Saturday, April 6, 2013

Zoo News Digest 1st - 6th April 2013 (ZooNews 847)



Zoo News Digest 1st - 6th April 2013 (ZooNews 847)

Panda Poo







Dear Colleagues,

Sometimes it is perhaps better to say nothing at all....but are you true to yourself when you don't? Over the years of pulling Zoo News Digest together and editing I have made a lot of friends...but enemies too. There are those out there who believe I should not cover stories where they apply to their collection when they appear in a negative light. I have been threatened and been offered bribes. I look at hundreds of stories every week, working late nights and early mornings. I don't include them all. I base my selection on my own wide zoo related interest along with the stories which I know will be discussed in staffrooms the world over. I am providing a service to the whole zoo/aquarium community. At least that is how I see it. Do you disagree?

I liked the item about Panda Poo for power generation. That was something definitely different. Whether the Pandas can produce enough Poo to make a difference is anybodys guess. I recollect a year or so back someone marketing the worlds most expensive tea because the bushes were fertilised with Panda dung. France is probably not the best place for a tea plantation but pehaps Leeks, Potatoes or Onions may present an opportunity. Fascinating stuff. You might like to learn a bit more about Zoo Faeces:

Lion Dung

A Psoriasis Cure You May Rather Not Know About
Elephant Aphrodisiac

So the Central Zoo Authority (CZA) has had a change of thought. This time is is a good change. Now elephants can stay in Indian Zoos providing care and conditions are right. What really puzzles me is that having made their first daft decision back in 2009 (see Zoo News Digest 6th - 12th November 2009 (Zoo News 629) and  Indian Zoo Elephants Out Of Sight Out Of Mind ) that now, more than three years later have they decided to change it? Judging by the numbers of elephants still in Indian zoos then not a whole lot of people followed their orders. Good on them. At the same time the CZA really does need to sharpen its teeth and make sure that elephant care goes up a notch or three.

That said, the change of plan... it doesn't really surprise me. I wonder if they will revise their other ill advised decision. See Central Zoo Authority Loses The Plot On White Tigers

"Rare White Tigers Cubs Wow at Japanese Zoo".....a lie being perpetuated.






VERY IMPORTANT (I will repeat this several times over coming weeks as I know some people do not read every issue)- After several years my postal address has changed. It is now:

Peter Dickinson
Suite 201,
Westminster Chambers
7 Hunter Street
Chester
UK
CH1 2AR

I remain committed to the work of GOOD zoos, not DYSFUNCTIONAL zoos.

****

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Zoo to build power plant that uses panda poop to produce electricity
Not content with housing a pair of celebrity pandas that attract hordes of avid onlookers, a zoo in France has decided to put their droppings to good use by recycling them into gas and electricity.

Yuan Zi and Huan Huan — “Chubby” and “Happy” in Chinese — arrived at Beauval zoo in central France in January last year, on loan from China for 10 years at a cost of around a million dollars a year.

The zoo announced Friday it would build a facility that would process the dung of the two pandas and of other animals, as well as plant matter, to produce biogas that will
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/04/05/zoo-to-build-power-plant-that-uses-panda-poop-to-produce-electricity/

Why are these lions starving in a Buenos Aires zoo?
What's going on in the Colon Zoo in Buenos Aires, Argentina, that could explain why these lions are apparently starving? We don't know — especially when just down the road there is a dangerous animal petting zoo where the caretakers claim the animals are mellow because they are so full — but these big cats sure look like they could use a good meal. Badly. A campaign is growing in Argentina to "feed or free the animals in the Colon
http://now.msn.com/colon-zoo-lions-appear-to-be-starving
Using animals as gifts has a long history in diplomacy
With the arrival in Toronto of Er Shun and Da Mao on their very own Panda FedEx Express last week, almost all Canada stopped to welcome the darling bears to what will be their new home for the next decade.

Although not quite a gift, as the pandas are only here for 10 years and then must return,
hopefully with a third little panda in tow, it has been crafted as a show of generosity and friendship by the Chinese people to the Canadian people.

Animals, especially exotic ones, have a long history of being used in diplomatic gestures. Pandas in particular have been great ambassadors for China, helped by their intense cuteness factor. The practice even has its own particular term as these arrangements are referred to as “panda diplomacy.”

One of the more famous was the gift of two pandas to the U.S. in 1972 after president Richard Nixon’s landmark trip to China. Not to be
http://www.therecord.com/opinion/columns/article/913424--using-animals-as-gifts-has-a-long-history-in-diplomacy

Land for Zoo Negara
Selangor approved 33.7 acres of state land for Zoo Negara to set up an animal training and research centre last month, said executive councillor Elizabeth Wong.
“We hope this will help in their conservation and fundraising effort,” Wong told Selangor Times yesterday.
Wong said the land approval was given on the condition that the society cannot sell the land for commercial purpose.
“If they attempt to sell, the land title will be reverted back to the state,” she said.
The Malaysian Zoological Society, which has managed the national zoo since it was opened in 1963, has waited for half a century to secure land titles
http://www.selangortimes.com/index.php?section=news&permalink=20130404180748-land-for-zoo-negara

Brigitte Bardot's elephants to retire to Monaco
Fate has smiled on two sick elephants in France, who are to move from death row to a retirement fit for a king as guests of Princess Stephanie of Monaco, thanks to Brigitte Bardot.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/france/9972305/Brigitte-Bardots-elephants-to-retire-to-Monaco.html
Highland Wildlife Park denies camel distress claim
BOSSES at a Scots safari have denied accusations by animal rights campaigners of exploiting a rare camel and causing it “distress” by making him chase off a Land Rover.

