A male Cotton Top Tamiran, named Guapo, has been born to parents, Gomez and Alaida. Guapo’s arrival brings the number of Cotton Top Tamiran’s at MZ to seven.
I saw what was there before. That is easily some of the ********* news I’ve heard in a while, no new animals and the phillipine crocodiles gone. I’m pretty sure the ‘something exciting is coming soon’ just meant the enclosure was to be demolished. Also the zoo must be moving the retic from the massive blood python and Taiwan beauty snake to an even bigger enclosure despite the fact that you could have 5 fully grown retics in the old enclosure and they would still have tons of room. Melbourne zoo once again moving species to create the illusion of a new animal when they are just diminishing their collections. the other changes are mostly insignificant, just swaps with no new gaps. What’s awful is they have so many empty enclosures now and they’ve just been walking them off.
By looking at the new Autumn Melbourne Zoo maps, it seems the Siamangs have been moved from the Japanese Gardens to one of the orangutan enclosures and the White-cheeked Gibbons have been moved to the Japanese Gardens. I think it's a bit disappointing that they had no intention of getting a new ape species and were only planning to move their family of Siamangs to a new enclosure. I was waiting so long after they had the sign at the front of the enclosure with the sign saying a new ape family was coming. I was barely wishing that they would reintroduce the Chimpanzees but that is probably really unlikely. It's kinda cool though because now they sort of have a monkey and ape section in the Trail of the Elephants trail with the Orangutans, Squirrel Monkeys, and now the Siamangs. Also, the Philipines Crocodile has been replaced by a Reticulated Python, the Blue-winged Kookaburras have been moved from the Australian Bush trail to the Growing Wild trail and Helmeted Honeyeaters have been added next to the Koalas.
Melbourne zoos animal collection keeps on diminishing. What’s next to go?. Peccaries, Malayan Tapir, Pygmy Hippo, all birds and reptiles.
Yeah, I know, it's quite a shame that they're only focusing on endangered species that they really want to save and not exotic and more unique species. At least Werribee Zoo looks like they're going to have a mass renovation in the coming years, but who knows how long that will take.
Weribee will always be a ********. Healsville is where all the conservation work should be done, Melbourne brings in the money to go into the conservation programs and Zoos Victoria realised. ‘Hey if we get rid of a lot of our animals, less costs equals more money for a non genetically distinct population of rock wallabies slightly south of their normal range!’ My other problem with Zoos Victoria especially in recent days are Koalas. Seriously the last 3 videos on their channel have all been koala related. Seriously the animal is interesting but it’s not the only animal that eats eucalyptus and nor is it the only animal that sleeps for 20 hour's.
I agree that's really disappointing. I was hoping they'd be importing a new female Sumatran orangutan (to breed with Malu) - especially since they halved their orangutan colony last year by exporting 1.2 of them to the new Sydney Zoo. Unfortunately Melbourne Zoo have stated they will never hold chimpanzees again after they were phased out in 1993.
It’s a shame that it’s only the Saimangs that have been moved to the netted Orangutan enclosure. I really hoped it would be either a new Orangutan family, or a new primate species. The move of the Saimangs into one of the Orangutan enclosure proves that MZ dosen’t have plans to breed Orangutans in the near future. I also found the White Cheeked Gibbon move to the island in the Japanese Gardens, interesting. The only species left in the Treetop Trail are: Spider Monkey, Black and White Colobus and Cotton Top Tamiran, with now four of the nine enclosures empty. I can’t seem to think what MZ is planning to do with the Treetop Trail, but I just hope there isn’t any plans to demolish it! @Kynan, did the Reticulated Pythons replace the Philippine Crocodile in the enclosure next to the Lions (which used to hold Isobella), or the enclosure in the Reptile House?
The emperor tamarins arent in the Treetop trail they are offshow. I think you are referring to their Cotton Top Tamarins.
Do you have a copy of this map? The one on the zoo's website still has the Siamang at the Japanese gardens. Hearing about the potential move of the gibbons to the island, it is quite incredible to think about how many empty enclosures there would be in Treetop Apes (well, formerly) and Monkeys currently. Are the Crimson-bellied Conures still housed in the last enclosure?
On my last visit, they weren’t in the last enclosure; the enclosure was empty. Can @Yoshistar888 or @Kynan confirm?
On my last visit in January they weren't there but I think they were just hiding. I did see them in October though. They are stunning birds. Don't forget the empty capuchin enclosure.
They could’ve been hiding, but I think it’s more likely they were moved somewhere else. Yes, yes. I counted the empty Capuchin enclosure. The enclosures in order at the moment go: empty, Spider Monkeys, Spider Monkeys, Empty, Black and White Colobus, Empty, Cotton Top Tamirans, Empty (Maybe...).
The map on MZ’s website is quite outdated. It still shows that the Zoo still has Binturong and Philippines Crocodile, for example, (which the Zoo dosen’t anymore).
Here is a copy of the Autumn Melbourne Zoo map: https://www.zoo.org.au/media/3573/6464d_mz-autumn-property-map-trail-page-web.pdf
Excellent. Thanks for that! I can’t believe how quickly Melbourne Zoo has changed since my visit in 2018 (and generally not in a good way).
