Thank you @Pier-Luc Chouinard for the review, I appreciate the thorough response. I hope to be able to visit soon but covid may delay my plans.
Thanks for the review. Do you know why they are no longer going to have sharks? Is the exhibit not large enough for them? Is the insectarium still undergoing renovations?
@kingoffreaks : I'm sorry to read COVID will delay your plans. However it is maybe for the best since the ecosystems and animals in them will have settled more. You might see more actions and species. @DavidBrown : I am unsure why, but I can ask next time I visit. It should be soon, it is only a 30 minutes walk from where I live and I'm a member. However, I know many Quebec native animals exhibited there come from either captive breeding, rescued animals that can't be rehabilitated for release or special agreement with the federal and provincial ministries and organizations responsible for the environment and fauna. I think the sharks fall into the last category. Since they are endangered, maybe it was decided to don't collect native sharks in the wild anymore I'm Quebec/canada? To be confirmed eventually. The Insectarium reopening is set for June 2021 but I don't have more infos.
With the increase of COVID cases in Montreal, the Biodome will be closed for at least 28 days. This measure started on October 1st.
The Biodome is admitting during construction they lost 76 animals. 46 were various bats mostly due to poor temporary exhibit planning. The mesh was too abrasive on their wings and many had to be put down because they would never recover from the damage. Another 30 birds were lost. 16 of them were due to a weasel getting into their enclosure and going nuts. Honestly when it comes to predation events that's hard to predict. Could the exhibit have been more secure probably but sometimes you don't see the place the predator will get in until its too late. A determined predator is crafty. Dozens of animals died during Montreal Biodome revamp
The loss is disappointing but not unexpected with so much construction, I do however appreciate Canadian zoos becoming more transparent it gives critics less to accuse them of hiding things.
Absolutely! They freely admitted mistakes were made and learned from. And its just bad luck they had three big die off events in just 2 years. If this were something normal that was happening there all the time it would be much more troubling. Few zoo though face the challenge of emptying the entire site and having to store so many animals in make shift off facility sites while they do a total reno. Most of the time zoos are able to house their animals in other buildings on site and for those they cannot fit in they go to other zoos. Emptying the Biodome and dispersing all of its animals to other zoos was never going to be a realistic option. They did the best they could with a monumental task and could have done some things differently but you learn and do better. Hopefully they aren't attacked too much for this. The number seems big but if you just remove the weasel attack that number drops significantly. And I did read another article that said the third die off was a group of birds which got a fungus. Honestly that could have happened in the Biodome itself anyway. May have had little to nothing to do with the move. The Biodome is just stepping up and trying to take responsibility for everything.
Here is an article about the facility's renovation: Kanva revamps former Olympic venue the Montreal Biodome (dezeen.com)
Congratulations to the Biodome on the successful hatching of a Northern rockhopper penguin! The chick hatched Oct 28. They are the only ones in North America who have successfully produced a chick! Granted their competition in this department is small. Calgary only has males and which leaves just Moody Aquarium. Still a worthy feat to be celebrated! Baby endangered rockhopper penguin born at Montreal Biodome
Congratulations on the AZA accreditation: AZA Accreditation Commission Grants Accreditation to 22 Facilities (link was initially on the Montgomery AL USA thread)
Nice! Definitely the biodomes time to shine after a long renovation complicates by covid. If the little biodome can make the AZA then a few other Canadian zoos can do it too. Im looking at you Edomonton and Parc Safari and possibly Zoo Sauvage though they deal mostly in North American wildlife and dont really need the AZA for what they want.
On May 16th, 2022, the biodome announced that (0.0.3) Canadian lynxes were born on May 1st, which are now on exhibit. 登录 Facebook Montreal Biodome welcomes three new lynx kittens 登录 Facebook On June 19th, the biodome announced that it has celebrated its 30-year anniversary of opening to the public. 登录 Facebook On August 27th, the biodome announced that they acquired (0.0.2+) juvenile wood turtles from the Quebec Ministry of Forests, Wildlife, and Parks for a head start program, and will be released into the wild at a later date. 登录 Facebook
On December 13th, the biodome announced that (0.0.2) northern rockhopper penguins and (0.0.1) macaroni penguin hatched in November. 登录 Facebook
On March 15th, 2023, the biodome announced that a (0.0.1) king penguin hatched on February 1st. https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=597619672411695&set=a.593975776109418 On August 23rd, it was announced that the biodome transferred a (0.1) Linne's two-toed sloth named Blondinette to The Toronto Zoo in Ontario. Two Blonde Bombshells Have Entered The Americas Villa | The Americas villa is excited to be welcoming two new residents� At the Mayan Temple, you may catch a glimpse of "Tootsie," a six-year-old female... | By The Toronto Zoo | Facebook
I was here a week ago after a 22-year break and changes were fairly minor for $37 million I thought,but it is without doubt of world class quality. One major bugbear is the non-labelling situation (or minimal to say the least)....of course there`s an App (yawn). Only one problem...in both the the Biodome and the Insectarium I saw only one couple seriously looking at theirs..most folks stood around wondering what things were..when i told them,they were most appreciative I can assure you. Montreal and its city fathers prides itself on being an inclusive community - how is a mother with kids going to keep a phone on the go? What if a person has no smartphone,or,god forbid,no phone at all ? When faced with this kind of situation people often make up their own narrative,usually incorrectly. In other words such a circumstance is NON educational. I doubt the Biodome sees itself as that, but it is the bottom line. Someone needs a reality check at this place (and it isnt the many educational staff on duty,all of whom agreed with me).
On October 20th, the biodome announced they are acquiring a (1.0) Linne's two-toed sloth named Jimmy from Zoo de Granby in Quebec in the near future. https://www.facebook.com/Espacepour...f21fpL95KkmsYDrMFQFSe8MZDNQKYWaxBQVvdz5W5Wzel
