Flamingo Land!

It's been eighteen months since my last visit to Flamingo Land, the last time I visited, I had walked the seven and a half miles from the train station to Flamingo Land. When in actual reality, it would have been a lot easier to visit via bus! I spent most of my time with the carnivores, specifically tigers due to the fact the lions did not like the cold! Plus I also grew a tremendous amount of love for Eastern black rhinoceros.

The last time I visited Flamingo Land was in February 2015 and this was when Surya the adult Sumatran tigeress had three eleven month-old triplets with her, the cubs were two females Bulan and Mentari and the big male cub, Kuasa. Bawa on the other hand (The father of the triplets) was virtually unseen during my last visit, however, things were opposite on this occasion. Having spent the first hour or so having a gander around the collection, I returned to the tiger enclosure to find both tigers still in their house with Bawa pacing indoors, it should be noted that both tigers had outdoor access, however, due to the severe cold in Yorkshire, I supported their decision to stay indoors! 

Bawa is an impressive male, at the age of eight years old he is in his prime and spent a while during the afternoon calling to Surya. The studbook keeper at the moment has suspended breeding with this pair due to the genes from both families, Surya's side is more stronger than Bawa's. Surya's parents had four successful offspring and her mother, Banda is the offspring of the infamous pairing at Dudley Zoo between Sarah and Filon. As mentioned in past blogs, Surya's father, Tenang (Who unfortunately passed around twelve to eighteen months due to a kidney failure at the splendid age of around fifteen/sixteen years old) was the result of a very important import from Perth Zoo in early 2002/03. Surya's siblings consist of two males and a female. Her litter mates were actually two males and another female (Not the one previously mentioned!) however, the female cub died at a young age due to an injury relating to the leg. The two males are Aryo who is now in Netherlands at Arnhem/Burgers Zoo and the other male is Bintang who is at Zoo Doue La Fontaine, the two males are now fathers to several tigers. Surya's other sibling is Kirana the now retired female at Chester Zoo, who was born in a separate litter with a brother, Topan, who unfortunately died due to a heart condition. A touching tribute to him is that Chester Zoo named one of Kirana's sons after Topan. As you can see, with Kirana having seven cubs, Aryo having four and Bintang having several too then this leads to quite a lot of related tigers in Europe. A sensible move to suspend the breeding from Surya/Bawa at the moment. 

Surya is a beautiful tiger and moves in such a majestic way which is one of the many reasons I find her an amazing tiger. Bawa is a typical male tiger, with a very big head and long length body, Kuasa very much takes after his father in my opinion with his head size. A little bit of trivia, Flamingo Land previously held Eurasian lynx in one side of the tiger enclosure and a pair of Amur tiger sisters in the other. Flamingo Land's tiger enclosure is one of my personal highlights of the collection because of the history, it is one of the very few enclosures I remember as a small child as well as the polar bear enclosure (Which is no longer there).

I spent most of the day with the tigers of course, however, after feeding time they decided to head back indoors. Both tigers spent some time enjoying pieces of meat left for them and then Bawa spent some time calling to Surya and vice-versa. The sound of a tiger calling is one of the most spectacular things I have ever heard and I will never, ever, get bored of it. Overall a great day at Flamingo Land albeit a little cold, but, very inspiring talking to two of their keepers and spending time with the most amazing tigers. 

A brief update, I have a Chester, Colchester and Blackpool blog all to come yet, stay tuned as there is much more to come before the year is out and some exciting developments happening in 2017. 

Again, thank you to all for having a read and sharing the blog, I would appreciate it if you could all continue reading, sharing and giving feedback.

All the best,

Jordan.

Tiger Tracks!

Hello again!

So yesterday, the 10th October 2016, I visited Edinburgh Zoo, a collection which I have a great love for despite a few negativities in recent years. A lot of species have left the collection since 2010 including Amur leopard, jaguar, clouded leopard, Asiatic golden cat, wolverine, Andean cock-of-the-rock, maned wolf and Eastern kiang to name a few. Despite the departure of such magnificent species, the zoo has maintained its uniqueness with a lot of bizarre animals.

