Regarding the diet of leopard seals, it's quite important to note that flesh (from both birds and other seals) only makes up about a third of the overall diet - the most important part of their diet is actually krill (about half of the overall diet), with both fish and squid making up the remainder. Penguin-eating is only seasonal (when the penguins are breeding), may be done primarily by male seals and isn't done by all leopard seals either.
Chuditch's Wishlist sorted via Biogeographic Realms
- Thread starter Chuditch
- Start date
The ringtail sitting alone in the Nearctic category now that the peccary has been added:Nearctic Realm
Most wanted species: Ringtail
- Ringtail - My personal favourite North American mammal! Rare in zoos outside of NA and not super common in its native range either, but if there's one part of North America that's still lacking, it's the deserts and scrublands of the south-west and they'd be a great boost in that regard.
I also want them in PZ. Why? Just for fun I guess xD they're awesome and PZ doesn't have to be 100% accurate to real life, at least in my opinion. That's why I also would love the Elephant sealAs I said in the description, there's none in captivity at the moment but they've been kept a fair few times in the past, especially in Australia and New Zealand and most recently by Taronga Zoo (see images below, held them for decades but the last one died in 2014). The reason there are none in zoos (or aquariums) at the moment is not because they can't be held there, they seem to do well enough, but because they're so hard to source - given capturing them from the wild in Antarctica is obviously off the cards (it'd be unnecessarily difficult both logistically and legally), their only option to enter captive care is when they wash up on the southern continents in need of rehab. Sometimes, these individuals cannot released after being raised back to health due to concerns that they could spread diseases to the wild population, and this is how they tend to end up in zoos.
They're a species that has a history in captivity and is also a realistic choice for zoos set in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa or Patagonia (the places most likely to be visited by vagrant leopard seals), and this combined with the fact they're one of my favourite animals means I can't help but wish for them.
I think, like the Saiga, the Leopard seal would still be awesome to have in PZ. So I'm rooting for you! Yeah, a lot of the species in the pack feel like important additions, especially for Europe, but they’re not really animals I’m interested in personally. Closest is the mute swan, which is awesome, but I’d still like a black swan specifically (although it is probably unlikely we will get two).
People said that about 3 pigs in a year, now look where we are now.
My waterfowl hopes are high for next year
Who freaking cares!?!?