QUICK POST ALERT - Rosa King.
As many of you are aware, unfortunately yesterday, on the 29th May 2017 a rather sad incident took place at Hamerton Zoo Park. A serious incident took place involving a tiger of which is unconfirmed, and a keeper, resulting in the unfortunate death of a female keeper. Last night, this was confirmed as Rosa King, I never spoke to Rosa in person, however, I spoke to her on social media about tigers and felids in general. She was always extremely polite and would also be available to answer any questions about tigers and the animals in her care. I have seen many photographs on social media with cheetahs and the great, Sir David Attenborough.
My thoughts are with Hamerton Zoo Park, Rosa's colleagues, friends and family. Rest in peace, Rosa King.
Tuesday, 30 May 2017
Wednesday, 8 February 2017
Stripes on the move!
Welcome back to Tigers Life,
Firstly, what a busy couple of weeks it has been in Europe with the arrivals and departures of some very important tigers, from the Amur and Sumatran tigers. As such I decided to update the Blog on these moves.
So, starting from the beginning - A Sumatran tiger move will start us off, 'Vanni' the male at Terra Natura Benidorm moved from Spain over to Germany and arrived at Frankfurt Zoo where he will join 'Malea' (The mother of 'Asum', 'Berani', 'Daseep' and 'Taru') which I believe is for companionship as 'Malea' is a very well represented female having produced for cubs and the fact she is now approaching the age of sixteen years old. The addition of 'Vanni' now means Terra Natura Benidorm only house hybrid Bengal tigers, as the other female 'Keisha' has since left for elsewhere in Europe. I have seen 'Vanni' at Terra Natura Benidorm in 2014, he has a very large face from what I can remember and spent a significant amount of time in the (small) pool during his time at Terra Natura Benidorm. Now, some of the photos of him arriving at Frankfurt Zoo made me chuckle as he looks extremely content and chilled out upon his arrival! Looking forward to seeing what Frankfurt Zoo plan on doing long term with him!
The next move occurred today, with the arrival of a new female tigeress at Colchester. Amur tiger, 'Taiga' arrived today from Kristiansand Zoo. 'Taiga' was born on the 17th May 2013 to 'Boonya' and 'Ulysses', some of you could be familiar with the collection above. It is a Norwegian collection where 'Ingrid' (At Port Lympne Wild Animal Park) was born back on the 16th December 2003). I was thrilled to read that 'Taiga' has some royalty in her bloodline, her grandmother came from Novosibirsk Zoo, so genetically important! 'Taiga' is the offspring of 'Ulysses' who is the father of 'Ingrid', therefore, making them half-sisters. Very pleasing to hear that 'Taiga' arriving means that possible breeding plans with 'Igor' can now begin to take place now!
The other move today was 'Pan' at Wildlife Heritage Foundation in Kent, he moved to Eberswalde Zoo in Germany. The move was supposedly planned for a long time, 'Pan' is described as a very tall and pretty Amur tiger from various people who have seen in the flesh. During his time at WHF, 'Pan' sired three successful cubs, all females which was a surprise. Two of his daughters are now at Paradise Wildlife Park, the sister park to WHF, whilst his remaining daughter still lives at the park, now unfortunately alone as her mother, 'Ronja' passed quite recently.
Thanks all for reading, it's not a long Blog, but a quick update on some moves, in and around Europe. Thanks for reading, keep an eye out for more Blogs.
Photos courtesy of Zoo Frankfurt of 'Vanni'.
Firstly, what a busy couple of weeks it has been in Europe with the arrivals and departures of some very important tigers, from the Amur and Sumatran tigers. As such I decided to update the Blog on these moves.
So, starting from the beginning - A Sumatran tiger move will start us off, 'Vanni' the male at Terra Natura Benidorm moved from Spain over to Germany and arrived at Frankfurt Zoo where he will join 'Malea' (The mother of 'Asum', 'Berani', 'Daseep' and 'Taru') which I believe is for companionship as 'Malea' is a very well represented female having produced for cubs and the fact she is now approaching the age of sixteen years old. The addition of 'Vanni' now means Terra Natura Benidorm only house hybrid Bengal tigers, as the other female 'Keisha' has since left for elsewhere in Europe. I have seen 'Vanni' at Terra Natura Benidorm in 2014, he has a very large face from what I can remember and spent a significant amount of time in the (small) pool during his time at Terra Natura Benidorm. Now, some of the photos of him arriving at Frankfurt Zoo made me chuckle as he looks extremely content and chilled out upon his arrival! Looking forward to seeing what Frankfurt Zoo plan on doing long term with him!