The departure of the felids in particular is linked in with their new opening of Tiger Tracks. Edinburgh Zoo had a row of enclosures which was collectively known as the big cat row, these were since closed down in 2012/13 from memory, though, that could be a lot wrong. However, at the top of that row was their Sumatran tiger pair, 'Jambi' and 'Baginda'. Their exhibit has housed Amur tigers in the past, the original Amur tigers at Highland Wildlife Park (The sister collection to Edinburgh Zoo) the enclosure held 'Yuri' who was the male born at Duisburg Zoo and the female, Sasha who was genetically important as she was born at Moscow Zoo. Up until 2010, Edinburgh Zoo housed Amur tigers until they received their first ever Sumatran tigers. A brother-sister pairing, 'Chandra' and 'Tibor' who were born 16th July 2007 at Hedelberg Zoo to 'Kim' and 'Sabu'. They arrived in 2010, however, shortly after their arrival, Chandra was moved to Champrepus Zoo in 2011. Since her move to Champrepus Zoo she has had three cubs with their male, 'Oscar'. The first cub which 'Chandra' gave birth to was 'Douga' a young female who now lives in Ireland and Fota Wildlife Park, from numerous reports I've heard about' Douga' she is believed to be quite a feisty female. The other two cubs are two males born on the 16th February 2013. 'Dhjala' (Who now lives in Augsburg Zoo) and his brother, 'Argo' were the second litter to be born to 'Chandra'.

Just going back to 'Tibor' when he was at Edinburgh, about six months after he arrived, he had to have an operation to have a cataract (I think that's what it was!) removed from his eye, which resulted in his eye being removed. So, unfortunately, 'Tibor' only has on eye. He now lives in Barcelona with a female named 'Pertama' who was born in 2005. From various sources, I believe the pair have now accepted its each others presence, shall we say?

Edinburgh Zoo's current pair, 'Jambi' and 'Baginda' have been introduced quite a lot and from numerous reports that I've heard, they're doing excellent together with lots of flirtatious behaviour from the female and a lot of mating. 'Baginda' was paired with 'Tibor' before, but, they had no success, she arrived on the 28th May 2011 and 'Tibor' left in the Summer of 2015. He moved to Barcelona Zoo and 'Jambi' arrived from Berlin Tierpark on the 30th July 2015. If they do breed, these cubs will be the first ever Sumatran tiger cubs to be born at Edinburgh Zoo and I believe in Scotland. I never had the opportunity to see 'Sarah' and 'Filon' who are the parents of 'Jambi', but, I have seen 'Padang' (The male at South Lakes Safari Zoo who was sadly euthanised in 2016) who was born in the same litter as 'Jambi' in 2002. They look identical, for a moment, I thought I was seeing 'Padang' all over again. The Dudley Zoo tiger line interests me quite a lot, because, the litters produced from their pair have now gone all over Europe.

'Baginda' was born on the 6th April 2003 at Dortmund Zoo to 'Rachka' and 'Ankor', I actually had the opportunity to see 'Baginda' in her previous home, Terra Natura Benidorm in 2009 and 2011. She lived with her sister from the same litter, 'Baghagia' who unfortunately died in 2014/15. Terra Natura Benidorm were none-breeding holders for the studbook up until 'Baghagia' passed. After that, they imported a young male, 'Vanni' who was born in May 2010 at Rotterdam Zoo to 'Alia' and 'Hermes', he was joined in December/January time by a female named 'Keisha' who was born at Krefeld Zoo on the 28th March 2012 to 'Sutera' and 'Beludru'. She moved to the UK in the same shipment as her brother, 'Joao' who moved to Dudley Zoo and 'Keisha' and her sister, 'Kinnara' moved to Welsh Mountain Zoo where they lived with a hybrid male 'Flynn/Bryn' until he passed away last year.

I spent most of my day at the Tiger Tracks yesterday and I was extremely impressed. Particularly with the signage efforts, from my point of view, Edinburgh Zoo has taken extreme detail into account when creating their signage. The detail notes about the dangers that current Sumatran tigers are facing, it notes their home land and the difference in their habitat. Such as the farm lands, the roads and the rainforest. Something which I was particularly thrilled with was the addition of a new tiger house! Their old house was a little run down, let's just say. The signage also had some rather nice examples of the sizes of tigers, which is educational for children which is extremely important! The tigers themselves? Well, 'Jambi' was a sleep for most of the day, which is typical. 'Baginda' was a little more active, displaying some pacing behaviour, but, she spent a lot of her time towards the time of the enclosure trying to get towards the new house where 'Jambi' was. The enclosure for Tiger Tracks is good, the one thing I would have like to have seen added/changed, would be the addition of a slide system and fencing near the entry of the tiger outside enclosure. It would make for a very nice little nursery if/when 'Baginda' produces cubs.

I have another blog coming up before Friday, I think! It's from my visit to Blackpool a few weeks back and it'll be about a day in the life of an Amur tiger, 'Alyona' and 'Zambar' style!

Thanks all for the support,
Jordan.

West Mid's trip!

Back again...

On the 19th September 2016, we headed down to West Mid's Safari Park as it had been a collection that I wanted to get back to since 2009 when I visited for the only other time. A lot of things had changed from my visit, although some things never change!