• Only male camel at the Highland Wildlife Park has become protective of female companions during mating season
• The camel, Karanli, has been chasing passing vehicles to ‘display his ownership’
• Park has denied claims by Captive Animals Protection Society (Caps) that they are exploiting the camel Karanli, the only male Bacterian camel at the Highland Wildlife Park, has become protective of his two female companions during the mating season.
So much so, any passing vehicle which drives through the open zoo now becomes “open competition” and he “displays his ownership” by chasing them away.
Staff invited photographers to witness the “completely natural show of territorial activity”, but were condemned by the Captive Animals Protection Society (Caps).
Caps director Liz Tyson, said: “The idea that a zoo would deliberately create a stressful situation for one of the animals in its care in order to facilitate a cheap publicity stunt is repugnant.
“To suggest that there is no problem because the camel ‘enjoys’ being goaded by having
http://www.scotsman.com/news/environment/highland-wildlife-park-denies-camel-distress-claim-1-2873117

Wildlife Reserves Singapore's newest addition, River Safari opens
The $160 million river-themed wildlife park, River Safari - home to Pandas Kai Kai and Jia Jia - opened on Wednesday morning
Waiting for the gates to open were groups of kindergarten and primary school children, tourists, as well as Singaporeans who took a day off work for the occasion.
One such person was Mr Albert Foo, 66, who arrived around 8.30am for the opening ceremony and was one of the first in line to enter. "I've always liked animals and plants," he said. He took a day's leave from his job as a hotel front desk assistant and woke up at 5.30am to make it in time to see the gates open.
The River Safari is the newest addition to the Wildlife Reserves Singapore's portfolio of parks, which
http://www.straitstimes.com/breaking-news/singapore/story/wildlife-reserves-singapores-newest-addition-river-safari-opens-201304

Semeru, Perth Zoo orangutan released into wild, killed by snakebite
PERTH Zoo's history-making orangutan Semeru, released into the Indonesian jungle, has died from a venomous snake bite.
Semeru, who would have turned eight in June, was the first male zoo-born orangutan to be released into the jungle back in 2011.
Perth Zoo Director of Animal Health and Research, Peter Mawson, said Indonesian trackers who monitored his movements each day had found Semeru’s body in a night nest that they had watched him build the previous afternoon.
It appeared he was bitten by the snake while he was settling the sleeping nest in a Kasai tree.
Dr Mawson said the vet in Sumatra who had examined Semeru’s body had found two puncture marks on his upper back.

World’s Most Dangerous Zoo, Lujan Zoo in Argentina, Allows Guests To Ride, Cuddle And Feed Lions, Bears [VIDEO]
The Lujan Zoo, outside Buenos Aires, removes the electric fences and plexiglass partitions to give visitors an up-close-and-personal experience with wild creatures, doing everything from posing with the freely roaming animals, to cuddling, feeding and even riding them.
The zoo, whose logo is a man squatting next to a feline, allows visitors to frolic with lions, bears and cheetahs for $130 Argentine pesos (about $25.30).
In a video from a guests' 2011 visit,
http://www.ibtimes.com/worlds-most-dangerous-zoo-lujan-zoo-argentina-allows-guests-ride-cuddle-feed-lions-bears-video
Zoos with poor facilities may lose elephants
Zoos that can’t provide enough space and proper facilities for the upkeep of elephants - one of the star attractions at the zoological parks - may not be able to retain them and will have to relocate them to other zoos or wildlife sanctuaries better equipped to handle their welfare.
The proposal was made at a meeting of the consultative committee of the Central Zoo Authority (CZA) last week that assessed the condition of elephants in zoos across the country and found that wanting.

The final decision on the re-location will soon be taken by Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan, a committee member told IANS.

“Elephants are kept chained for long hours in zoos due to lack of space for them to move. Some zoos don’t even have the required manpower to take care of them,” said the member, speaking on condition of anonymity.

“The condition of elephants is really bad in some zoos and the meeting was held in this context. All members unanimously agreed to shift elephants from zoos with poor facilities,” he added.

The member said a team of experts will identify such zoos and the jumbos will be shifted to other zoos that have enough space and staff for their upkeep.

“Another option that was proposed was to send them to elephant centres in wildlife sanctuaries across the country,” he added.

Twenty-three zoos across the country house over 80 Indian and African elephants.

