excellent update. I have made all these changes to the lists. I left Chital on the "current" list (rather than "former") simply because they are still in the country rather than lost completely, and possibly could be kept at some small collection(s) somewhere. Like the African Buffalo and Bonnet Macaques, there are quite a few "remnant" species around which will be disappearing soon, but these leftover animals are often kept at zoos which don't have a large media presence.
Glad I could be of some assistance @Chlidonias , maintaining a list of this size often requires a collaborative effort in my opinion. A few more updates regarding capuchin monkeys. Wildlife HQ no longer hold Black-capped Capuchins. Their eldest male (Simon) died recently and the other two males (Hoodlum and Pele) were integrated into a larger group at another zoo. Their enclosure now houses Cotton-top Tamarins as the zoo wants to focus more on this species. Following @Jambo 's post on the Melbourne Zoo news thread that their capuchin monkeys were no longer on display and potentially not at the zoo anymore, I contacted Zoos Victoria. The zoo informed me that their last capuchins (two males, Damien and Cale) moved to the new Sydney Zoo.
Damien originally came from Hamilton Zoo. Melbourne Zoo’s troop was founded in 2008 with three males from Hamilton Zoo (including Damien) and four females from Brooklands Zoo. Aside from benefiting Melbourne Zoo, who got to establish a troop; reducing the numbers at Hamilton and Brooklands Zoo allowed them to recommence breeding, something they hadn’t been able to easily do due to each facility having a large population of closely related capuchins. Capuchin monkey 'baby boom' at Hamilton Zoo | Scoop News I believe most/all of the founders of Hamilton Zoo’s troop came from Auckland Zoo; including Crystal, who was born at Auckland Zoo in 1966, and was later transferred to Brooklands Zoo in the above mentioned exchange in 2008.
As I briefly mentioned on their news thread, Tasmania Zoo recently received three Golden Lion Tamarins. The trio arrived yesterday. Santa brings three new monkeys to Tasmania Zoo
Billabong Zoo has received Cotton-top Tamarins (2.0)from Perth Zoo. Apparently a female will join them at a later date. New arrivals monkeying about at Billabong Zoo
Kangaroo Island Wildlife Park (formerly Parndana Wildlife Park) received Common Marmoset in October 2019. Security Check
Darling Downs Zoo has just announced the arrival of a breeding pair of Maned Wolves from Altina Wildlife Park. Darling Downs Zoo I also recently contacted all three zoos about their snow leopards and only got a response from Melbourne. They currently hold 1.2 snow leopards - their current breeding pair imported in 2017 (Kang-Ju and Miska) and a female kept off-display, who was born at the zoo (Sundah). Their former breeding female and male have both since passed away. Their male (Leon) died in 2017 and their female (Meo) in 2018.
Billabong currently hold 2.1 snow leopards, a pair and then a single male which they rotate between the main enclosure and an off display area
I just got an email from Billabong Zoo regarding their snow leopards. As @Riley mentioned they house 2.1 snow leopards - the unrelated pair (Khumbu and Samarra), and a male from the sibling pair (Sabu). The other female (Kamala) passed away. There was no mention of when she died.
I checked in with a keeper at Melbourne Zoo today and they said that they haven’t kept Golden Lion Tamarins and Emperor Tamarins for many many years. Also there was a something exciting coming soon in the empty Black Capped Capuchin enclosure and the empty Black and White Ruffed lemur enclosure so I’m not sure what’s happening. There were also these signs in a few other enclosure including the carnivore sections phillipine crocodile enclosure. Is it normal for Veiled Chameleons to be of exhibit for 4 months?
Melbourne Zoo’s primate collection continues to shrink. I contacted Zoos Victoria and they no longer have Black and White Ruffed Lemur. They recently lost their last lemur.
A brief regulatory update: Silvery Marmoset were successfully added to the live import list in December 2019 (see here). Zambi Wildlife Retreat has brought forward a proposal to add Puma to the live import list (see here).
Although this brings hope it also dosent. There are many species of mammals on the live import list not in captivity such as 2 night monkey species, smooth coated otters and a lot of others.
