Join our zoo community

Platypuses! Must be some chance?!

Discussion in 'General Zoo Discussion' started by Caesar, 7 Oct 2015.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
Page 2 of 5
  1. Thaumatibis

    Thaumatibis Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    7 Apr 2015
    Posts:
    147
    Location:
    Zoochat
    Right, because if there's one thing we learned from the American Civil War, areas who don't want to follow the laws of their country can just go make their own country without any consequences.
    Especially when that country's reason for being is to export a species that is currently illegal to export. Right...

    ~ Thaumatibis
     
    Thaumatibis, 7 Oct 2015
    #21
  2. zoogiraffe

    zoogiraffe Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    12 Sep 2007
    Posts:
    6,338
    Location:
    Middlewich,Cheshire U.K
    Well if anyone finds a way of getting some Lesser Fijian Trolls out of Fiji can they let me know as my breeding group has some very serious inbreeding in them now!!!!!
     
    zoogiraffe, 7 Oct 2015
    #22
  3. Hix

    Hix Wildlife Enthusiast and Lover of Islands 15+ year member Premium Member

    Joined:
    20 Oct 2008
    Posts:
    4,549
    Location:
    Sydney
    And several books have been written on the subject.

    [ame="http://www.amazon.com/Micronations-Lonely-Planet-Home-Made-Nations/dp/1741047307"]Micronations: The Lonely Planet Guide to Home-Made Nations: John Ryan, George Dunford, Simon Sellars: 9781741047301: Amazon.com: Books[/ame]

    :p

    Hix
     
    Hix, 7 Oct 2015
    #23
  4. Chlidonias

    Chlidonias Moderator Staff Member 15+ year member

    Joined:
    13 Jun 2007
    Posts:
    23,440
    Location:
    New Zealand
    fair enough. That was my mistake.
     
    Chlidonias, 8 Oct 2015
    #24
  5. animal_expert01

    animal_expert01 Well-Known Member 5+ year member

    Joined:
    13 Sep 2015
    Posts:
    918
    Location:
    QLD Australia
    Well David fleay took platypus to the Bronx zoo in 1947
     
    animal_expert01, 8 Oct 2015
    #25
  6. Thaumatibis

    Thaumatibis Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    7 Apr 2015
    Posts:
    147
    Location:
    Zoochat
    Because laws stay the same after nearly 60 years. Right?

    ~ Thaumatibis
     
    Thaumatibis, 8 Oct 2015
    #26
  7. wildzoo

    wildzoo Active Member

    Joined:
    5 Oct 2015
    Posts:
    34
    Location:
    Silenced By Mentally Unstable Mods
    Laugh but I can see how someone who is captivated by our wildlife would feel this a reasonable way to go about things.

    I think Australia does need to start becoming more rational when it comes to our wildlife and allowing others to own it. The way we go about it at the moment I find as an Australian is simply embarrassing. Other nations allow us to exhibit their rare animals, yet we never return the favor. It's a joke really. We are all about economy, economy, economy, yet we refuse to allow natives to be kept in captivity; a potential industry that is possibly worth billions to the Australian economy.

    Keeping Australian native animals as pets is a good idea – Opinion – ABC Environment (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
     
    wildzoo, 13 Oct 2015
    #27
  8. Elephas Maximus

    Elephas Maximus Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    4 Sep 2012
    Posts:
    727
    Location:
    Russia, Ekaterinburg
    Elephas Maximus, 13 Oct 2015
    #28
  9. LaughingDove

    LaughingDove Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    16 May 2014
    Posts:
    2,492
    Location:
    Oxford/Warsaw
    Possibly even more interesting than echidna, that same website appears to offer Nabarleks (Peradorcas concinna) ?????????? ????????? ???????, ??? ????? ?????? ??????? | www.zoo-ekzo.ru - ??????? ???????????? ????????!

    (though further down in the page it says Macropus rufus, so I am not sure which is actually the one for sale since I am relying on google translate to read the page)
     
    LaughingDove, 13 Oct 2015
    #29
  10. Chlidonias

    Chlidonias Moderator Staff Member 15+ year member

    Joined:
    13 Jun 2007
    Posts:
    23,440
    Location:
    New Zealand
    why do you find it "embarrassing" and "a joke"? And why does Australia "need" to start allowing other countries to "own" Australian wildlife? Your thinking seems extremely muddled.

    Firstly "rare animals" from "other nations" which are kept in Australian zoos are generally not being imported from their home countries, they are coming from zoos in (usually) Europe and the USA - it isn't like Brazil is saying "hey, here's some maned wolves.... can we have some koalas now?" There is really no comparison.

    Secondly, you appear to be saying that Australia should be literally selling off its native wildlife to zoos and the pet trade. Is that correct? The country should basically become an animal dealership?

    And this bit - "yet we refuse to allow natives to be kept in captivity" - are you talking about within Australia? Because native species are allowed to be kept privately in Australia, although obviously different states have different regulations.
     
