Yes, there are too many males in the group in my opinion. think that Eastern lowland gorillas can also come to Belgium. There are 3.11 Eastern Lowland Gorillas in GRACE in Congo. Antwerp can keep the gorillas in and out alternately, they used to do the same when they kept mountain gorillas, western lowland gorillas and eastern lowland gorillas at the same time. Yes, since the death of her friend Victoria and Kiki (Amahoro was the last gorilla that had contact with her before she died) she is more on her own. However, she regularly plays with the little ones and since they were born she has revived completely. I think the whole group structure will fall apart at the Antwerp Zoo when she dies in about 25 years. They always let her go first to injured or new animals, otherwise things won't end well (just look at Kiki). Even if Matadi (the silverback) is too busy she solves it, just like almost all problems.
I think the chimp group is fine if they viewed it as extermination protocol. But they intend to breed instead of joining breeding programs with sub-species pure groups. I agree about Amahoros place in the group and that it has gotten better since the births of Thandie. But I think it's still a little sub optimal. Fun fact after a conversation with a professor according to him the Antwerp zoo probably never had mountain gorillas but only Eastern and Western. According to him the Mountain gorillas were very few in zoos and most were mistook Eastern. That would make sense as well with the availability of capture in the wild going after mountain gorillas would be more difficult.
Yes they want to breed with the chimpanzees but i think they want until the most agressive ones are died. I personally think that Victoria who passed away in 2016 was a mountain gorilla, because she was born as a mountain gorilla (in the Antwerp Zoo itself, so that's easy to check). Amahoro is a confirmed Eastern lowland, but Victoria clearly differed from Amahoro. But Antwerp Zoo has certainly once had mountain gorillas. Their first gorilla actually arrived in 1922, and it looked exactly like a mountain gorilla and was labeled as a mountain gorilla. However, he only lived a few months because due lack of knowledge.
Victoria definitely was a Eastern lowland Gorilla.(Gorilla beringei graueri). The professor in question even examined the corpses of those first gorillas kept in the Royal Museum for Central Africa in Tervuren (they were saved on ethanol after being transferred from Formaldehyde all be it sometimes in pieces.)
According to the Gorilla studbook, Antwerp have held a number of both Mountain and Eastern Lowland gorillas in the distant past, but many were very short- lived, until they imported two pairs of Eastern Lowlands. One pair of these were the parents of Victoria who was definately Eastern Lowland.
As said above the professor examined the corpses and actually doubts mountain gorillas were kept he is sure about Antwerp but not about every other zoo he does however think plenty were Eastern Lowland Gorillas. And I said Victoria was Eastern Lowland as well.
I often wondered if the 'mountain gorillas' listed on the studbook for Antwerp were really that species. So apparently they were all probably Eastern Lowlands.
I don't want to name the professor in an online tread but he does seem to think there are barely any if any at all that were kept in zoos. Wich would make sense since people didn't even know about the different species and the accessibility of capturing a wild gorilla it would be way easier to capture lowland then mountain.
Not going either way as to which gorillas have been kept, but "anonymous guy on internet says that another anonymous guy says this" isn't exactly proof of anything.
Not that I know of this was just after a conversation I had in his class. Also I don't think there is any merit in publishing this since it's purely historical and not scientific, what I do know is that in further studies they will use them as the right species(or sub-species) of gorilla.
So it literally is just "one guy says that some other guy says this"? What does this mean? - "what I do know is that in further studies they will use them as the right species(or sub-species) of gorilla"
Look you believe what you want to believe I just thought I would share what I heard. But Victoria is the sub-species of Eastern Lowland gorilla regardless.
I don't "believe" either way - I have no stake in it. I'm just saying that what some unnamed guy says is irrelevant if there is nothing to back it up. You also haven't answered my previous question. What does "what I do know is that in further studies they will use them as the right species(or sub-species) of gorilla" if you already said you don't know if this supposed data was published and that you don't think there is any merit in it anyway?
I know that the professor was asked to get Bonobo corpses for Ct scans about a study that will be published on the larynx. So in case there is an intrest in gorillas whatever species it is these will be categorized in the future as Eastern Lowland gorillas.
Here's an unusual story: Woman banned from zoo for unhealthy relationship with chimp shunned by troop
Starting September 1st, making a reservation will no longer be necessary to visit Zoo Antwerpen and Zoo Planckendael. This rule will apply on all days and for both day visitors and membercard holders. Some measures, like wearing face masks in indoor spaces, will remain in place. It will remain to be see what will happen with the limits on visitor numbers, which in the last few months already seemed to have been increased towards a more normal capacity, and with social distancing, a rule which although theoretically still in place will in practice probably be largely abandoned. ZOO Antwerpen Log In or Sign Up to View
We are in a forum, all hiding behind aliases so if someone quotes a professor who is not named and can't link to a paper of course people are critical. It is not like a real life meeting where we have the chance to judge someone's information based on their back-ground and previous credentials. And even though I have reason to belief that what Perseus6 wrote is correct, I think the responses are very understandable. And in the end we don't even know if your claim of being the professor is correct or not.
