We all know Toronto is a world leader in animal conservation. As a member of the AZA it is required to participate in some SSP programs at the Green level but Toronto goes far beyond meeting simple requirements of some. SSP's Toronto participates in.The zoo participates in 20 Greens, 91 Yellows and 15 Red programs for a total of 126. I'm probably off by some because I could only cross reference against what the AZA has available online. Now not all SSP's at the zoo contain breeding groups. Many do not especially among the birds where the zoo will often hold surplus animals who are either genetically over represented or just not needed at this time. Yet in other programs Toronto houses some of the most genetically valuable animals in all of North America, giraffe Mstari is the number 1 Masai Giraffe female. We have at least 25 other animals in the top ten of their gender for their species. Off the top of my head, marabou stork (Gracie), hyena (Echo), orangs (Budi and Sekali), saki (Maderia) pygmy hippos (Harvey and Kindia), snow leopard (Ena), lynx (Ryan), cheetah (Laini), zebra (Jake), babirusa (Olive), Indian rhino (Asha), wombat (Arthur), Bettong (Julie), Tree kangaroo (Collins and the incoming female), kookabura (Karee), 2 scarlet ibis females, both sea eagles and bleeding heart dove (female). For those who don't know there are three levels of SSP's that a zoo may be involved with, Green, Yellow and Red. Green are the most stable programs for the long term. Yellow programs are potentially stable but do require additional attention and effort to keep it stable. Things that could be consider in that is a need to increase space, genetic diversity and population size. Red programs are unstable populations in critical situations where intense management is needed to find founders, build the population and establish space. Generally these will be populations between 20 to 50 animals depending on the needs of the species. Green Programs Puerto Rican crested toad Western Lowland Gorilla Sumatran Orangutan Radiated Tortoise Black Breasted Leaf Turtle Caribbean Flamingo Grevy’s Zebra Jaguar Lion Amur Tiger Grey Crowned Crane Golden Lion Tamarin Tawny Frogmouth Plush Crested Jay White Crested Laughingthrush African Penguin Ring Tailed Lemur Meerkat North American River Otter Red Panda Yellow Programs Dusky Gopher Frog Panamanian Golden Frog (sora) Wyoming Toad Trumpeter Swan Common Eland Masai Giraffe Greater Kudu Wildebeest White Handed Gibbon Straw Coloured Fruit Bat Egyptian Fruit Bat Polar Bear (not a participant but that's due to the inability of to import and export) Spotted Hyena Painted Terrapin Brown Forest Turtle Burmese Star Tortoise Home’s Hinge Back Tortoise Madagascar Spider Tortoise Madagascar Flat Tailed Tortoise Spiny Turtle Spotted Turtle Hamerkop African Sacred Ibis Scarlet Ibis African Spoonbill Marabou Stork Grey Capped Emerald Dove Luzon Bleeding Heart Dove Green Naped Pheasant Pigeon Nicobar Pigeon Victoria Crowned Pigeon Northern Ground Hornbill Southern Ground Hornbill Wrinkled Hornbill Laughing Kookaburra Blue Crowned Motmot Blue Bellied Roller Przewalski’s Horse Cheetah Clouded Leopard Snow Leopard Canadian Lynx Cougar Sumatran Tiger Lake Victoria Cichlids - Argens Lake Victoria Cichlids - Degeni Lake Victoria Cichlids - Perrieri Lake Victoria Cichlids - Paceatus Lake Victoria Cichlids - Two Stripe White Lips White Blotched River Stingray Palawan Peacock Pheasant Crested Wood Partridge Black Crake Wattled Crane Red Legged Seriema Sunbittern San Esteban Chuckwalla Komodo Dragon Chinese Crocodile Lizard Black Tree Monitor Prehensile-Tailed Skink Brush Tailed Bettong Short Beaked Echidna Western Grey Kangaroo Bennett’s Wallaby Southern Hairy Nosed Wombat Pygmy Marmoset Spider Monkey White Faced Saki Fairy Bluebird Golden Breasted Starling Linne’s Two Toed Sloth Green Aracari Eurasian Eagle Owl Snowy Owl Spectacled Owl Greater One Horned Rhino White Rhino Capybara African Crested Porcupine Prehensile Tailed Porcupine Black Footed Ferret Jamacian Boa Eastern Massassagua Rattlesnake Mexican Red Kneed Tarantula Violaceous Turaco White Cheeked Turaco Babirusa River Hippo Red River Hog Warthog Red Programs Indochinese Box Turtle Great Hornbill Sunda Gharial Moose Lake Victoria Cichlids - Ishmaeli Lake Victoria Cichlids - Melanopterus Cabot’s Tragopan Tree Kangaroo Lion Tailed Macque Red Billed Blue Magpie Stellar Sea Eagle Secretary Bird African Spotted Necked Otter Elegant Crested Tinamou Pygmy Hippo I know they also participate in the Bactrian Camel SSP but I don't know what level it is.
