EAZA Tiger Campaign extended to 2004 Contents - European ...

‘Abu’, the elephant born after artificial insemination is already
two years old and growing very fast and now weighs 810 kg.
The Vienna elephants are kept together free, even during
the night, only the adult bull is housed separately. Vienna’s
philosophy of not chaining female elephants before birth
again proved to be successful. During the birth of Abu,
his mother female was separated in a box, but all other
elephants could watch the birth directly. Tonga gave birth
to Mongu together with Saby and Abu, the other females
were only separated by a rope.
Over the past five years the zoo has been involved in an
extensive research programme dealing with social behaviour
development of the Vienna elephant group, bioacoustical
and chronobiological investigation. The Vienna Zoo is also
engaged in in situ projects and supports and funds the
AERP Programme of Cynthia Moss and Harvey Croze in
Amboseli (Kenya).
The Vienna elephant team also regularly conducts elephant
management workshops and courses in Vienna, Thailand and
Sri Lanka, training elephant keepers, veterinarians and curators.
Source: Harald M. Schwammer
BORAS - SWEDEN
’Shona’, a 13 year old African elephant cow (Loxodonta
africana) gave birth to a healthy female calf at Borås
Djurpark AB on 29 March 2003. The delivery happened
quickly and everything went well. Shona has been behaving
as a perfect mother from the beginning. This is the second
elephant birth at Borås in 19 months so we are very proud
of the breeding result. ‘Kwanza’, the first calf born in Borås
is doing well and has been in the group since she was born.
She is now a 500 kg package of energy.
Source: Bo Kjellson
Births and Hatchings
Photo: Almut Kimbacher
APENHEUL - NETHERLANDS
Apenheul acquired a number of wild-caught black howlers
(Alouatta caraya) in the late 1980’s. Some went to other
collections and a few died; by 1995, one male and two
females remained. This trio made no attempts at reproduction,
nor was there any reproduction when the male was
changed, twice. Finally, a male from Port Lympne who arrived
at Apenheul in 1999 did start breeding with the two wild-born
females. However, none of the offspring survived. Then one of
the two females died after an otherwise successful caesarian
section. It was decided to hand-rear the male baby, as he
was the only offspring of this wild born female. This went
surprisingly well and he was successfully integrated back into
the ‘group’ at about five months of age. Very soon afterwards
the other female gave birth to a daughter, whom she
proceeded to raise as if she had done nothing else all her life.
Eight months later she gave birth again, but this offspring
died. And again eight months later she gave birth to twins.
There was some doubt about the survival potential of twin
howlers. There was a twin howler (Alouatta pigra) birth in
the USA that was raised successfully, and there have been
reports of twins in the wild in Belize, which did not all make
it. Apenheul decided to let nature take its course. They are
now nearly half a year old and during this time have never
required any attention other than their mother’s.
Other notable recent births at Apenheul include a litter of
2.2 yellow mongooses (Cynictis penicillata), 0.0.2
red-bellied lemurs (Eulemur rubriventer), 1.0 Sclater’s
lemur (Eulemur macaco flavifrons), 1.0.2 pied tamarins
(Saguinus b. bicolor) [1.0 DNS], 0.1 brown woolly
monkey (Lagothrix lagotricha), 0.1 white-cheeked gibbon
(Hylobates leucogenys), 0.1 bonobo (Pan paniscus),
and 1.0 Bornean orangutan (Pongo p. pygmaeus) [DNS].
Source: Frank Rietkerk
Photo: Apenheul
EAZA News 43 – 2003
19
July - August - September