Cynogale bennettii's animal wishlist

Cynogale bennettii II

Cynogale bennettii II
Asiatic or Temminck’s golden cat
Pardofelis temminckii

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Continents: Asia
Countries: Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand, Vietnam

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Biomes: Grassland, Temperate, Tropical

This is mostly a species of rainforest environments, living in both lowland and cloud forests up to 3,960m in elevation. They also inhabit forests further north, in the Himalayas and parts of China, that are part of the temperate zone. These cats also inhabit open grasslands and tropical dry forests in parts of their range.

Red List status: Near Threatened, with a decreasing population trend.

Captive presence: Mostly found in Asian zoos, particularly in their wild range countries. They are still kept in a small number of European zoos, with 5 housing Asiatic golden cats in 2022. In the fairly recent past they were much more common, with golden cats kept in the USA and Australia until 2009, New Zealand until 2011 and were much more common in European zoos as well.

Reasoning: Although they are no longer common in zoos, those in the western world have not yet given up on the species as evidenced by the importing of a pair of golden cats from Malaysia by the Berlin Tierpark in October 2022. Although it is not easy, they can be kept and bred in captivity, so its appearance in the game would feel realistic.

I have personally seen an Asiatic golden cat before (when they were kept at Edinburgh Zoo) and they are a very beautiful and charismatic animal. When given lots of spaces to hide and plenty of vegetation, they can be quite active in front of visitors. While they are a small cat, they are about the same size as an ocelot so are still fairly hefty animals.

A big part of why I’d love to see golden cats is because of their colour variation – I will go into more detail below, but each animal has its own individual patterning and there can be strong differences in colouration between individuals in a single area – there is no subspecies-specific colouration among these cats. This would allow for lots of options when breeding golden cats.

Although typically kept in netted over enclosures, it is by no means necessary for golden cats. One zoo (Parc des Felins in France) keeps their golden cats in an open-topped woodland enclosure. In real-life they are quite shy; this would make for a suitably challenging species to display, requiring clever enclosure designs and furnishings to make the animals visible.

The Asiatic golden cat is one of only three cats (the jaguar and cheetah being the others) which the EAZA have published full best practice guidelines for their care and display. This would allow for a lot of the important information about how they should be housed, such as enclosure size (150m square per animal, with a height of 2.5m) and group size (although not social, they should be kept in single-sexed groups when not mixed for breeding so that the animals remain socialised).

Variations (if any): The Asiatic golden cat has more colour variations that any other wild cat. In one study in India, they were recorded coming in gold, cinnamon, black, grey, ocelot (a brown coat with large spots) and tightly-rosetted (darker brown with rosettes). Elsewhere, they have been recorded coming in a deep fox-red colour. I would definitely say that all seven coats should be included, with the gold and fox-red colours being most common.

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Above, clockwise from top-left: Gold, grey, black, tightly-rosetted, ocelot and cinnamon coats; Below, fox-red coat
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References:
The full EAZA best practice guidelines for Asiatic golden cats:

An outdoor enclosure at the Singapore Night Safari:

Leopard Trail - Asiatic Golden Cat exhibit - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

A netted outdoor enclosure at Taiping Zoo in Malaysia:

cage for Asiatic Golden Cat - ZooChat

May 2017
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

A netted enclosure at Hamilton Zoo in New Zealand, which now houses serval but was formerly for golden cats:

Serval Cage - Hamilton Zoo 2012 - ZooChat

Hamilton Zoo, 13 December 2012. Larger of two older small cat cages, which have previously housed Asiatic Golden Cat and Bobcat and now hold a Serval. The cage is a good size, with plenty of...
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

A netted enclosure for golden cats in a walled garden at a UK zoo:

Tibetan golden cat (exhibit) : Thrigby Hall : 26 Sep 2017 - ZooChat

Catopuma temminckii tristis
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

A large netted outdoor enclosure for golden cats at Belfast Zoo:

Golden cat enclosure - Belfast - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

The interior furnishings of a golden cat enclosure at Rotterdam Zoo:

Temminck's Golden Cat enclosure - ZooChat

Diergaarde Blijdorp, September 2009
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

Three different images of the open-topped golden cat enclosure at Parc des Felins in France:

Pardofelis temmincki enclosure - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

Pardofelis temmincki enclosure - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

Pardofelis temmincki enclosure - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com
 

Cynogale bennettii II

Cynogale bennettii II
European mink
Mustela lutreola

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Continents: Europe
Countries: Estonia, France, Romania, Russia, Spain, Ukraine; extinct in a further nineteen European countries in recent times

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For context, the orange areas (on the Spain/France border, near the Black Sea and on a tiny island in the Baltic) are where the mink survives in the wild, the purplish areas are places where they could survive and the red areas are where they have gone extinct.

Biomes: Aquatic, Taiga, Temperate

European mink are habitat specialists, tied mainly either to extensive wetlands with abundant scrub and reedbeds or shallow rivers and streams flowing through woodland. In the wild, they are almost never found more than 100m from freshwater.

Red List status: Critically Endangered, with a declining population.

Captive presence: Although they are not kept in any American, Asian or Australian zoos, they are among the most common small mustelids in captivity in European zoos, with 47 holdings altogether. Some zoos keep large numbers of mink in many enclosures, with Tallinn Zoo in Estonia having over a hundred individual mink.

Reasoning: These are one of the rarest carnivores in the world, being only one of four Carnivora species listed as Critically Endangered. Their conservation depends on captive breeding, and reintroductions of zoo-bred European mink have recently seen them return to Estonia and Germany, albeit not fully established in the latter country.

Sizewise, the European mink is large enough to be considered a habitat animal, as they are both longer and heavier than the meerkat.

A full set of best practice guidelines have been released for this species, so we know exactly what their habitats require. For example, although they are semi-aquatic, they need an enclosure that is 4/5 land. Also, it is recommended that their water area should not be more than 0.5m deep. For these reasons, I think I would make the European mink a surface-swimmer, only diving to interact with underwater enrichment items.

Because of their commonness in European zoos, these carnivores vary hugely in how they are displayed. While they can be kept in small mesh aviaries, they are also commonly found in large open-topped enclosures that are well-planted with vegetation. They have been kept a couple of times in mixed-species enclosures – one with pond turtles and another (more relevant in Planet Zoo) with raccoons, although I wouldn’t expect a mixed-species bonus between these two.

Variations (if any): European mink come in two main colour variations – dark individuals have dark brown or almost blackish-brown coats, while light individuals have reddish-brown fur.

References:
Full husbandry guidelines for keeping and breeding European mink in captivity:

A mixed outdoor enclosure for European mink and raccoon:

Raccoon and European mink exhibit - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

A mixed outdoor enclosure for European mink and European pond turtle:

Mixed exhibit for European pond turtle and European Mink - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

A smaller open-topped outdoor enclosure:

European Mink Exhibit - ZooChat

August 1st, 2019
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

Another smaller open-topped outdoor enclosure:

European Mink Exhibit at Opel-Zoo Kronberg, 30/08/10 - ZooChat

With not a mink to be seen.
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

A larger open-topped outdoor enclosure (one of three similar enclosures in this zoo):

European mink exhibit, 2019-03-30 - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

An example of an outdoor mink enclosure (rotated with domestic ferrets when the mink are breeding):
 

nutrit

nutrit
Cynogale bennettii said:
Patas monkey
Erythrocebus patas

View attachment 334863

Continents: Africa
Countries: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, Sudan, Togo, Uganda

View attachment 334864

Biomes: Desert (?), Grassland

This primate is almost entirely associated with grasslands, and is particularly common in thinly-bushed acacia woodland. They also inhabit the Ennedi Plateau in Chad, which is a mostly desert landscape within the Sahara – however they are tied closely to granite outcrops with permanent water sources.

Red List status: Near Threatened, with a declining population.