Oh and all that doesn't even take into account of the Canadian conservation programs that don't have SSPs. Wood Bison Blandings Turtles Vancouver Island Marmots Eastern Loggerhead Shrikes Grey Ratsnake Brown bats (not sure but probably both little and big) Oregon Spotted Frog Wood Turtle
Thank you for this interesting thread, particularly the reds. I was looking forward to seeing the Cabot's Tragopan when six were acquired but learned then that the AZA requires members to have a certain number of off-exhibit breeding programs so TZ got them to meet that requirement. They are held in the Snow Leopard "house". Great Hornbill is known at TZ by one of it's other names - Concave-casqued Hornbill" and will not likely be bred. Asha is very old and blind. In fact she was looking frail when I last saw her in June. Jonah does not get along well with others.
Thanks everyone. I just literally got bored and thought hey I wonder how many SSPs the zoo participates in? Then I spend the next several hours looking. Some were easier than others. I know all of the mammals but had to look through each species for the rest because while I know some of the species I cannot begin to even claim in know a fraction of the other groups. It's possible I missed some or added a few phased out species. Indeed great hornbill, Asha, was long ago deemed medically unfit to breed due to her blindness. Now her advanced age would prevent it as well. Jonah is overly aggressive and deemed a behavioral non breeder. Pity for both because their wild born genetics would have been a real boost to the population. While browsing through everything one thing did strike me. We hold a lot of bird species which we cannot breed. Many are single animals or single sexed flocks. Despite requests for mates the zoo cannot get some for I think the fairy bluebird. All the possible matches are better kept in other breeding situations with more valuable males. Our hamerkops are basically the least valuable males so the SSP wont waste a female on Toronto. We cannot breed our Nicobar pigeons because the zoo used to do a crummy job tracking parentage with them and now until they are all genetically tested to prove lineage they are a non breeding flock. All kinds of reasons. Even some of the ones they want the zoo to breed I don't think much is being done with. Marabou storks Gracie and George should be breeding due to Gracie's value and being a rare proven pair. Yet nothing happens. It's a pity because despite having Artie and Zuri neither will ever breed. Artie died shortly after being transferred and Zuri's deformed bill prevents her from being medically fit to breed. New chicks are needed from this pair. Although we do all know George kicks his eggs out of the nest so maybe that's the biggest problem. Recovering an egg before he destroys it. I think based on what I saw the most active breeding goes on with the reptiles and amphibians. Off the top of my head the only species I didn't see some breeding recommendation for was false gharial, Fernando, but that's because its not sexed. Once sexed a mate might be found based on its genetic value which would vary based on gender. I'd love to see them join some more SSP's and get rid of useless species that are not of conservation value. I'm looking right at you tur, common marmosets, nile soft shelled turtle and watusi. I'm glad others are dying out like the barabary sheep, chamois, tahr, mouflon, baboons and reindeer.