San Diego Zoo Safari Park Platypus at San Diego Zoo Safari Park

A potential long-term positive of a successful Platypus breeding program in the United States -- while obviously any zoo fan would be excited to see this species in and of itself, the addition of another charismatic and crowd-pleasing Australian species would add some wonderful incentive for new, renovated Australia habitats across the country. I've never been the best at reading the national room, but based on my local facilities, this feels like an exhibit theme that's taken some serious backseat lately.

What I'm trying to suggest is the success of this species could lead to a renewed focus on Australia and its unique species in American zoos.

But let's not get ahead of ourselves - the exhibit's only just started. Still, this is an incredibly exciting development!

 

Not to mention what I understand to be a serious decline in Nocturnal Houses in the US.

 

Don't know if this means anything, but the link attached earlier no longer works. About Platypus Pond under giving opportunities. Hopefully everything is fine, and just the page is no longer up.

 

The exhibit is still under construction. It is weird that the link is down.

 

It's been a couple months, are there any updates?

 

I would say it's likely that plans have been halted for the time-being. As mentioned the page is also up and at the moment Australia is considering halting all exports to foreign countries as they review the ACTP situation and possible rework their foreign export policies.

~Thylo

 

The exhibit is now complete. There is a fence in front of it with a sign saying "new species coming", but no further details have been announced as of December 2018 to my knowledge.

 

So is Platypus Pond the opening in 2019?

 

If the platypus arrive by then, probably. If there are no platypus by then, no. If it opens as a water rat, freshwater crocodile, or freshwater turtle exhibit, then we know platypus aren't coming in the near future.

 

Ok. Also does anyone know how big the exhibit is?

 

There are pictures of it under construction in the gallery. It looks like it may be about the same size as the platypus complex at Lone Pine, and smaller than World of the Platypus in Healesville.

 

Is there any update on the platypus?

 

Nope.

 

The project has been delayed for a bit

 

Delayed or cancelled? How do you know?

 

Delayed. I went to the park recently and asked some of their staff about what’s going on with the Platypus exhibit and they said it’s being delayed for now.

 

Length of this delay may give a good impression whether platypus will actually come. Although, the safari park did actually build the exhibit so there must have been some promising movement on the inside.

 

I talked to a junior keeper at the zoo a few weeks back who strongly hinted that they are already behind the scenes in San Diego! Unconfirmed obviously but she seemed knowledgeable.

 

What is that clicking sound I hear? It sounds like hundreds of keyboards typing at once "Cheap flights to San Diego."