Captive presence: This is probably one of the most common monkeys in zoos – according to my calculations, they are the tenth most common Old World monkey on Zootierliste. They are kept in 48 zoos, consisting of 44 in Europe and 1 zoo each in Israel, New Caledonia, Taiwan and the UAE. They are also kept in at least 33 zoos in North America, as well as zoos in China and South Africa.

Reasoning: This is a rather impressive and unusual-looking monkey, with very long legs in proportion to its body – they are the fastest-running primate on Earth and tend to use speed to escape predators, rather than climbing.

Because they tend to run rather than climb, they can be kept in enclosures with surprisingly low barriers. At Budapest Zoo, they have been successfully kept behind little more than a few strands of electric wire. They can also be kept in traditional mesh-roofed monkey enclosures, on islands, in open-topped paddocks and drive-through enclosures.

Although they are an open plains monkey, patas have rarely been mixed with other savannah animals. I know of a mix with common warthog, and they were kept with springbok at Apenhuel Primate Park in the Netherlands when it first opened (both also mixed with gorillas). Otherwise, I know they have been kept successfully with other monkeys (such as Barbary macaques, mantled guereza and grivets – although these mixes can fail just as frequently as they succeed), duikers, bongo, Aldabra giant tortoises and lowland gorillas. An attempted mix recently at a German zoo with patas monkeys, black rhinos and cheetahs ended about as well as could be expected. Even though it is not recorded, I would allow them to share space with other savannah species.

As far as monkeys go, there is nothing that could really replace the patas. They are more amenable to mixing than baboons, but not as dependent on climbing materials as any other African primate. This, coupled with their graceful appearance, makes them one of my most-wanted monkeys.

Variations (if any): I would personally give the patas two colour variations – one where the upperparts of the main body are a lighter orange and one where it is a more orangey-red colour.

References:
The Budapest Zoo patas enclosure, contained with only electric wire:

Budapest Zoo 2003 - Patas Monkey exhibit using hotwire - ZooChat

September 2003 Patas Monkey exhibit using hotwire.
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

An island enclosure for patas monkeys:

Glad Zoo - Patas monkey island - ZooChat

August 2016.
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

Viewpoint over a patas monkey paddock-style enclosure:

Patas monkey exhibit [2015] - ZooChat

Patas monkey (Erythrocebus patas)
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

Patas monkey paddock with a simple climbing frame:

Patas Monkey Outdoors - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

A more wooded patas monkey enclosure, with a more complex climbing frame:

Patas Monkey exhibit at Olomouc 30/05/10 - ZooChat

A pleasant, open exhibit with a good-sized breeding group of Patas. Note the view of the rather contrasting Primate House behind.
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

Mixed enclosure for patas monkeys and lowland gorillas:

Gorilla and Patas Monkey Enclosure at Beauval, 12/06/18 - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

A mixed enclosure for patas and Wolf’s monkeys, bay duikers and Aldabra giant tortoises:

Monkey/Duiker/Tortoise Exhibit - ZooChat

April 14, 2014: Patas Monkeys, Wolf's Guenons, Bay Duikers, and Aldabra Tortoises share this exhibit. It can only be seen from the Safari Ride.
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

Patas monkeys live on the plateau in this enclosure, with the lower areas home to African ungulates:

Patas Monkey Exhibit - ZooChat

2017 - connected to the Savannah
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

At certain angles, the above enclosure makes it seem like the monkeys and ungulates share a space:

Patas monkey with zebra in background - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

Patas monkeys in a drive-through enclosure, shared with Barbary macaques, drills and bongo:

African Jungle Reserve at Woburn, 20/06/10 - ZooChat

Home to Patas Monkeys, Barbary Macaques, Drills and Eastern Bongo.
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

A patas monkey photographed in the Ennedi desert, also showing its running physique:

Ennedi Expedition, Chad - January 2016, Slideshow

FJ Expeditions; Slideshow of our January 2016 expedition to the rock art sites of Niola Doa and the rest of the Ennedi plateau (Eastern Chad)
fjexpeditions.com
Click to expand...
This is my favorite choice. Love these monkeys 🥰
 

Cynogale bennettii II

Cynogale bennettii II
Eurasian red squirrel
Sciurus vulgaris

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Continents: Asia, Europe
Countries: Albania, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, China, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lichtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mongolia, Montenegro, Netherlands, North Korea, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, UK

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Biomes: Taiga, Temperate

These squirrels need trees to persist in a landscape but otherwise are not particularly fussy. They are perfectly comfortable living in both coniferous and deciduous forests and will also live in urban areas, provided there are sufficient trees.