Since my last visit in 2009, WMSP acquired a pure-bred pair of Sumatran tigers which was a lovely addition to the park and it's even better as it is another holder in Europe willing to take on Sumatrans! In 2011, a female named 'Hujan' arrived from Arnhem Zoo in the Netherlands. She was born on the 14th September 2006 at Chessington World of Adventures where she was apart of the trio of sisters born to then first time mother, 'Ratna'. Her two sisters, 'Bayu' and 'Deru' also headed to Arnhem Zoo with her in 2008 as Arnhem became holders of Sumatrans to gain husbandry experience with the species. In 2011, Arnhem were selected to receive a new pair, which featured 'Aryo' the male born at Paignton Zoo as part of their litter of four in 2009. The female which arrived was 'Jarum' born in 2008 herself at Krefeld Zoo to 'Sutera' and 'Beludru'. As a result of a new pairing, the three sisters, 'Bayu', 'Deru' and 'Hujan' were all shipped off to different collections. Both sisters headed off to Japan, 'Bayu' moved to Yagiyama Zoo and 'Deru' moved to Yokohoma Zoo. Unfortunately, one of the females has since died, unknown reason and it is unclear which female has passed.

Back onto WMSP, after 'Hujan' had arrived, in the same year, 'Emas' arrived from Dublin Zoo, he was born on the 29th May 2009 to 'Sigra' (Born at Heidelberg Zoo in 2000) and 'Kepala' (Born at Dublin Zoo in 2005). 'Emas' was in a litter of two with his sister, 'Wanita' who now lives in France. At birth, 'Emas' weighed 1kg and his sister weighed 0.85kg, at five months old, he weighed 22kg and his sister weighed 17kg! 'Emas' and 'Hujan' mated several times according to reports, however, with no success which ultimately led to the EEP studbook keeper moving 'Emas' to Rotterdam Zoo and 'Nakal' one of the most genetically important cubs in Europe to arrive.

'Nakal' was born on the 3rd February 2014 at ZSL London Zoo in a litter of three with his brother, 'Budi' moving to Welsh Mountain Zoo and his sister, 'Cinta' headed to Prague Zoo. Their parents are 'Melati' and 'Jae Jae', who are Australian and American imported respectively. 'Melati' was the first to arrive in September 2012 and is the daughter of 'Hari' the previous tiger cub born at ZSL London Zoo in 1995. 'Jae Jae' arrived two weeks later from Akron Zoo where he spent a year or so with his brother and sister. Originally he was born at San Francisco Zoo, whereas 'Melati' was born at Perth Zoo.

It was great to see the pair mixed, 'Hujan' is obviously the more dominant of the two and they were at opposite sides of the enclosure. It is more of relationship where they tolerant each other rather than they enjoy each other's company. It will be interesting to see what happens to the entire tiger complex once the white's are phased out. It is a huge structure, it is a huge site and we were particularly impressed with the tiger run leading from the house to the tiger ridge exhibit! A quick mention on the whites, they have five, three males and two females.

Next stop... Hmm! Thank you for reading, any questions? Feel free to ask!

From Blackpool to Bourbannais!

Today, the 6th September 2016 was the last day for 'Barney' the Amur tiger at Blackpool Zoo. 'Barney' and his brother, 'Radzhi' were the result of a great partnership between 'Alyona' and 'Zambar' the resident pair at Blackpool Zoo. The two male cubs were the first tiger cubs successfully born at the zoo since 1996. The last cubs were a male and two females, they turned out to be 'Tammy', 'Tazmin' and 'Turlouch'. If you have read my other blog, you will see about their history and their life.

I arrived at the zoo around fifteen to twenty minutes after opening time to find that he had already left the zoo. He left the zoo around 10:00am, he is going to Bourbannais Zoo in France, I'm still trying to trace some details about his new collection.

It's been a pleasure to see the two cubs transfer from cubs to such young and majestic tigers. I remember waiting for them to make an appearance at around a year ago and standing at the window in the house to see them. I always found 'Barney' to be more of his mother's son, rather than his father's son. Towards the end of his time at Blackpool Zoo, obviously as tigers mature, the patience from the mother (And father in this case) grows thin. 'Barney' is the exact duplicate of his father, his relationship with his father was something that fascinated me. 'Zambar' himself was hand-raised and him being such a great father to his cubs, shows what a truly fantastic tiger he is.

The two cubs had a unique bond, which only brother's share. It's excellent to see that for a first time mother, Ally has raised two amazing young tigers. 'Radzhi' left Blackpool Zoo in January, he now lives in Santo di Inacio in Portugal. He is living with a female named 'Mila', they are related I believe. I think the two are second cousins from memory.