    Chlidonias, 13 Oct 2015
    #30
  11. Elephas Maximus

    Elephas Maximus Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    4 Sep 2012
    Posts:
    727
    Location:
    Russia, Ekaterinburg
    The page is for Nabarlek, but with wrong Latin name.
    This trader is rather a retailer and middleman (judging by feedback about him at herp & spider forums), setting a hefty overprice even for 'common' exotics.

    Speaking about echidnas, one (short-beaked) was seized at Moscow from a founder of criminal religious sect.
    https://www.rt.com/news/314933-kuzya-god-cult-russia/
    Contrary to the date in this article, the seizure happened back in May 2014. Now this echidna resides at Moscow Zoo.
     
    Elephas Maximus, 13 Oct 2015
    #31
  12. Chlidonias

    Chlidonias Moderator Staff Member 15+ year member

    Joined:
    13 Jun 2007
    Posts:
    23,440
    Location:
    New Zealand
    the photo is from Wikipedia and is actually of an Allied Rock Wallaby (Petrogale assimilis), taken in the wild on Magnetic Island where habituated animals are fed by tourists.
     
    Chlidonias, 13 Oct 2015
    #32
  13. AthleticBinturong

    AthleticBinturong Well-Known Member 10+ year member

    Joined:
    25 Sep 2012
    Posts:
    595
    Location:
    Ireland
    Phineas and ferb the cartoons have a pet platypus......
     
    AthleticBinturong, 13 Oct 2015
    #33
  14. TheMightyOrca

    TheMightyOrca Well-Known Member 10+ year member

    Joined:
    28 Jan 2014
    Posts:
    1,807
    Location:
    Corpus Christi, Texas
    Which I figure would be illegal. Then again, the platypus in the show is a secret agent and he wears a hat and drives a motorbike or something (I've only seen a few episodes) so maybe laws apply differently to animals with human-like intelligence.

    Or maybe I'm just overthinking it.
     
    TheMightyOrca, 13 Oct 2015
    #34
  15. MRJ

    MRJ Well-Known Member 15+ year member Premium Member

    Joined:
    29 Jan 2008
    Posts:
    2,531
    Location:
    Melbourne
    Actually Australia is fairly liberal when it comes to exporting native animals to overseas zoos. The basic conditions are:

    1. They are going to a reputable not for profit zoo.
    2. The animals being exported are captive bred.
    3. They are going into a managed program so that a sustainable population can be established overseas.

    There are additional conditions on certain "flagship" species. The problem with platypus is satisfying conditions 2 and 3.
     
    MRJ, 14 Oct 2015
    #35
  16. TeaLovingDave

    TeaLovingDave Moderator Staff Member 10+ year member

    Joined:
    16 May 2010
    Posts:
    14,830
    Location:
    Wilds of Northumberland
    Indeed; New Zealand is much more conservative by comparison - I believe the last time *any* of their native fauna was permitted outside of NZ and possibly Australia was the second import of Kaka to Stuttgart in 1995. Despite successfully breeding the taxon shortly before their male died, Stuttgart have long been denied *any* further export.
     
    TeaLovingDave, 14 Oct 2015
    #36
  17. TheMightyOrca

    TheMightyOrca Well-Known Member 10+ year member

    Joined:
    28 Jan 2014
    Posts:
    1,807
    Location:
    Corpus Christi, Texas
    Those sound like very reasonable standards to me. They prevent the animals from going to sketchy places while not being unreasonably difficult for responsible facilities, and they encourage the possibility of outside conservation.

    I take it the platypus has a hard time breeding in captivity?
     
    TheMightyOrca, 14 Oct 2015
    #37
  18. TheMightyOrca

    TheMightyOrca Well-Known Member 10+ year member

    Joined:
    28 Jan 2014
    Posts:
    1,807
    Location:
    Corpus Christi, Texas
    Guess this explains why NZ wildlife isn't common in zoos outside of the country. (well, the fact that they don't have much in the way of "charismatic megafauna" probably factors in too) I've always wanted to visit NZ and if I ever get there, I'll definitely do a zoo tour because where else am I gonna see a tuatara?
     
    TheMightyOrca, 14 Oct 2015
    #38
  19. Arizona Docent

    Arizona Docent Well-Known Member 15+ year member

    Joined:
    10 Feb 2009
    Posts:
    7,702
    Location:
    Arizona, USA
    The Dallas Zoo.
     
    Arizona Docent, 14 Oct 2015
    #39
  20. Chlidonias

    Chlidonias Moderator Staff Member 15+ year member

    Joined:
    13 Jun 2007
    Posts:
    23,440
    Location:
    New Zealand
    New Zealand certainly is much stricter than Australia on exporting, but the above is nonsense. The last native lizards (four common species) weren't protected until 1996 and were frequently exported up to that year. Native freshwater fish and a number of land invertebrates are or have been frequently exported (there is no specific legislation against those) - in fact Maguari has specifically stated elsewhere on the forum that he has kept NZ peripatus and tree weta, and I'd wager in both cases it was well after 1995 because he's only a young chap. The San Diego tuatara came from New Zealand in 1995 also. Kiwi went to the USA and Europe in 2010.

    Those are just the ones off the top of my head.
     
    Chlidonias, 14 Oct 2015
    #40
Page 2 of 5
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.