The next move occurred today, with the arrival of a new female tigeress at Colchester. Amur tiger, 'Taiga' arrived today from Kristiansand Zoo. 'Taiga' was born on the 17th May 2013 to 'Boonya' and 'Ulysses', some of you could be familiar with the collection above. It is a Norwegian collection where 'Ingrid' (At Port Lympne Wild Animal Park) was born back on the 16th December 2003). I was thrilled to read that 'Taiga' has some royalty in her bloodline, her grandmother came from Novosibirsk Zoo, so genetically important! 'Taiga' is the offspring of 'Ulysses' who is the father of 'Ingrid', therefore, making them half-sisters. Very pleasing to hear that 'Taiga' arriving means that possible breeding plans with 'Igor' can now begin to take place now!
The other move today was 'Pan' at Wildlife Heritage Foundation in Kent, he moved to Eberswalde Zoo in Germany. The move was supposedly planned for a long time, 'Pan' is described as a very tall and pretty Amur tiger from various people who have seen in the flesh. During his time at WHF, 'Pan' sired three successful cubs, all females which was a surprise. Two of his daughters are now at Paradise Wildlife Park, the sister park to WHF, whilst his remaining daughter still lives at the park, now unfortunately alone as her mother, 'Ronja' passed quite recently.
Thanks all for reading, it's not a long Blog, but a quick update on some moves, in and around Europe. Thanks for reading, keep an eye out for more Blogs.
Photos courtesy of Zoo Frankfurt of 'Vanni'.
Wednesday, 25 January 2017
The South Lakes edition - Way Kambas Tiger Reserve
With a new year looming and an opportunity to visit the South Lakes Safari Zoo during their free entry period, I decided to take the opportunity. South Lakes Safari Zoo has had a dramatic history to say the least from an unfortunate keeper death to several escapee animals. With their potential closure, I decided to head up to the collection and check out the place, funnily enough I visited the collection on the 9th January 2016, one year previously!
Anyway, I have always enjoyed their tiger exhibit and conservation work which in my opinion, is severely overlooked. South Lakes have had a very interesting number of years with their tigers. They first received a male Sumatran tiger named 'Toba' in 1996 before the arrival of two Amur tigers, 'Egor' and 'Nina' who were a brother and sister pairing from Marwell Wildlife. These two tigers were the poster tigers for South Lakes, these two tigers were the tigers which were shown for the infamous pole climbing (The tiger feeding talk which included the meat being placed on the top of the pole and the tigers climbing the pole for their meat). Egor died in 2008/09 at the age of eleven/twelve years old from a suspected kidney failure. However, Nina lived up until around about 2012 and was one of the tigers who I had spent a lot of time with and studying.
Moving back to the Sumatrans, South Lakes held Sumatran tigers which have been their 'star' animal or main attraction, the park's founder, the ever controversial David Gill created the Sumatran Tiger Trust to aid the conservation work in Sumatra. One thing I enjoy reading in South Lakes' guidebooks is the history of their conservation work, there is a family tree of some icon tigers which have been an influential part of their work.
South Lakes have only ever had one tiger cub born in their collection history, a female named 'Kadi' who was named after Mr Gill's daughter. 'Kadi' was born on the 7th September 2010 to the then breeding pair, 'Padang' and 'Alesha'. Both of these tigers have prestigious and historical bloodlines, firstly, 'Padang' is the son of the infamous pairing of 'Sarah' and 'Filon' from Dudley Zoo and is one of the tigers from the 2002 litter. Whereas, 'Alesha' was from the Berlin Tierpark's line of 'Santana' and 'Morris', she was born on the 9th July 2002 with her two siblings, 'Soraya' and 'Shakira' (Now with 'Fabi' at Paignton Zoo). Unfortunately, this pair are now deceased as 'Alesha' died in November 2013. and 'Padang' was euthanised in June of 2016 due to 'long standing health problems'. 'Kadi' also is no longer with us.
