Prague Zoo

The Prague Zoo has a new offspring to be proud of. A few days ago, the mother camel Rona gave birth a little male (he doesn’t have name yet, Prague Zoo knows how to enjoy baptism ceremony and do not rush) that now can be seen in the yard by those who want to pay him a visit.

At the moment, he is the only cub in the family of seven camels, who reside in Prague Zoo. They are not the ‘prominent family’ like the famous Gorillas, but still are quite visited animals. Camels are remarkable for their adaptation abilities, as they can survive in extreme conditions (of course not the case in the Zoo).

In addition to welcoming the young one, the Prague Zoo have welcomed the 500.000 visitor of this year. Last year was record-breaking in the number of visitors ; almost one million three hundreds thousand people came to the Zoo, forming a record of the whole animal park. Based on LN

A young female elephant is really a scarce commodity. The director of the Prague Zoo, Petr Fejk tries to get one, but – there are none.

“Prague Zoo makes a new elephant pavilion next year, designed for ten animals. But at the time, we only have one male and two females, who are now quite old and can’t have the young ones.” Fejk explains, why they are looking for those animals.

“We first looked for females in European Zoos, but they don’t have any free Indian elephants there.” Petr Fejk sighs. “During the last thirty years, the elephant population in Europe have grown old. Wee need to check Asian Zoos and elephant farms, but we don’t have enough contacts.”

If they would be successful, and breed a baby elephant, they would be the first zoological garden in the Czech Republic, that have achieved that. But that wouldn’t be too unusual – they are the first zoo in many respects. Source: MF

The Prague zoo opened a new pavilion for endangered crocodiles. Out of India, only ten zoos in four countries have them. The Prague group of three males and four females is one of the biggest. Gavials in Prague zoo are still young. They are about 3,5 years and 1,2-1,7 metre. When adult, they should have up to 5,5 metre.

The Prague Zoological garden will probably move even higher in the Forbes magazine list. “it is a complete rarity” said Petr Fejk, the manager. “in all the zoos of the world, there is only 19 of them.” Fejk also labelled the presence of those animals in Prague for an act with international overlap.

The scarce crocodiles needed to have a brand new pavilion build. It is called Chambal, after one of the few rivers in India, where a large group of gavials still lives.

The Zoo in Prague is managing the flow of thousands of visitors everyday, but sometimes, the traffic around just doesn’t. Full parking lots, people parking wherever possible, or stuffing themselves into full buses. Now, this may became a history, because the Zoo brought a long–expected innovation – a Zoo bus.

It goes every 10 minutes, every weekend, at the same trace as the bus 112, which means from Nadrazi Holesovice (Metro C) to Troja, and back, without changing or unnecessary stopping. And the best news – it is free for everyone. And what is inside? LCD television with movies or Zoo information. Do you want to try?

The Prague Zoo has welcomed 17.000 people yesterday, which is the historical maximum. The record-day of 16.000 visitors was in 2002. The reason is very warm and pleasant spring weather, which pulls people out from their flats.

The other day, which will be also very potent in visitor number, will be this Saturday. The Zoo prepares for a festive opening of the new pavilion, which hosts oriental Indian Gavials.

Prague Zoo rejoice after two weeks of tight waiting. The keepers have checked the feline pavilion, which was closed for three weeks because of valued baby Clouded Leopard (Neofelis nebulosa) birth.

When it was born, its mother Buri missed her lover Lozun to such extent she left her baby. The Zoo keepers were doubting, whether she will be back. That would mean to feed the kid artificially, like the Berlin zoo did it with Knut.

The keepers made a trick, which worked: they carried all the boots, where she could sleep, from the pavilion, so she at the end returned to the maternal one. And started to take care of her only baby again. They checked it last week, and saw it was happy and well fed.

This probably be another case of endangered specie baby of Prague Zoo. It shows it is really one of the world’s elite.

What did Forbes Magazine stated about Prague Zoo?
“Despite its modest area of 111 acres, Prague Zoo has 4600 animals of 630 kinds. Just last year, a few young of Comodo varan, Rothschild giraffe or Panther turtle were born there.”

Petr Fejk, the manager of Prague Zoo was surprised: “I still don’t get it, this is a really prestigious company we were put in. Of course we are very flattered.”