Red List status: Least Concern, with a declining population.

Captive presence: This is a very widely-kept species, with Zootierliste recording 176 zoos holding them. All are within Europe. As well as 55 zoos that keep non-subspecific red squirrels, 7 pure subspecies are held. The Altai red squirrel is at 3 zoos, the British red squirrel at 21, the Central European at 79, the Pyrenean at 5, the Siberian at 11 and the Manchurian and Ukrainian rust-coloured at 1 each. Despite some claims to the contrary, it seems that there are no Eurasian red squirrels kept in North America any more.

Reasoning: Although they are a fairly small species (43cm head-tail length, about 500g), even compared to the meerkat (53cm head-tail length, about 970g) they are still, I would say, long enough to be a habitat species – there is not much actual difference in head-body size between these two species.

A major reason for my wanting this as a habitat species is because, here in the UK, red squirrels are very much a zoo species that is often bred in large numbers for reintroduction projects. They are kept in a variety of enclosures, but one that is becoming more common is the large walkthrough enclosure, where groups of squirrels roam freely within contained woodland. They can also be kept on islands.

Because they are such widespread animals, they can represent many different regions and could potentially be mixed with a variety of other animals that they share a native range with. If contained with a null barrier, they could also be displayed within the grounds of a zoo, to make it appear like they are wild animals living within the zoo grounds.

Variations (if any): The Eurasian red squirrel comes in a very wide range of colours – easily ten different morphs could be included. They rarely come in white and melanistic, in Japan they are mostly grey, and also have various degrees of redness – included would be rich red body and tail, dark red body and tail, rich red body and dark tail, rich red body and blonde tail, rich red body with white-tipped tail and dark brown with red borders. Finally, there would be a morph based on the Siberian red squirrel, with a grey body and orange head and feet.

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References:
Husbandry guidelines for red squirrels in British zoos:

A standard mesh cage for red squirrels:

Red squirrel enclosure - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

Small caged walkthrough enclosure for red squirrels and golden pheasant:

Red squirrel+Golden pheasant walkthrough exhibit - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

An open-top walkthrough enclosure for red squirrels and muntjac deer:

Red Squirrel/Muntjac Walktrough exhibit - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

Large outdoor walkthrough enclosure for red squirrels:

Red Squirrel walk-through - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

A video of the above walkthrough, showing overhead footage of the enclosure’s size and design:
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eu0Goa5t25c
 

Cynogale bennettii II

Cynogale bennettii II
Time for what might be a more controversial choice...

Mount Kilimanjaro guereza
Colobus caudatus

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Continents: Africa
Countries: Kenya, Tanzania

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Biomes: Tropical

This mostly arboreal species lives in lowland and montane forest to over 3,000 metres above sea level.

Red List status: Vulnerable, with a declining population.

Captive presence: Currently only kept in 2 zoos in Europe (both in the Czech Republic), but formerly has been kept in at least 19 other zoos across the continent.

Reasoning: It may seem very odd that I would choose such a rarely-kept and range-restricted species over the more familiar mantled guereza. In fact the main reason for this being my choice is that, until 2019, it was this species that was kept by my nearest major zoo (Colchester Zoo). At one point, they had a group nearing a dozen individuals, and they have been kept in a variety of enclosures around the zoo, including a couple of different roofed displays and a large open-topped climbing frame. I must admit that finding that my local zoo’s colobus were not the familiar mantled guereza but a different and much rarer species has made me much more interested in them.

