Zoo Ostrava The Annual Report 2009

Most of the animals listed below are temporarily placed out of scenes, waiting for the new exhibits to open
in 2010. In 2009, for example, the zoo imported the Asian small-clawed otter (Aonyx cinerea) for the Chitwan
exhibit - so far the only mustelid within the stock, a Red List species managed as vulnerable. The Chitwan
complex, where the zoo wishes to present animals of the well-known Nepalese national park, and which
is to provide some already established stock members like bears and langurs with better conditions, will
include two aquaria. They will be the first freshwater exhibit tanks at Ostrava Zoo, with the freshwater garfish
(Xenentodon cancila) being one of very intriguing species. Other fish taxa are to range in the aquaria of the
exhibit called Papua, where visitors can admire magnificent members of New Guinea fish life, for example
the northern saratoga (Scleropages jardinii) and Atlantic mudskipper (Periophthalmus barbarus), but also
reptiles - the blue-spotted monitor (Varanus macraei) - the first monitor lizard at Ostrava Zoo, as well as the
Siebenrock's or northern long-necked turtle (Chelodina siebenrocki) and New Guinea snapping turtle (Elseya
novaeguineae), the zoo's first snake-necked turtle species. In the aviary adjoining the Papua display, the bluewinged
kookaburra (Dacelo leachii) is to be a new species. Ready to settle in the future nocturnal exhibit is
the first representative of the hyrax order - the southern tree hyrax (Dendrohyrax arboreus), husbandry of
this species kept behind the scenes being now one of the tasks of animal managers. Other creatures held
currently out of scenes include wonders, as is the critically endangered Siberian crane (Grus leucogeranus),
the northern bald ibis or waldrapp (Geronticus eremita), endangered Baer's pochard (Aythya baeri) or white
neck-laced partridge (Arborophila gingica), a vulnerable species in the wild. These species are coming soon
on display. On the other hand, some creatures were out to please the visitors, whether laymen or experts,
already in 2009, be it the Dalmatian pelican (Pelecanus crispus) on the pond, the Chinese merganser (Mergus
squamatus) in the Chinese fauna exhibit, the Madagascar or common fody (Foudia madagascariensis) in the
Madagascar exhibit, the silver shark (Balantiocheilos melanopterus) inside the Elephant Jungle or many others.
In the Little Amazonia exhibit, there is another number of new species to admire, among them being the
first Ostrava's member of primates called clawed monkeys, the cotton-top tamarin (Saguinus oedipus). Held
very frequently in zoos elsewhere, this primate is however a critically endangered species in the wild.
Selecting species that could be placed on the top of the list as seen by an expert in zoology would be a
hard job - all of them are the best. So to conclude, let me try to summarise the results of the joint efforts of
the zoo team: at the end of 2008, Ostrava held 305 animal species and 1,535 individuals. A year later, the list
included as much as 2,919 animals of 354 species, meaning the number of species has increased by 16%, while
the number of individuals has almost doubled and it is my strong belief that there are even more new and
interesting animals coming in 2010 to which we all can look with expectations.
42