I do find this plan rather bizarre, especially with everything else that needs attention in the zoo. Presumably their reasoning will become apparent in due course.
Gigit personality I think relocating the giraffes to Duches'es former enclosure is a brilliant idea.The giraffes really did need a bigger area to reside in.I'm also exited at the prospect of a new breeding male giraffe arriving as this will allow Paignton zoo to participate in the Rothschild Giraffe Breeding Program once again.When it comes to the Heartman's Mountain Zebras I'm delighted that thier going to relocate from the doomed zebra mountain. A lot of zebras have lost their lives in this particular enclosure dueto hoof deformities,caused by the tarain in the exhibit. Moving the Zebras won't just save this critically endangered species from damaging thier hooves but also hopefully encourage more breeding sucsess from this notoriously hard to breed species of Zebra. To add to this already amazing news the relocation of the Rothschild Giraffe's to Duchess's former enclosure,and the relocation of the Heartmans Mountain Zebra's to the current Giraffe enclosure will enable the Paignton zoo team to bring in new indervigels to build up both the Tower of Rothschild Giraffe's and the heard of Heartmans Mountain Zebra's respectively. To analyse my points I think that the movement of the Rothschild Giraffe's and the Heartmans Mountain Zebra's will be highly benifisel to both species as well as the public who will be able to view the respective species easier in thier new enclosure's. Many thanks for reading my mini essay on my thoughts and opinions!
@The Hedgehog - I'm not sure that the giraffes do need a bigger area. They seemed perfectly happy when Yoda was there too. I don't know if you've been in their house, but there is specialised 'crush' in there to enable them to, for instance, receive treatment. This will have to be dismantled and re-erected on Duchess's side of the house, at some expense I would imagine. There are 3 separate areas in there while the elephant side has only 2 - more changes needed? Zebras - your statement that a lot have lost their lives due to hoof deformities caused by the terrain is rather an exaggeration, according to the records I've kept over the many years I've been visiting the zoo. The well-publicised Uri, who died last year, came to the zoo from Usti nad Laben with deformed hooves. They weren't caused by PZ's zebra enclosure. I believe there has been concern in the past that the grass was too rich and they might do better if it was replaced with a coarser blend, but there is hardly any grass at all in the giraffe enclosure. It is mainly sandy to suit the giraffes, while the elephant side is very grassy. Hartmann's zebras are rather anti-social so I would feel that they need a large area, as they have now, so that they can keep away from each other if they so wish. And at the moment they have separate stables and yards. I've never had any problem viewing either the giraffes or the zebras. Anyway, I'm sure the zoo isn't the slightest bit interested in my opinions otherwise the much-needed refurbishment of the orangutan islands would at least have been started by now!
I agree Gigit, but maybe they'll give access for the zebras through to the adjoining paddock i.e. old badger hide/nature area that was pre-cleared for the savannah exhibit? I think more space will be good for the giraffe but they're very tempermental/sensitive beasts and seem to hate change.
I'm stealing somebody else's idea, but if they do want more space for the giraffes, why not just reconfigure the dividing fence?
Presumably to form part of a bachelor(ette) group? - as there is a breeding ban on Goeldi's too.... opposite sex groups/pairs can only be formed if they are neutered.
The post on Facebook says she will be introduced to Rio, Paignton's lone male, who has been living with the pygmy marmosets. No more details.
From our personal experience and those of close colleagues, implants are highly effective for what they are designed for. Reversing their effects in some spp of primates and carnivores is often equally uncertain and sometimes impossible. Advice from numerous sources is that for an animal you may need to breed from in the future, the only certain, safe and temporary contraceptive is 'a fence'....
And even then, I've heard at least one story of an animal managing to get the job done through a fence the location escapes me, and I don't clearly recall species, but I have a vague suspicion it was an orangutan.
Definately happened with Orangutans at Twycross in the 1970-80's era more than once with a female Sumatran and a male Bornean (Trudie & Jod) and hybrid babies were (unsuspectingly) born. I have a suspicion the adult male Benjamin at Dudley may also be a hybrid- his birthplace at Duisburg have housed both species adjacent to each other in the past. I think Gorillas may have done it somewhere in the past too.
There is a video on the zoo’s Facebook showing the new female being released into this enclosure. The agouti have moved in with the squirrel monkeys.
Some male Orangs will have sex with ANYTHING under whatever circumstances . I will say no more, but if the Orang in question in reading this, yes I mean you....
It does depend on whether you might need to 'switch them on again'. The original Sanford's Lemurs we imported from Duke had been implanted, due to lack of interest - despite the fact that there were only 17 animals outside Madagascar. They never cycled again. The Collared imported at the same time were much older than the Sanford's and assumed to be post productive, but despite this we established them. They are still here. Had they not been done, I am confident that sanfordi could still be with us too...