In 2009, the CZA had issued a similar advisory stopping zoos from inducting more elephants and called for rehabilitating jumbos that needed looking after in rescue centres after it became known that their conditions were bad.

Although zoos have stopped inducting elephants, many still house them in poor conditions.

According to Brij Kishor Gupta, the CZA’s evaluation
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/kt-article-display-1.asp?section=environment&xfile=data/environment/2013/March/environment_March37.xml
State zoo parks allowed to keep elephants
In a move that comes as a relief for zoos in the state, the Central Zoo Authority (CZA) has reversed its earlier decision to not allow them to keep elephants. It was in 2009 that the CZA had ordered that elephants should not be kept in captivity but instead be sent to dedicated camps in forest areas.

Even though zoo authorities in most states said that they were adequately equipped to take care of the pachyderms, nearly 40 of the 115 captive elephants across the country were moved to camps.
However, the zoos in Andhra Pradesh did not relocate the elephants as the facilities at the camp in Nanyal in Chittoor district were found to be inadequate. The facilities were enough for only two elephants, officials said.

The state zoo authorities then requested the CZA to reconsider its decision on the grounds that the animals may not be able to adapt to the new surroundings which lacked enough facilities. But the CZA constituted an expert committee to examine the matter in 2010. In the meantime, the state zoo also kept in abeyance its plans to improve infrastructure for elephant upkeep.

The expert committee proceeded to examine 19 facilities, including zoos in Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam and Tirupati, and submitted a detailed report. According to Nehru Zoo officials, the committee was satisfied with the facilities present at elephant enclosures in the state and made recommendations to expand existing facilities.

"We have been exempted from the ban, which comes as a relief as we were in a dilemma for the last few years. We could not take up any improvement works in the enclosure as we were not sure if we could retain the elephants. But now that the elephants are not going anywhere, we will expand the enclosure by three acre," said a senior forest official. At present, there are five elephants in the city zoo.

The official added that Visakhapatnam zoo has benefitt
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/State-zoo-parks-allowed-to-keep-elephants/articleshow/19372644.cms
Thailand mulls combined legislation to protect elephants

Thailand's Elephant Bill, drafted several years ago, will be revised and submitted to Parliament to protect the diminishing pachyderm population in Thailand, according to a Natural Resources and Environment Ministry official.
Currently elephant affairs are dealt with by four separate laws. Theerapat Prayurasiddhi, deputy director general of the National Parks, Wildlife and Plant
Conservation Department, said the bill is aimed at cracking down on the hunting, smuggling and illegal trade of elephants, and promoting elephants as the kingdom’s national animal.

The legislation will assign the department as the core agency in management of domesticated and wild elephants.

Elephants in Thailand have been under an enforcement net of four separate laws including the Transport Animal Law B.E. 2482 (1939) of the Local Administration Department of the Interior Ministry, the Animals’ Communicable Diseases Law under the Livestock Department, the Wild Animals Conservation and Protection Law B.E. 2535 (1992) under the National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department, and a law on trading of elephants tusks under the Commerce Ministry.

Mr Theerapat said the centralisation of elephant supervision concerns to a single ministry, or of as few agencies as possible, will contribute to a clear management and minimise
http://www.pattayamail.com/news/thailand-mulls-combined-legislation-to-protect-elephants-24151

Rare White Tigers Cubs Wow at Japanese Zoo
White tigers are extremely rare species, with only 100 to 200 world-wide and about 30 kept in




 Scandalous inbreeding of white lions at Paradise Wildlife Park
Charities denounce inbred white lion programme at Paradise Wildlife Park.

Two leading animal protection charities, the Captive Animals’ Protection Society and LionAid, have criticised a major UK zoo for its continued programme of inbreeding big cats to create unusually-coloured animals. Spokespeople for the two organisations say that there are “serious animal welfare implications” for white lions bred at Hertfordshire-based Paradise Wildlife Park and that the animals “serve absolutely no purpose whatsoever in conservation terms”.

Paradise Wildlife Park in Hertfordshire is promoting a competition to name a new white lion cub born there recently and is using the competition as a fundraiser over the Easter period. In addition, the Park is earning considerable funds by allowing members of the public to “cuddle” the new cub for a fee of £999 for two people. Such intimate public interactions are highly controversial as the cub has to be separated from her mother, is likely stressful, has no benefit at all
http://www.lionaid.org/news/2013/04/scandalous-inbreeding-of-white-lions-at-paradise-wildlife-park.htm

The United Arab Emirates Enters The Canned Hunt Market
This week the the Mourouj Hotels and Resorts announced that it will open the Barari Hunting Resort, near Al Ain, in September.

Guests to the resort will be able to "hunt, cook and eat a variety of UAE wildlife".
Those unfamiliar with the wildlife of the UAE may well get the impression that it is a country teeming with game. It is not, and all wildlife is protected. The newspaper reports state that they "will offer people
http://zoonewsdigest.blogspot.ae/2013/04/the-united-arab-emirates-enters-canned.html



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