Now, the South Lakes Safari Zoo hold one male and three female Sumatran tigers, the male and two of the females are brother and sisters. The male is 'Kumbuh' and one of the three females, 'Cinta' were litter mates, born 22nd September 2014 at Zoo Doue la Fontaine in France. The parents of these two are 'Kiara' and the father, 'Bintang' who was one of the litter of three born at Paignton Zoo in February 2009 with 'Aryo' (Now at Arnhem/Burger's Zoo) and 'Surya' (Now at Flamingo Land). Making 'Cinta' and 'Kumbuh' the cousins to tigers such as 'Bulan', 'Kuasa', 'Mentari' and more importantly 'Janine'.
Now, this isn't a tiger familiar with many of you and the reason why is because 'Janine' doesn't exist anymore. Meet... 'Cin Cin Emas', the founder of South Lakes Safari Zoo renamed 'Janine' when she arrived in January 2015. As mentioned, she is the offspring of 'Aryo' and his current partner at Arnhem/Burger's Zoo, 'Jarum'. 'Cin Cin Emas' was born on the 5th May 2013 in a litter of two with her sister, 'Lara'. The final female at South Lakes Safari Zoo is 'Mayang' who is another tiger renamed by David Gill, she was born on the 14th November 2012 at Zoo Doue la Fontaine therefore is the full sibling from the first litter. However, she was first named 'Phuket', again another case of renaming at South Lakes Safari Zoo. She originally moved to Haute La Touche before arriving at South Lakes on the 13th June 2015.
The tiger history at South Lakes has always fascinated me, not to mention how many different tigers they've had and numerous moves around the park in different enclosures. In my opinion, the (now) Way Kambas Tiger Reserve will always be an iconic piece of the park, and has overseen the change from Amur and Sumatran tiger, to jaguar, to snow leopard, to giant anteater before the eventual change to make the Way Kambas Tiger Reserve. Something I always like about zoo's in general is the fact that a specific enclosure has such an influence on people because of the effort dedicated to it. This can be seen in different collections throughout the country from ZSL London Zoo's 'Tiger Territory' to Edinburgh Zoo's 'Tiger Tracks'.
I spent the majority of the day with the Sumatran tigers, with four tigers in one enclosure I was interested to see how they cohabited. The male was rather relaxed, however, the females were a little less calmer than him. When I arrived early on, three individuals were at the indoor viewing window, one of which wasn't too pleased with people at the window. Continuous snarling and hissing was taking place, though the time I was the three females spent a lot of time chuffing towards each other, head rubbing and other friendly tiger behaviour. The female who spent a lot of time throughout the enclosure was 'Mayang', searching the enclosure and spending a lot of time with one of the other females. Something which I found on my recent visits to the collection is that since the fencing has been removed, the tigers prefer the dense cover than the open part of the enclosure. The overall size of the enclosure with the added cover is rather nice.
Anyway, thanks for reading folks, expect more blogs coming this year with more conservation stories/projects on the blog as well as a deeper look into tigers in Europe, their bloodlines and famiy trees. Thanks again for reading guys!
Anyway, I have always enjoyed their tiger exhibit and conservation work which in my opinion, is severely overlooked. South Lakes have had a very interesting number of years with their tigers. They first received a male Sumatran tiger named 'Toba' in 1996 before the arrival of two Amur tigers, 'Egor' and 'Nina' who were a brother and sister pairing from Marwell Wildlife. These two tigers were the poster tigers for South Lakes, these two tigers were the tigers which were shown for the infamous pole climbing (The tiger feeding talk which included the meat being placed on the top of the pole and the tigers climbing the pole for their meat). Egor died in 2008/09 at the age of eleven/twelve years old from a suspected kidney failure. However, Nina lived up until around about 2012 and was one of the tigers who I had spent a lot of time with and studying.
Moving back to the Sumatrans, South Lakes held Sumatran tigers which have been their 'star' animal or main attraction, the park's founder, the ever controversial David Gill created the Sumatran Tiger Trust to aid the conservation work in Sumatra. One thing I enjoy reading in South Lakes' guidebooks is the history of their conservation work, there is a family tree of some icon tigers which have been an influential part of their work.