On that note, I'm sure the keepers are very pleased that they have two young, healthy, mother raised tigers in two different collections in Europe successfully raised! I've had some amazing times just watching those four tigers, it was amazing to see them mature into two fantastic tigers. All the best, Barney, Bon Voyage and safe travels!

ZSL London Zoo - Tiger Territory

Hello al!

For my second blog, I was a little unsure on what to write, so, I thought as I'm off to London in a few weeks, I'll write a small blog on ZSL London Zoo and their amazing Tiger Territory exhibit. I have only visited ZSL London Zoo once, this was over a year ago in February 2015. I was thrilled with one of their newest exhibits, Tiger Territory!

Plans for a new tiger enclosure at ZSL London Zoo had been scheduled for years, however, it finally began to construction several years ago. ZSL London Zoo's original pair of Sumatran tiger were 'Lumpar' and 'Raika', a non-breeding, old duo. 'Lumpar' was the male, born in France on 18th August 1997, who arrived in late October 1999. His mate, 'Raika' is from the Berlin Tierpark line, she was born on 26th May 1995 and was a single cub, she originally arrived on 30th April 1997. However, her full sister, by separate litters, 'Sarah' (Dudley Zoo) was swapped with her for breeding purposes on 6th June 2007. Though, no offspring occurred from the pairing of 'Lumpar' and 'Sarah', eventually, 'Sarah' was moved back to Dudley Zoo on 21st October 2008 with 'Raika' moving in the opposite direction. The duo of 'Lumpar' and 'Raika' left ZSL London Zoo in September 2012 to retire at the Wildlife Heritage Foundation. Unfortunately, in late 2015, 'Raika' was euthanised at the grand old age of twenty. A wonderful age for a beautiful cat.

This left ZSL London Zoo with no tigers, however, on 26th September 2012, a young female arrived freshly imported from Australia. 'Melati' was born on 20th August 2008 in a litter of three with her two brothers, 'Satri' and 'Jaya'. Her parents are 'Setia' (Originally born at Perth Zoo and a relative to 'Tenang' - the deceased male at Paignton Zoo, father of 'Kirana' at Chester Zoo) and 'Hari'. 'Hari' is actually the only ZSL London Zoo tiger before the introduction of their new tigers in 2012.

The second tiger to arrive for ZSL London Zoo's tiger territory was 'Jae Jae', a stunning young male born on 6th March 2008 at San Francisco Zoo. He arrived several weeks after 'Melati', in October 2012. After his arrival, steady introductions were taken to introduce the pair and a successful introduction was made several months after. Before they were moved to their new tiger territory exhibit, they were introduced in the old tiger enclosure, however, they were successfully moved across to their new exhibit in 2013.

On 22nd September 2013, 'Melati' gave birth to a single cub, the first tiger cub for ZSL London Zoo in seventeen years since the birth of 'Hari'. Although things were going great to start with, tragedy struck as 'Melati' took the precious cub outdoors once evening and the cub drowned in the outdoor pool. A post mortem on the cub found the beautiful cub had drowned. A bit blow to the studbook, the keepers, visitors, but, most importantly to 'Melati'.

Success! After such tragedy five months earlier, 'Melati' gave birth again on the 3rd February 2014, the second litter for her and 'Jae Jae'. Two males, named 'Budi' and 'Nakal, and a little female named 'Cinta' were welcomed into the world and were quite a handful for mum, 'Melati' to say the least! 'Melati' was a fantastic mother to this trio, raising them all successfully to adulthood, kept separate from their father, but, the wonderful thing about their exhibit is that, the glass windows allowed the young trio to interact with their lovely father.

After a long eighteen months for 'Melati', the two young males, 'Budi' and 'Nakal', were moved from ZSL London Zoo to new collections to eventually contribute to the EEP and their species in Europe. The two boys who were inseparable left the glorious ZSL London Zoo in late 2015, 'Budi' moved to Welsh Mountain Zoo on  7th January 2016 and his brother, 'Nakal' moved to West Midlands Safari Park, in Bewdley two days prior. 'Cinta' stayed with her mother for slightly longer, according to people I have spoken too, the two were very fond of each other. 'Melati' in particular had a lot of patience with her daughter. 'Cinta' left ZSL London Zoo in early March 2016 to move to Prague Zoo, leaving just the two adults, 'Jae Jae' and 'Melati' again.

When I first visited ZSL London Zoo, I spent the majority of my time at their Tiger Territory exhibit, it was amazing. Two great enclosures, good viewing for the public, good space for the animals and very good quality of signage. I'm looking forward to heading back down to London, it's a great place and the keepers are exceptional.