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Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust Jersey Zoo

Discussion in 'United Kingdom' started by Writhedhornbill, 17 Apr 2007.

  1. Writhedhornbill

    Writhedhornbill Well-Known Member

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    Jersey zoo is Located on the channel Islands and looks aftre many unusual animals from Echo Parakeets ( the only ones in Captivity outside of Maurtitus) to Livingstone fruit bats. The latter is only held in 3 zoos and Jersy has the Largest. The other 2 zoos that hold the species ar Bristol and Chester.
     
  2. Nigel

    Nigel Well-Known Member

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    Jersy Zoo

    Is that the one that was established by Gerald Durrell ?
    Does it still have a good reputation ?
     
  3. Writhedhornbill

    Writhedhornbill Well-Known Member

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    Yes it is. It has one of the best reputations in the world for breeding rare and endangered species.
     
  4. jay

    jay Well-Known Member 20+ year member

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    As well as captive breeding programs, they also have education programs and sponser people from various countries to come over and learn how to care for their own endangered species. Getting local people interested in saving their unique fauna is very important.
     
  5. jwer

    jwer Well-Known Member 15+ year member

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    Still a big reputation and a very exclusive collection with if i'm correct a lot of Aye-Aye's, black lion tamarin's, pied bare-faced tamarin's, silvery marmoset and a lot more rare stuff...
     
  6. Writhedhornbill

    Writhedhornbill Well-Known Member

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    yes, they have saved the mallorcan midwife toad from extinction.
     
  7. Pertinax

    Pertinax Well-Known Member 15+ year member

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    Jersey is quite unlike any other zoo I've ever been too... Completely different atmosphere. Its situated in a sheltered valley and is quite small really, but everything is extremely well done- immaculately landscaped grounds and enclosures with a real flair for what the animals need to make them comfortable and content. There a very few large animals, incidentally, except for Spectacled Bears, Gorillas and Orangutans. Mostly its small mammals, birds and reptiles, but mostly these are incredibly rarer species that Jersey is helping to conserve with its successful captive breeding and reintroduction schemes. It really is a totally 'different' kind of zoo...
     
  8. Writhedhornbill

    Writhedhornbill Well-Known Member

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    Yes. It has started a captive breeding programme for the montserrat oriole
     
  9. orang09

    orang09 Well-Known Member

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    okay and do they have orangutans there ?
     
  10. Writhedhornbill

    Writhedhornbill Well-Known Member

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    Yes, they had 4.4 last time I went.
     
  11. orang09

    orang09 Well-Known Member

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    do you know what they are called ?
     
  12. bongorob

    bongorob Well-Known Member 15+ year member

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    The currently have 4.2 Sumatran at Jersey.
     
  13. orang09

    orang09 Well-Known Member

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    what is the orangs taxomic name !
     
  14. orang09

    orang09 Well-Known Member

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    do you know names like john lol etc
     
  15. bongorob

    bongorob Well-Known Member 15+ year member

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    Re: Orang Utan taxonomy

    The Orang Utan was first described by Linnaeus in 1760 and given the name Simia pygmaeus, meaning pygmy-like monkey. In 1766 he again named the Orang Utan, thinking it was a new species, this time calling it Simia satyrus (satyr-like monkey).

    Lesson decided that apes and monkeys were not closely related and in 1799 proposed Pongo as the genus for the Orang Utan which he called Pongo satyrus. As Simia pygmaeus pre-dated Simia satyrus, the name became the modern one of Pongo pygmaeus. Pongo satyrus was invalidated and can never be used for any other animal whatsoever.

    Until 1827 there was only one know form of Orang Utan, Pongo pygmaeus (Linnaeus 1760). Linnaeus' name is added in the formal description because he was the author of the Latin name. The brackets are because the genus Pongo, is not the same genus as he originally used for his description.

    The Sumatran form of Orang Utan was named Pongo pygmaeus abelii in 1827 by Lesson.

    Just to complicate matters, it is now thought that Bornean and Sumatran Orang Utans are two seperate species, thus we have

    Bornean Pongo pygmaeus (Linnaeus 1760)
    Sumatran Pongo abelii Lesson 1827.

    The Bornean has been split into three seperate populations,

    West Bornean Pongo pygmaeus pygmaeus (Linnaeus 1760)
    East Bornean Pongo pygmaeus morio (Owen 1837)
    South Bornean Pongo pygmaeus wurmbii (Tiedeman 1808).

    Not everyone agrees with this, and doubt has been expressed over the validity of the South Bornean Orang Utan. I hate to think what this splitting has done to the captive breeding programme.

    I don't know the names of the Orangs at Jersey.
     
  16. Bele

    Bele Well-Known Member 15+ year member

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    New Sumatran orang utan

    The Jersey web-site reports the expected arrival yesterday of 20 year old female Dana from Hanover Zoo for breeding with Dagu .
     
  17. Pertinax

    Pertinax Well-Known Member 15+ year member

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    Presumably she is to replace Julitta (born at Bristol) who was sent with her small daughter 'Putri' to Amneville in France last(?) year. I believe the reason they gave for her move from Jersey was that she'd become increasingly antisocial in their group so it was a good idea for her to start a fresh one somewhere else with a new male.