What was the thing that made Troja stand up the most? “Probably because the zoo is active and friendly. The animals and visitors feel the same here – they both feel nice.” Petr Fejk

The Best Zoos of the world
By Forbes magazine

1. Animal Kingdom (Orlando, USA)
2. Basel Zoo (Basilej, Switzerland)
3. Beauval Zoo (France)
4. Berlin Zoo Garden (Germany)
5. Bronx Zoo (New York, USA)
6. Chester Zoo (Great Britain)
7. Zoo Praha
8. National Zoo of S. Africa (JAR)
9. San Diego Zoo (USA)
10. Schönbrunner (Austria)

Gavials are doing well. Acclimatization goes faster, than the Zoo, with Petr Fejk in front, expected. There were no complications so far. The animals spend most of their time at a heated island close to the glass by the pavilion corridor. They move flexibly in the water, demonstrating, they are from all crocodiles the specie most adapted to swimming and fish hunting.

Gavials like flowing water, and they appreciate artificial stream and the waterfall they have. They started to ingest without problems, and they have great appetite; 50-70 fish in total weight 2,5-3,5 kg every second day.

Together with gavials, 10 turtles of two kinds share the spacious pavilion. The turtles were scared at the beginning, but when found out the crocodiles aren’t interested, now they get up their backs and sunbathe.

The article basis and pictures come from www.zoopraha.cz

The cloud rats are a group of nocturnal rodents native to the forests of the Philippines.

Wikipedia states: “The Filipino Ecosystems Research and Development Bureau has begun breeding Northern Luzon slender-tailed cloud rats in captivity. London Zoo and the Bronx Zoo are the only locations outside of the Philippines where cloud rats are bred in captivity.”

If we want to be precise, we should edit the Wiki article, in order to add a new city into the list; Prague Zoo had a baby cloud rat born last month.

Maybe it is a sign of the coming year of the rat, but there were also traditionally uberstandard care of the Fejk’s Team. Zoo Prague gained two couples of these rodents last year. After the necessary quarantine they were placed into a carefully developed environment, the Zoo modelled after their Brazilian forest nature environment.

The baby Cloud Rat was born on 11th January 08, the young was born with hair, having about 120g.

Prague Zoo got very special new inhabitants – seven young crocodiles Gavialis gangeticus, in English called Fish-eating Crocodile, Gharial, Long-nosed Crocodile or Gavial. Seven of them have permanently moved to Prague Zoo.

Population of Gavial in the nature is declining, the population is counted in hundreds already. Prague is the first European city, which joined endeavours for saving the species.

The crocodiles were transported from India, after several years of efforts. “ Zoo Prague got the endangered animals as an appreciation of our active role in efforts for saving of the species. “ Said the speaker Vit Kahle.

Gavilas are another cherry on the cake, Zoo Prague gained under the lead of Petr Fejk, as well as another very special world animal.

The group is formed by three males and four females. To see those Gavials is possible from 5th April.

The competition for the new logo of Prague Zoo ended in a draw. There is no new logo yet, as from 149 delivered designs none has met all the requirements.

The jury, made of experts for marketing and communication, artists, deputies of Prague City Hall and Prague Zoo, evaluated especially originality, the complete artistic level of solution, simplicity, understandability, datelessness, and marketing potential. Again – none of designs met the requirements.

Critics say it is hard to compete with the past logo, made by Michal Cihlar, whose lino-cut was unique. However Cihlar ended the cooperation with the zoo, as he demanded salary increase, and after retroactively demanded money for the already created logos. Now, he is suing the zoo for unauthorized use.

Petr Fejk announced there will be definitely a new logo competition. We believe there are many artists in the lines of our readers and we are going to inform you about the details, so you can join. Who knows, what is the logo-style the Prague Zoo is looking for…

The famous gorilla celebrated her third birthday. She got fruit and sweets on Saturday, assisted by her parents and others from her pack of gorillas in Prague Zoo ; The leader and father Richard, her mother Kijivu, aunt Kamba, and her brother Tatu, who will soon have his own first-year birthday

Her tender said, Moja grown up to her pubescence, and now entertains the whole Gorilla pavillon in Prague Zoo. ( And as there are web cameras, many others too ). Moja mostly surprises others by the way she plays with her younger brother Tatu. They fight, she pulls him, and Tatu, even when he is still a small one, pays her back.