South Lakes have only ever had one tiger cub born in their collection history, a female named 'Kadi' who was named after Mr Gill's daughter. 'Kadi' was born on the 7th September 2010 to the then breeding pair, 'Padang' and 'Alesha'. Both of these tigers have prestigious and historical bloodlines, firstly, 'Padang' is the son of the infamous pairing of 'Sarah' and 'Filon' from Dudley Zoo and is one of the tigers from the 2002 litter. Whereas, 'Alesha' was from the Berlin Tierpark's line of 'Santana' and 'Morris', she was born on the 9th July 2002 with her two siblings, 'Soraya' and 'Shakira' (Now with 'Fabi' at Paignton Zoo). Unfortunately, this pair are now deceased as 'Alesha' died in November 2013. and 'Padang' was euthanised in June of 2016 due to 'long standing health problems'. 'Kadi' also is no longer with us.
Now, the South Lakes Safari Zoo hold one male and three female Sumatran tigers, the male and two of the females are brother and sisters. The male is 'Kumbuh' and one of the three females, 'Cinta' were litter mates, born 22nd September 2014 at Zoo Doue la Fontaine in France. The parents of these two are 'Kiara' and the father, 'Bintang' who was one of the litter of three born at Paignton Zoo in February 2009 with 'Aryo' (Now at Arnhem/Burger's Zoo) and 'Surya' (Now at Flamingo Land). Making 'Cinta' and 'Kumbuh' the cousins to tigers such as 'Bulan', 'Kuasa', 'Mentari' and more importantly 'Janine'.
Now, this isn't a tiger familiar with many of you and the reason why is because 'Janine' doesn't exist anymore. Meet... 'Cin Cin Emas', the founder of South Lakes Safari Zoo renamed 'Janine' when she arrived in January 2015. As mentioned, she is the offspring of 'Aryo' and his current partner at Arnhem/Burger's Zoo, 'Jarum'. 'Cin Cin Emas' was born on the 5th May 2013 in a litter of two with her sister, 'Lara'. The final female at South Lakes Safari Zoo is 'Mayang' who is another tiger renamed by David Gill, she was born on the 14th November 2012 at Zoo Doue la Fontaine therefore is the full sibling from the first litter. However, she was first named 'Phuket', again another case of renaming at South Lakes Safari Zoo. She originally moved to Haute La Touche before arriving at South Lakes on the 13th June 2015.
The tiger history at South Lakes has always fascinated me, not to mention how many different tigers they've had and numerous moves around the park in different enclosures. In my opinion, the (now) Way Kambas Tiger Reserve will always be an iconic piece of the park, and has overseen the change from Amur and Sumatran tiger, to jaguar, to snow leopard, to giant anteater before the eventual change to make the Way Kambas Tiger Reserve. Something I always like about zoo's in general is the fact that a specific enclosure has such an influence on people because of the effort dedicated to it. This can be seen in different collections throughout the country from ZSL London Zoo's 'Tiger Territory' to Edinburgh Zoo's 'Tiger Tracks'.
I spent the majority of the day with the Sumatran tigers, with four tigers in one enclosure I was interested to see how they cohabited. The male was rather relaxed, however, the females were a little less calmer than him. When I arrived early on, three individuals were at the indoor viewing window, one of which wasn't too pleased with people at the window. Continuous snarling and hissing was taking place, though the time I was the three females spent a lot of time chuffing towards each other, head rubbing and other friendly tiger behaviour. The female who spent a lot of time throughout the enclosure was 'Mayang', searching the enclosure and spending a lot of time with one of the other females. Something which I found on my recent visits to the collection is that since the fencing has been removed, the tigers prefer the dense cover than the open part of the enclosure. The overall size of the enclosure with the added cover is rather nice.
Anyway, thanks for reading folks, expect more blogs coming this year with more conservation stories/projects on the blog as well as a deeper look into tigers in Europe, their bloodlines and famiy trees. Thanks again for reading guys!
Monday, 5 December 2016
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.
Tuesday, 11 October 2016
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.
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.
Tuesday, 20 September 2016
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!
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!
Tuesday, 6 September 2016
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!
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!
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