King Colobus: I don't have anything relevant prior to 1994, when there were 2.1. This was the status until 1998 when they acquired a family group comprising an adult breeding pair and 2 youngsters from Cricket St Thomas = 4.3 In 1999 there was one birth that did not survive and 2.0 deaths = 2.3 In 2000 there were 0.2 births, 0.1 death (a 24 year old female, which may provide a clue as to how long they've kept King Colobus), and one departure = 1.4 I haven't looked any further. Echidna fans might like to know that there were 1.2 in the years that I looked at, 1994 - 2000. (@ Pertinax: You will be sad to have missed Chris Packham visiting the zoo for the first time in 1999 to open a photography exhibition )
A rather large mound of rocks has appeared in the ex Anoa /Bison paddock - not sure if this is part of the new meerkat/Aardvark exhibit? The Grey Gulls are in with the Scarlet Ibis and Hamerkop near the ABC. There are 2 large solitary water tanks in the old Anoa/Tenrec house? The Cuban croc in the pool immediately on the right when entering Croc Swamp was lying on top of the separation cage beneath the boardwalk - didn't know they could climb?
Are the Anoa still in the zoo somewhere or have they also died out/left the collection? Especially considering the fact they aren't listed on the zoo's website anymore.
I put a photo of one of these in the gallery last week as I was mystified, but nobody's come up with a suggested use yet
Those rigid plastic tanks have huge external Eheim thermofilters beside them. This means that their occupants live in warm water and have the potential to be pretty messy. Moreover they are filled more or less to the brim, which means that their inhabitants will not get much chance to come out of the water, unless they construct some sort of land area inside the tanks or attached to them. If were to make a book on this, I'd reckon aquatic turtles odds-on favourites, crocodile infants 4 to 1 against, aquatic snakes 20 to 1, electric eels 100 to 1. If it's just water lilies all bets are off
Maybe they're not intended to be on-show and they'll cover over the window. The reflections on that glass would make viewing of anything other than water lilies well nigh impossible!
It's not absolutely clear from my notes, but I think she was born in 2009. There was another female who was older and a male who came from Antwerp in 2014, but they both died in 2015.
The pile of rocks has been moved into the middle of the paddock and fashioned into a tor, rather like the one the Takin have at present. In addition, the former Anoa house was being power-washed on the outside, while the yard was scraped clean last week. Not things you'd do if it was about to be demolished. Maybe a species already at the zoo is going to move in for the time being?
Possibly for Takin then so that their new enclosure can built and their house demolished for the new savannah off-show area?
Either or both of these possibilities could be correct. I think there's only one tur billy (or should it be billy tur) but he will need to be moved inside the zoo to stop him mating with his kin, at least until the movement ban is lifted (unless he's had the op). Moving the takin would be a sensible first step, but they may need to reinforce the fencing as the takin are both strong and agile.
The male Diana Monkey is offshow following an injury The Spider Tortoises have also bred - the baby hatched last week and is a UK first breeding UK zoo breeds rare tiny spider tortoise