Moja stays in Prague Zoo for other four years, than she leaves to find her husband.

The Famous Gorillas in Prague Zoo trained evacuation yesterday. It is floods the heads of Zoo Prague, led by Petr Fejk, are afraid of.

Five years ago, 500-year water came and flushed the Gorillas’ pavilion away. As a consequence, the Zoo built a new Gorilla pavilion according to the most advanced practice, which brought even the most precious fruit – two baby gorillas were born there.

To protect the gorillas, Zoo Prague trains them to evacuate two times a year. When the hooters sound, they move to the anti-flood tower for 20 minutes. There are their instructors, waiting for them with sweet honours. The gorillas train like this two times a year.

Seals
They are going to get a new pool, twice as large as the present one, and a transparent one. It’s edges are to be an imitation of a rock bank.
Because the Zoo trains seals, a large platform for future audiences is planned to appear at the water basin. It is going to be opened at the beginning of 2009, the price of the structure is a million €.

Restaurant
Prague Zoo plans also something for us, visitors. At the upper station of the zoo funicular, a reconstruction of a listed cottage, where they want to have a poetic café room with a terrace, starts the next year. It is going to be opened in 2008, the price is 350 thousand €.

Observatory Tower
At the highest place of the Zoo, next to the buffalo yard, there should be a wooden tower, with wiew of the Zoo and Vltava river. It is going to be opened in 2008, the price is 100 thousand €.

Exotic Birds aviary
Close to the new Observatory Tower there will be an aviary with parrots and others, with the possibility of walk-through. Visitors could get to direct contact with exotic birds. Finished in 2008, opened in 2009, the price is 100 thousand €.

A new treasure of Prague Zoo is called Indian Gavial, and it is a very endangered and very precious specie of a crocodile. We should see seven of them since 1st April 2008 there, when they arrive directly from India. Gavials are seen just in Zoos that have renowned in world.

The next year 20 millions CZK (0,7 mil. €) are invested to a project of a new pavilion of elephants and hippos. The are should be accessible since 2010. “ We want to breed them ” says the manager Fejk “ it have never succeeded in Czech Zoos, we want to be the first”.

Prague Zoo plans also something for us, visitors. “At the upper station of the zoo funicular, a reconstruction of a listed cottage, where we want to have a poetical café room with a terrace, starts the next year”.

It was very hard to find sex of the new baby gorilla Tatu, as it is not possible to see simply by eyes. It took some time, before they found a suitable faece for DNA analysis. And the result? It’s a boy. With 95% probability.

The exposé of the 4-months old baby gorilla sex was one of the surprises of the evening, prepared for the baptizing ceremony. The honoree got a basket full of presents; foot ball, plush monkey and a wooden car for instance. The car was the biggest success at the end.

Lucie bílá, the godmother of the gorilla baby wished him to have a family, just like his father Richard. When Tatu grows adult, he will have to leave the ZOO, as his older sister Moja. Male gorillas have to go to their new packs in their 7th or 8th year, females in their 6th or 7th year.

Number of wild gorillas gets smaller every year of approx. 7%. The reason is rainforests getting smaller, and numbers of poachers, hunting them for meet. The number of gorillas living in captivity is approx. 1000 worldwide. “Each baby gorilla is worth of gold, and we are happy we can help” says Prague Zoo manager Fejk.

(Lucie bila, prague zoo)! Prague Zoo prepares for the baptizing ceremony of the baby gorilla TATU, that takes place this Saturday. The quest of welcoming the animal to the society lies on a Czech pop Singer Lucie Bila. The name TATU was chosen regarding the TATU concert that took place at Zoo Prague at the time the baby gorilla was born.

As in the first case of gorilla baby born in the Czech Republic (little Moja), the sex of the animal remains unknown at the time of its baptism. Even when the zoo is trying to take a DNA sample from its poo, for some reson there is no poo sample that could be use for this kind of analysis. However there are presumptions it is a male.

The baptism is planned to be a party, public personas were invited, for example those from Cesky rozhlas, whose Leonardo station transmits the gorilla pavilion live to the famous Reality show Odhaleni where the participants of the big-brother-kind-of show are gorillas. Gorillas themselves got a new ‘living room’ last week, and are reported to be fine.