The Alpine Ibexes have moved to other zoos. Over the past 10 years 19 of them were released to the Austrian Alps. Since the species is not any more endangered their era in the zoo has ended. Korkeasaari hosted the Alpine Ibexes since 1930's. The Bharals are moving to their enclosure.
The latest map reflects this change: http://s3.frantic.com/korkeasaari-fi/2015/12/151123_talvi_fin_swe_korkeasaari_web.pdf Are lynx still in the zoo? They are missing from the map.
21 years old male lynx was put to sleep last summer. Lynx is going to be back on the map. Zoo is waiting for a new pair.
Alpine Ibex group had 19 members - during the past two years 15 of them were sent to other zoos - sorry, no further information on where they were sent. The oldest 4 of the group were put down.
During the Spring Korkeasaari will receive a pair of Lynxes; one coming from Poland and the other coming from Latvia. From the latest litter of Asian lions will one female sibling travel to Köln in March. One female Snow leopard travelled already in October to Salzburg. The other female from same litter will soon travel over to Toledo. The boys from that litter are moving to Mulhouse and Auvergne.
The Lynx is back on the map. A year old female arrived early May from Riga. Korkeasaari A male will arrive in June.
Amur tiger cubs 0.0.3 born to Sibiri x Tamur. Media: in the Finnish zoo for the first time in 18 years, born Amur tiger cubs | Daily News https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ad7DL0Yv5TM
Fennec foxes have arrived. Two females from Prague joined a male which was illegally imported to Finland and had been kept as a pet. Quite an impressive enclosure can be seen in the video here: Korkeasaari https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZpM0VoYZOD4
Extraordinary enclosure, it can easily house even bigger animals like giant anteaters. Amazing done job (enclosure).
That looks like a stunning enclosure. Certainly the largest I've ever seen for this species (both indoors and outdoors), and the spacious indoor area is especially important given they will need to be kept indoors for much of the year. I was expecting to see the exhibit as part of the African desert exhibit, but this seems to be quite separate, near the entry bridge (I think #31 on the map: http://s3.frantic.com/korkeasaari-fi/2016/07/160620_kesa16_fi_swe.pdf). Does anyone know what this used to hold, and how much is new? It looks like where the Himalayan Monal where in 2012, but I'm not sure.
I think it previously held racoons. I had no idea the indoor area was there. I think it may be reached from the tropical greenhouse. As always with Helsinki it is a high quality exhibit
A couple of pieces of Helsinki news. Not all of it is new but I haven't been posting for a while and no one else has shared it so here it is now. A pretty dramatic change coming up is the construction of a tram line along the northern edge of the island and a tram stop at the zoo. The development will necessitate a new zoo entrance. This is part of a massive three bridge development in Helsinki with tram lines and lanes for cyclists and pedestrians. Work is due to begin in 2018 with a plan for completion is 2025 so it's not a short term project. Thanks to AdvoCat for clarification of these plans and the possible impact it will have on the zoo. The Barbary macaque group had dwindled somewhat so the remaining individuals were sent back to the Netherlands. They have just been replaced by a new group of six also from the Netherlands and there are pictures of them exploring in the snow here. Some of them had been kept illegally as pets. The individual animals came from various sources but were socialised as a group in the Netherlands. Three of the monkeys including the leader of the group are 14-16 years old and the three others are under four years old. Also the two female brown bears have now gone into hibernation. They are 15 and 10 years old and usually wake up in March. Apparently they went into hibernation at the usual time as in previous years but the recent newly fallen heavy snow was attractive to them and they came out to play before going back in to hibernate. The peafowl are now inside for the winter and you can see them with indoor viewing, I'm not sure if that is new for this winter but it definitely hasn't always been the case.
Persian goitred gazelle herd increases. Five calves born to date and successfully being reared. Link: Korkeasaaressa syntyi harvinaisia kuhertajagaselleja BTW: European population down to just 50 individuals. Biggest breeding groups are Karlsruhe Zoo (the studbook holder) and Helsinki zoo.
Two male Alpine marmots from Tierpark Neumünster in Germany have gone on display. The enclosure is between the lions and the restaurant if I understand correctly. I think they are a nice addition to the collection but it is interesting to note that Alpine ibex left the zoo because of their conservation status yet Alpine marmots are also 'least concern'.
I had a very pleasant visit to the Helsinki Zoo last week. It for sure helps that the zoo is located on an island and it makes full use of its location. There are quite some natural rocky outcrops which have been integrated into enclosures and the rest of the zoo is set in very pleasant woodland. The zoo is only 22 hectares, but it uses a much smaller portion of that, which means that there are plenty of nicely landscapes lawns and woodland sections. The only thing you have to watch out for are the abundant breeding Barnacle geese. There are nests all around the island and although many have a red demarcation line to indicate where not to walk, protective parents might chase you anyway if they feel you came to close... This is not a zoo to wander around aimlessly and these Geese make sure you watch your step... The collection basically consists of cold adapted species, with 3 houses for tropical species. The only exception to this are Asiatic lions which are in the Cat valley. There are not an awful lot of species here and ABC species are notably absent, but there are plenty interesting animals from a zoo nerd perspective with the likes of Blue sheep, Goitered gazelle, Amur leopard cat, Pine marten and as a rarity highlight an ancient Hoffman's two-toed sloth. The mammal and reptile collection are pretty solid, but except for owls there are not so many bird species around. Off course there is the wonderful Borealia building with a large breeding group of Ruffs, but there would be scope for aviaries dotted around the zoo for boreal species like Grouse, Nutcracker, Waxwing and the like. Enclosurewise the zoo is not terribly exciting, but the level is generally very high and although the Tropical houses show their age most enclosures are relatively large and almost without exception nicely landscaped and well-structured for the animals. Overall this is a very pleasant zoo and one of the few I would like to visit when there is a lot of snow. It might lack the multimillion complexes but they are not missed here and the zoo has a clear own flair. In a way this zoo is like a good whisky that is perfect for connoisseurs, has great depth and gets better with every sip without being flashy. A series of enclosure photos is now uploaded in the gallery: Helsinki Zoo - ZooChat
I recently visited Korkesaari this week, I won't add a lengthy review as that has been well covered in the post above! Just a few notes that haven't been covered in the thread so far... A female Margay arrived in June and is now in an indoor exhibit in the South American house. She doesn't seem to have access to outdoors currently. There is a new enclosure being constructed in the old Tortoise enclosure, they have been moved into the Fennec Fox enclosure. Lynx exhibits are empty as they are in the new enclosure, one was occupied by a younger Sea Eagle Mink have left the collection with the enclosures still empty. Many babies have been born this year and all labelled around the zoo. Including the Goitered Gazelles, Ruffs, Markhor, Reindeer, Wild Boar. Quite a few empty enclosure in the Tropical houses including the Gundi, hopefully these will be restocked soon. Unfortunately a lot of no shows for me such as Wolverine, Lynx and Four-toed Hedgehog. But I did enjoy my visit!
