I feel like with all those dead koalas, they should have gotten enough necropsy reports to learn the problem and never repeat it again. If koalas are vulnerable there I wouldn’t want to risk putting rare marsupials like pademelon or dendrolagus to the same enclosure. I’d use the building to exhibit an animal of low concern such as the brushtail possum (I definitely do not have a secret agenda to push brushtail possums everwhere) or smaller animals like rakali, kowari, hopping mice, and reptiles (which transferring the reptiles could help the Mersus Emergo make some space)
Based on what I have understood from posts by Pairi Daiza (when I was still on social media), media reports and the "Expedition Pairi Daiza" television show, Pairi Daiza actually takes veterinary care of its animals quite serious and puts a lot of effort into those things, so they probably have done necropsies and other research on the deceased koalas. However they don't always report publicly on such matters. I was however able to find that in three of the koala deaths the Koala Retrovirus was confirmed or seriously suspected, and one animal died of gastro-intestinal issues. From what I understand this virus is strongly associated with various health issues and early death in koalas, and is also species-specific. While it can be transmitted between koalas, as far as I could find it does not infect or affect other marsupials, and would therefore not be a threat to tree kangaroos or pademelons. If any other transmissible diseases were to be present perhaps they could also take measures to decontaminate the building. Another aspect that has been suggested by people in discussions at the Laafsekikkers Dutch zoo forum is the lack of a full barrier in the house between the animals and the visitors, which could lead to stress and associated health issues in sensitive species. That could be factor and would also be a factor for tree kangaroos and pademelons, but that is an issue that can likely be fixed by modifying the building and possibly the associated outdoor space. Personally I don't think reptiles or smaller marsupials would be bad idea for the (former?) koala house, but I would also personally not be opposed to it becoming a wetland and/or forest Australian aviary, as the current desert-themed Australian aviary is quite ill-suited for some of its inhabitants. But we will just have to wait and see what they do with it. Knowing Pairi Daiza, they probably will come up with something that won't go unnoticed. PS: the last couple of years also haven't been the greatest for koalas in Antwerp and Planckendael, the best days of koala keeping and breeding also seem to be over there for the time being.
The 3 wapitis (elks) who had to move because of the musk oxes have meanwhile moved to their new and also very nice enclosure in The Last Frontier. This enclosure is about 1500 m2 (16146 ft2) big and is located between the path that go's along the bear islands and the bird of prey aviaries, just behind the shop 'The Miners Camp'. I find it strange that the wapitis didn't move to the much larger moose enclosure right across from this enclosure, because the wapitis lived in this enclosure before they moved to The Land of the Cold (to the enclosure where the musk oxes now live). Also, the mooses are always at the back of their enclosure, so there isn't very much to see. But the 3 wapitis have certainly not deteriorated and still have a very nice enclosure now.
I also did those measurements a while ago. 1 500 m² is not bad for three wapitis, but it is substantially smaller than the previous exhibit that now houses the musk oxes, which is actually close to 4 000 m².
Starting November 1st, a corona pass/health pass/Covid Safe Ticket will be required to visit Pairi Daiza, which is a document proving you are fully vaccinated, recently tested negative for Covid or have recovered from Covid. Requiring this pass will allow the park to drop their face mask rules, apart from visitors between 12 and 16 that are not covered by the pass at this point. Safety measures and access to Pairi Daiza So Pairi Daiza has made a very different decision with regard to the new government regulations than Planckendael and Antwerp have.
Three female reindeers were added to the land of cold. They seem to be domesticated reindeer but I am not a reindeer expert.
Zootierliste lists them as domestic reindeer. If they had the rarer Eurasian or Finnish forest reindeer I expect Pairi Daiza would state that clearly.
This might have been posted already, but it poppped up on my youtube feed. I thought the Orangs and Otters had shared ground pre-pandemic
Old video I think but I believe this is potentially risky, even if only a low level. Ever seen the video of Otters killing(drowning) a Langur at Bronx Zoo? The otters are not being 'friends' and there are young orangs in this group.
I thought they were together on my visits pre-covid and there's at least one photo in the gallery from 2019 showing them so. Whoever uploaded the video claims the Orangs were literally at risk of dying from boredom during lockdown, but the Otters were then given access to save them. Bizarre.
Walrus Network reports that walrus Petruska might be pregnant. If she is, the calf was sired by Odin at Hamburg during her stay on breeding loan there in early 2021. Log In or Sign Up to View In less positive news, male giraffe Kongo has sadly passed away aged 18. Log In or Sign Up to View
Of course the aspects of visitors wasn't there during the lockdowns, but to my knowledge and from what I saw in posts at the time Pairi Daiza and other zoos still tried to provide animals with as normal as possible keeper interactions and training and enrichment. Those may have been affected somewhat by Covid safety rules, especially with species susceptible to Covid like great apes, but I am fairly certain they tried to keep their orangutans stimulated and enriched as much as possible under the circumstances. Also, dying from boredom alone just doesn't sound right at all - one would expect some perhaps damaging stereotypical behavior to be the first result of boredom, not death. That whole post is in my opinion just pure bovine excrement. Just what one would expect from uneducated internet journalism.
A male Indian hog deer (Axis porcinus porcinus) fawn was born in The Middle Kingdom in the night of October 30th. Log into Facebook
Dayo the male gorilla has passed away at the age if thirteen and the lark has prepared a tribute for him. Log into Facebook | Facebook
Despite the veterinarians’ efforts, lion cub Kimbo has sadly passed away. Log into Facebook | Facebook
Pairi Daiza has raised three rockhopper penguins from eggs received from Marineland Antibes in France. They were born four months ago and were under intensive care until they were strong enough. They will now be joining the gentoo penguins in the penguin cave. VIDEO 3 bébés gorfous sauteurs sont nés à Pairi Daiza, vous pouvez les découvrir dans la Terre du froid According to ZTL Marineland has the Western rockhopper penguin, Eudyptes chrysocome chrysocome.
In the message from Pairi Daiza they talk about the Eudyptes chrysocome filholi. This species would according to Zootierliste not be kept in Europe. So I assumed that this was a mistake. Then I suddenly remembered a text from the 2019 EAZA TAG Reports. It said: "As long as a proper taxonomy of the (sub) species of rockhoppers is not in place, a tiny population of Eastern rockhoppers (E. chrysocome filholi) in one facility will still be kept separate from the others." So it could well be that these are the E. c. filholi. That would mean that the other animals are at Marineland. The three birds in Pairi Daiza came from three different couples, so Marineland would have at least six animals.
