Wellington Zoo has successfully bred thirteen Goliath bird-eating Tarantulas! This is the first ever birth of this species in Australasia, and the first birth in captivity in twenty years! Wellington Zoo first in 20 years to breed Goliath birdeater tarantulas
Fantastic news. I hope a few of these spiders will be distributed to zoos across New Zealand and Australia.
I was about to post that the last part seems extremely unlikely, given the popularity of keeping mygalomorphs overseas, but then I looked at the article and it doesn't actually say that it is "the first birth in captivity for twenty years" - it says that no zoo in the ZIMS database reports breeding them during that time-frame, which is not the same thing at all.
Hello Chlidonias, I suppose you are right. It is yet a mile off that all zoos and professional captive-breeding facilities are linked and in the ZIMS-network. On the other hand, I am not even beginning to chat about the private breeders networks where - as you rightly observed - mygalomorphs are more regularly maintained and perhaps also bred. I will keep an eye out for any mention of Theraphosa blondi and captive-breeding and hatchings!
Wellington Zoo is reopening the 18th May and zoo entry will be free until the 30th June! From the zoo’s Facebook page: Wellington Zoo
I don't know what other cities in NZ are doing, but in Wellington the city council has made all public transport (i.e. buses and trains) free since the lockdown started and continuing until 30 June; and both the zoo and Zealandia will be free until 30 June (they are managed by trusts but owned by the city council).
Wellington Zoo has announced the birth of a Wellington Green Gecko. From their Facebook page: Security Check
Wellington Zoo has announced that their pair of Cotton-top Tamarins - Celeste and Soto - have had a baby. The male, Soto is the one that was imported from Singapore last year. According to the post, the Cotton-top Tamarins have moved into an upgraded enclosure next to the Golden Lion Tamarins. From their Facebook page: Wellington Zoo
I was at the zoo today - the "baby" is half the size of the parents, so not exactly new (unless they have a juvenile plus a newborn which I didnt see, but neither adult appeared to be carrying a baby).
In the latest newsletter there was the information that over the free-entry period (which has now finished) the zoo had over 50,000 visitors.
In "latest visit news" from today, the backings off most of the tanks at Hero HQ have been removed allowing viewing into the interior of the building which is quite neat. For anyone who doesn't know the zoo, Hero HQ is the reptile/invertebrate building, originally a food kiosk, where the tanks are viewed from the outside - so now when you look into the tanks you can see through the rear glass panel into the building. There are lots of invert tanks to be seen and more-than-expected Scheltopusik tanks (obviously breeding is going well), although of course none of the little ID labels on the tanks can be read to see what they contain. Something unexpected was an aquarium with a shoal of Blind Cave Fish - no idea why they are being kept off-show in there. No sign of the "baby" Lace Monitors which used to be in there, so I presume they grew too big to be kept in there and have been moved elsewhere. I do wonder why they even got the monitors in the first place; they have never been on display since they got them about a year and a half ago. This photo is from 2013, when Hero HQ first opened, but it looks the same still so anyone who hasn't been there can see what it looks like: Hero HQ, sides one and two - ZooChat And here's a Scheltopusik from today: The only other thing worth mentioning is that there is a juvenile Pied Shag in "The Nest" (the zoo's hospital):
An update on these Goliath Bird-eating Tarantulas bred earlier in the year. The zoo currently have eight spiderlings and they are all now around five-months-old. According to the article, the zoo will be keeping some of them, while some of the others will move to other zoos. The article also mentions a brief udpate on the Nyala: "Two nyala - a type of antelope - were born during lockdown and named Jacinda and Dr Ashley. More nyala have since been born." Wellington Zoo's Goliath bird-eating tarantula babies doing well
Wellington Zoo have announced the birth of a female Nyala (I’m not sure if it’s one of the calves mentioned above or a new one). According to the Facebook post, the zoo now have a herd of 22 Nyala!! Security Check
I checked a well known animal traders website recently and found species most commonly advertised include nyala, greater kudu, roan and sable antelope, springbok and wildebeest. Perhaps this might spring some Antipodes zoos into expanding their collections befitting the African savannah theme????
It might be possible foe NZ but until oz gets its IRA together for imports its going to have to wait for dreams like that!
It is about time that zoos get their act together vis a vis the national Government and administration. That whole IRA screening process has become a ineffective joke and a charade smokescreen. How long does it really needs to take (where administration is failing is local native wild fauna and flora irrespective of iRA's operational or not). Well, that is just my perception ..., but it might be an inconvenient truth all the same. Honestly, I do sincerely hope IRA's come to pass, but it is a excrutiangly infuriating slow snail's pace process. Hence, me quipping like I do.
Wellington Zoo Annual Report 2020 Wellington Zoo have released their annual report for 2020: https://wellingtonzoo.com/assets/Resources/Annual-Report-2020-artwork-FINAL-higher-res2.pdf Update on the Snow leopard Exhibit/Import: After being approved in Wellington City Council’s Long-Term Plan (2018-28), planning has begun in earnest to create a new habitat for Snow Leopards at Wellington Zoo. In March, the Design and Construction Supervision contract was awarded to local firm Architecture Workshop, and in June, Story Inc. was awarded the contract for Interpretive Design. The Design team has come together to work through concept design and developed design. Design work will ensure these majestic big cats have the best possible animal welfare, and that we have best practice staff spaces along with an engaging visitor experience connecting to conservation stories of this vulnerable species. Exports: A female Kea to Invercargill Aviaries Two African Crested Porcupines to Orana Wildlife Park Five Capybara males to Taronga Zoo Three male Nyala to Keystone Wildlife Conservancy Meerkats to Natureland Zoo and Brooklands Zoo Births: 13 Tarantulas A Cotton-Top Tamarin Meerkat pups Two Red Rumped Agoutis Two Nyala calves Catfish and Blind Cave Fish (multiple births) Other news: Two female Tasmanian Devils, Cassia and Clove, joined Dash (our existing female) in September from the Tasmanian Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment. Two male Squirrel Monkeys from France were welcomed to the Zoo in July and introduced to the troop for breeding with two babies born as a result of successful introductions. Four Moko Kākāriki Wellington Green Gecko arrived from Zealandia in August and two from Ngā Manu Nature Reserve (Waikanae) in January. We had our first successful breeding in Te Piringa Iti, our reptile breeding facility, in June, with one Gecko born. A male Nyala, Skipper, died after probably being spooked by Guy Fawkes fireworks and a nearby bush fire. Djembe, a female 17-year-old Lion, was euthanised after her health and quality of life deteriorated due to age-related health concerns which could not be effectively treated without compromising welfare. Yindi, a female Dingo, was euthanised after it became clear through her behaviour that her quality of life had become compromised.