    Both this new female 'dana' and 'Dagu' were born in Dresden Zoo, but are from unrelated parents.
     
  18. bongorob

    bongorob Well-Known Member 15+ year member

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    Jersey Summer 2008

    Mauritius
    Durrell Wildlife Trust, the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation and the Mauritian National Parks service have been re-introducing reptiles on to several islands which over the last 30 years have been cleared of rats and other introduced species, and alien vegetation.

    The southern subspecies of Bojer's Skink (Gongylomorphus bojerii fontenayi), now found only on the small (1 hectare) island of Ilot Vacoas, has been released onto the neighbouring Ilot Fouquets. The total popoulation was only 350 lizards and 40 were releases onto Ilot Fouquets. Both populations are doing well and furthur transfers to other islands are planned.

    Telfair's Skink (Leilopisma telfairi), once found only on Round Island, now lives on Ile aux Aigrettes anf Gunners Quoin also. 510 skinks were transferred from Round Island. One benefit of this project is the skinks have a liking for the flesh of introduced snails.

    Gunners Quoin is also the home of 70 Orange-tailed Skinks (Gongylomorphus sp.), removed from Flat Island. This project was only recently undertaken, however one baby skink has been recorded.

    Ilot Chat is a very small rock in the Indian Ocean, measuring 15x25 metres. 30 specimens each of Durrell's Night Gecko (Nactus durrelli) and Lesser Night Gecko (Nasctus coindemirensis) were released and established themselves. Sadly a rat made its way to the rock and ate all the geckos before it could be trapped.

    West Indies
    Durrell Wildlife Trust and the Hispaniolan Ornithological Society have been conducting a population survey of the Hispaniolan Solenodon (Solenodon paradoxus) and Hispaniolan Hutia (Plagiodonta aedium).

    During a twelve day period only one solenodon was trapped, but signs of a large population were evident in the form of scats and burrows.

    Hutia proved to be even more elusive with none trapped but several observed by the researchers.

    Durrell and the Zoological Society of London are jointly sponsoring field work for these two species.

    The Grand Cayman Blue Iguana (Cyclura lewisi) programme suffered a setback when vandals broke into the breeding centre and killed seven iguanas in May 2008. In August 2008 two more specimens were killed by feral dogs.

    Comoros Islands
    A new roost of the Livingstone's Fruit Bat (Pteropus livingstonei) was discovered on Mohéli. As is normally the case it was shared with the much smaller Seychelles Fruit Bat (Pteropus seychellensis).


    United Kingdom
    Durrell plan to carry out in-situ conservation of South American frogs. Data is already being collected for a 2009 start.

    The Agile Frog (Rana dalmatina) has its most northerly distribution point in Jersey and the trust released 2700 captive bred tadpoles into the wild in 2008. The Amphibian ark has a capacity of 10000 tadpoles and it is hoped to release even more specimens in 2009, when a trial will be undertaken to rear the young to the frog stage also.

    Sumatran Orang Utan (Pongo abelii) Dana arrived during the summer from Hanover Zoo. She has settled in extremely well and is already great friends with the young female Mawar and baby Gempa. The old female Gina is more aloof, but Dana has been accepted by Dagu the male.

    Durrell now owns a DNA sequencer which will be used for genetic research into populations of endangered species.

    Not forgetting the plant kingdom Durrell have also been active in flora conservation. In 2006 only one specimen of the Jersey Pink (Dianthus gallicus), endemic to Jersey survived. Durrell obtained permission to take 19 cuttings from the plant which were propogated at the zoo. Early in 2008 18 new plats were put back into the wild. Specimens are also on view in the Trust's grounds. Durrell are now trying to grow them from seed.

    A project to grow more endangered Jersey plats is taking place, these are Jersey Fern (Anogramma leptophylla), Jersety Forget-Me-Not (Myosotis sicula) and Pale Flax (Linum bienne).

    2009 will be the 50th anniversary of Jersey Zoo.

    India
    16 Pygmy Hogs (Porcula savalina) have been released into the wild at the Sonai rupai Wildlife Sactuary at Potasali, Assam. One female has already had a litter.

    Mauritius
    The Peregrine Fund, Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, Madagascan Government and Durrell are participating in the Madagascan Pochard (Aythya innotata) programme.

    The Peregrine Fund will undertake a study of the wild birds, while Durrell are going to set up a local breeding centre, and also to bring some specimens of the world's rarest duck back to Jersey once they are breeding at the in-situ centre.

    Colombia
    The mortality rate of captive White-footed Tamarins (Saguinus leucopus) has reduced from 90% to 20% as a direct result of a campaign to educate people in tamarin husbandry. 20 young were successfully reared in Colombian zoos in 2007.
     
  19. JamesB

    JamesB Well-Known Member 15+ year member

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    what is jersey doing for its 50th anniversary?
     
  20. bongorob

    bongorob Well-Known Member 15+ year member

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    I don't know yet.