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Mixed species exhibit ideas:

Discussion in 'Speculative Zoo Design and Planning' started by LowlandGorilla4, 27 Apr 2020.

  1. Zooplantman

    Zooplantman Well-Known Member

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    I foresee large enclosures devoid of a single plant
     
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  2. Corangurilla

    Corangurilla Well-Known Member

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    I feel like the Orangutapir mix might be an issue if either species is breeding. Mother tapirs are very protective, and orangutans are significantly slower than the gibbons or langurs. I can picture a mother tapir lashing out against an orangutan that's curious about her baby.
    Of course, there's probably some fine details that I'm missing. When do mother tapirs stop being so protective over their young? Would captive-bred orangutans know how to behave around tapirs? Etc.
     
  3. Neil chace

    Neil chace Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    Large enclosures yes, and you're the plant expert, so if you think that's an inevitability with these species, then I suppose that'd be what happens. Is there any design considerations you'd suggest that'd allow some plants in the exhibits?
     
  4. Neil chace

    Neil chace Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    I think some zoos in Europe have mixed tapirs with orangutans in the past. That was actually one of the possibilities I was least concerned with, but thanks for the input!
     
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  5. Ursus

    Ursus Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    The most problematic thing might be the tapir's poop methods, requiring water in which they poop.
    Meaning that unless keepers clean the pool every day, it might be considered a health hazard for the other animals if they can drink it.

    Another thing to take into account is how much any of these animals are routine species. Which orangutangs from a quick scan into the EAZA guide seem to be in terms of feeding locations. So might be worth reading into all of these species.
    I have no experience personally, but I do reckon that rotations like these can break a animals routine if completely rotated at random.
     
  6. Corangurilla

    Corangurilla Well-Known Member

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    Speaking of primate mixes, can hamadryas baboons and rock hyraxes be kept together safely? I know hamadryas baboons like some meat with their vegetables, but would they see a hyrax as a food source?
     
  7. Zooplantman

    Zooplantman Well-Known Member

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    Rotational enclosures have been great for animal choice and welfare but the usual plant protection methods we employ with ungulates become useless when actively climbing primates are also present. Sadly, imo, every example built so far is too small to allow sufficient plant mass to withstand animal assaults from multiple fronts.
    So one ends up with this
    Rotational Yard (with Lar Gibbons) - ZooChat
    or this
    Islands - Rotation Exhibit - ZooChat
     
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  8. Neil chace

    Neil chace Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    Okay, thanks. At least those examples of exhibits do have grass in them, I'll keep that in mind in terms of other plants however, and will ensure that there're a lot of "artificial" climbing structures.
     
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  9. Neil chace

    Neil chace Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    For reference, with my "double rotational exhibits" idea, I'm thinking that each exhibit would be approximately 7,500 square feet- with six exhibits total.
    Each day:
    - two of the exhibits would have orangutans w/ an ungulate
    - one of the exhibits would have gibbons w/ an ungulate
    - one of the exhibits would have langurs w/ an ungulate
    - one of the exhibits would have Japanese macaques
    - one of the exhibits would have lemurs and radiated tortoises.
    There would also be two indoor day room exhibits, one belonging to the orangutans and one rotating between the other primates.
     
  10. Haliaeetus

    Haliaeetus Well-Known Member

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    I would avoid Hamadryas and any other species mixed together.
    The only Baboon species to be peaceful enough is probably the Gelada.
     
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  11. Corangurilla

    Corangurilla Well-Known Member

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    And they’re not even true baboons.
    Thank you for answering my question. Guess I’ll have to put hyraxes somewhere else in my fantasy zoo…
     
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  12. Batto

    Batto Well-Known Member 10+ year member

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    Hamadryas + ibex (Munich) or + African Elephants (Beekse Bergen) has worked pretty well.
     
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  13. FBBird

    FBBird Well-Known Member 10+ year member

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    Hyrax go well with Geladas, Blue-winged Geese and Ibex
     
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  14. Batto

    Batto Well-Known Member 10+ year member

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  15. Neil chace

    Neil chace Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    As I've been working on other ideas for the African complex (of which this dynamic mix is the focal point), it's come to my attention that there's a unique ability to narrow the focus onto a sub-set of Africa, as many of the species being discussed are actually native to Namibia, and the Namib Desert. In addition to the Elephants/Giraffes, Ostriches, Greater Kudu, Mountain Zebras, Springbok, and Impala mentioned above, do you all think Gemsbok would be reasonable inclusion in the mix? I know it'd be a great thematic inclusion, but aren't sure of the feasibility of mixing them with the other species.
     
  16. Aardwolf

    Aardwolf Well-Known Member

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    It's been done, especially in facilities with the land for it, but the horse antelope have a reputation of not playing very nicely with others.
     
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  17. Ursus

    Ursus Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    Neither are elephants or mountain zebra, alas they're in the mix
     
  18. Batto

    Batto Well-Known Member 10+ year member

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    Horse antelope = Roan antelope (Hippotragus equinus)?
     
  19. Aardwolf

    Aardwolf Well-Known Member

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    Horse Antelope are the Hippotraginae, which includes the sable, roan, addax, and the oryxes
     
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  20. Mickey

    Mickey Well-Known Member

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    @Neil chace some mixes from an Italian zoo I know quite well, if you'd like to maximize space:
    • Giraffe, scimitar oryx, blue wildebeest, saddle-billed stork, egyptian goose, watusi cattle, Nile lechwe, white-belted black-and-white ruffed lemur, red ruffed lemur (the lemurs are on islands with water moats but technically any animal that want to take a swim could reach them, no hot wire is present at the edges of the island to keep animals outside)
    • ostrich, roan antelope
    • Grevy's zebra, blesbok
    • Cameroon sheep, defassa waterbuck, eland, Kafue lechwe
    • Hippo, white rhino, nyala
    • Sitatunga, springbok, grey-crowned crane
    • A marmoset species, rhinoceros iguana (the iguana is let out during warm months)
    • saimiri, several waterfowls
    • Mouflon, fallow deer (used to have)
    • Pere David's deer, blackbuck (they used to have them)
    • several species of macaws
    • Azara's agouti, great curassow
    • peacock-pheasant, Bali myna
    • Kookaburra, magpie goose, straw-necked ibis
    • Red panda, muntjac
     
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