San Diego Zoo Safari Park San Diego Zoo Safari Park News 2019

This was answered in the article linked in the post about the bird exhibit.

 

I’m goin to the Safari Park next week. Is there anything zoochaters want me to find out?

 

Signs of anything interesting going on with the platypus enclosure would be of interest to many I expect.

 

Made a visit to the Safari Park on Sunday. The potential platypus enclosure appears to be complete. However, the two entry points connected to the path are closed off from visitor access. So not sure it is 100% complete, but I did not see any signs of construction as I had before.

With all this said. The walls that prevent visitors from entering the small complex do not appear temporary. They are well constructed, themed, and completely fill the doorways. The appear to be permanent. Same quality as the entire structure. They appear to be intended to be there for a long time. These could be some form of door that easily opens, but I did not see evidence of hinges.

Take all of this as you will. I have no idea What to make of it myself.

 

Apologies for the typos in my previous post. It was written hastily on my phone while waiting in a fast-food drive-thru line.

 

The Safari Park was recently evacuated due to indiscriminate fires burning in the immediate vicinity. What is the current status .... Is the SP out of danger now?

 

When was this fire you are referencing? The last fire that I was aware of was 6 months ago. I was there last Sunday and saw no evidence of fires and Southern California has been mostly overcast and damp since that visit. Not that fire cannot find a way to burn in wet weather, but highly unlikely given the weather of the last few months.

If you are referencing the the fires from 6 months prior, then the park is safe and operational.

 

Hey. Nothing new but the park staff today confirmed the exhibit is getting close to being done and now the park is getting ready to submit international transfer permits to Australia for the transfer of the Platypus. They aren’t sure though they will get them now or not unfortunately

 

Just got back from the park today. I have A LOT of information to tell u do let’s get started

1. Teddy the Sumatran Tiger has moved to the San Francisco Zoo for a breeding recommendation. The park staff said that Majel may be pregnant and in the near future Cathy and Debbie will have a new tiger brought to them and Rakan will transfer to another zoo once he’s a little older

2.) i talked to some of the zookeepers and park staff today and apparently the park plans on renovating the African Elephant exhibit and open up the Asian plains exhibit along with the Dhole exhibit. Apparently these new plans for the elephants will cost around 40 million dollars and will involve a walkway between the two seperate exhibits and expanding the smaller elephant yards watering hole

3.) the park is no longer planning on getting Australian Turkeys because they are worried about destroying the vegetation in the Kangaroo and wallabies exhibit. Polly the tree kangaroo has been seperated from Spike as the two of them apparently mated do they are waiting to see if Polly gives birth. The park also recently got 2 young female cassowaries behind the scenes that aren’t quite fully matured. The two girls have been recommended by the SSP to breed with Punto and Maka

4.) the park has moved Maoto into the rhino rescue center to help the six rhinos Victoria, Wallis, Nikita, Amani, Helene and Livia with their artificial insemínation program as part of their plan to bring back Northern White Rhinos. Lembe the parks eastern black rhino was relocated and the park has now brought in a young female name Akia who is getting acclimated in a boma. She will live in the Central Africa field enclosure and the park now has plans to start breeding eastern black rhinos again!!

5.) the park recently got a breeding recommendation from the SSP apparently for Msholo to breed with Mabus two oldest daughters.

There’s your report. If u have any questions please let me know

 

Will be interesting to see the progress on this.

 

Any idea where female black rhino Lembe was transferred to?

 

This will be the best thing they have done in a long time!

 

It has been in the works for a long time now, I remember being told about it when I went in January 2018. The trail already exists, it just needs to be expanded further down to a viewing point that overlooks the area. It won't be a full opening, though. Basically you'll be able to look out over a couple of the main fields and that's about it. Any animals on the far side of the largest field or in some of the side enclosures still won't be sufficiently viewable. That is, if the plans are still the same as they were over a year ago.

~Thylo

 

@ThylacineAlive yes that’s still the plan according to keepers. Actúally I noticed some construction around the exhibit

 

News of the Asian Savannah opening for the general public is wonderful I was told similar things during my tour in that area in the park in January 2018, so I wonder how soon this will all be happening. The news about the elephant renovations are also quite interesting and I hope this will all occur sooner than later.

 

The well themed walls blocking the entrance to the potential platypus exhibit gave me the impression that plans had stalled. I did not want to say this in my post because it would have been completely uninformed and based on circumstantial evidence. Sorry to hear the impression I had was more or less accurate.

Your Asian Savannah news is most welcomed. Thank you for your efforts and report.

 

Interesting news about the elephant exhibit. Is it solely being improved staff-side? I don't know what they could improve guest-side. A new viewing area would be welcome to replace the old overlook, but speaking from a guest point of view, the current exhibit seems like it doesn't need any additions. I would have liked to see something done with the gorilla exhibit, as of right now it is the weakest area of the park.

 

The park is now handraising two giraffe calves!!

San Diego Zoo Safari Park

 

The Tembo Stadium is not being used any longer it appears. They were doing elephant care demos for awhile after the Asian elephant behavioral demos ended, but that no longer appears to happen. Conversion of that space into a viewing area would help improve access and viewing of their elephants. This is just speculation on my part.

 

On a recent ZOONOOZ post: Pride Matters, it mentions that they still have two of the Lion cubs from the 2014 litter, Ernest and Miss Ellen. However, it does not mention where the other two females, Evelyn and Marion, are. Does anybody know where they may have gone?