Otherwise, the Mount Kilimanjaro guereza is very similar to the other colobuses, certainly in terms of behaviour and housing. Going partly off my experiences seeing the species at Colchester, and making inferences from displays with other colobus species, I can say that they could be kept in all manner of displays – they can be kept in open-topped and mesh enclosures, as mentioned above, but can also live in drive-through safari enclosures and walkthrough enclosures. They can also be mixed with many other species, including gorillas, other monkeys, bongo, duikers, red river hogs and meerkats.

Another thing that makes me want the Mount Kilimanjaro guereza specifically, as opposed to the mantled species, is its more impressive appearance. The Mount Kilimanjaro guereza is, in the words of one of the first scientists to describe it, remarkable for the volume of its brush-like tail. They can also be told apart by the bold white colour of their tail, as opposed to the mantled guereza which often has grey or black hair streaking into the white tail. The white mantle of fur on the back of the Mount Kilimanjaro species is also longer, with the hair growing to twenty inches long. I would say, in appearance, the Mount Kilimanjaro guereza is the more impressive animal.

1679175886912.png

The pictures above compare two subspecies of mantled guereza (left and centre) with the Mount Kilimanjaro guereza (right), showing the much greater volume and more vivid white colour of the tail of the latter species

There is also the matter of rarity – if two very similar species, both of which can be successfully kept and bred in captivity can be choices, I would prefer the more threatened species as a means of raising some awareness of them. And although it could be argued that a species restricted to a few parts of Kenya and Tanzania would be useless as representation elsewhere, I don’t think that is actually the case in reality. To use another similar example, all bongo in captivity, even those kept in West African or Congo-themed areas of zoos, are actually the East African mountain bongo, as they are the rarer variety.

Variations (if any): I can’t think of any noticeable differences in colouration among members of this species; I would be fine with these animals not getting any variations at all.

References (I am including images of displays for mantled guereza as well, as I can image the two species can be kept similarly):
The open-topped climbing frame enclosure for Mount Kilimanjaro guereza formerly at Colchester Zoo:

Eastern Black-and-White Colobus enclosure - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

Island enclosure for mantled guereza:

Colobus island - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

Outdoor enclosure for mantled guereza, mixed with meerkats:

Black-and-white colobus and Meerkat enclosure - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

Outdoor enclosure for mantled guereza and lowland gorillas, showing the climbing equipment available:

Gorilla Exhibit at Lisbon Zoo, 24/05/11 - ZooChat

Home to Western Lowland Gorillas and Kikuyu Colobus.
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

Huge enclosure for mantled guereza, mixed with De Brazza’s monkeys:

Monkey Exhibit at Port Lympne, 01/08/10 - ZooChat

Part of the huge Kikuyu Colobus and De Brazza's Guenon mixed exhibit.
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

The Snowdon Aviary at London Zoo, now turned into a walkthrough for mantled guereza:

Snowdon Aviary - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

This drive-through enclosure used to use mantled guereza, although they had gone by the time this picture was taken:

African Jungle Reserve at Woburn, 20/06/10 - ZooChat

Home to Patas Monkeys, Barbary Macaques, Drills and Eastern Bongo.
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

A photograph by yours truly of a Mount Kilimanjaro guereza at Colchester Zoo with a baby born earlier that morning:
1679175929884.png
 

arafan

A
Cynogale bennettii said:
Time for what might be a more controversial choice...

Mount Kilimanjaro guereza
Colobus caudatus

View attachment 348926

Continents: Africa
Countries: Kenya, Tanzania

View attachment 348927

Biomes: Tropical

This mostly arboreal species lives in lowland and montane forest to over 3,000 metres above sea level.

Red List status: Vulnerable, with a declining population.

Captive presence: Currently only kept in 2 zoos in Europe (both in the Czech Republic), but formerly has been kept in at least 19 other zoos across the continent.

Reasoning: It may seem very odd that I would choose such a rarely-kept and range-restricted species over the more familiar mantled guereza. In fact the main reason for this being my choice is that, until 2019, it was this species that was kept by my nearest major zoo (Colchester Zoo). At one point, they had a group nearing a dozen individuals, and they have been kept in a variety of enclosures around the zoo, including a couple of different roofed displays and a large open-topped climbing frame. I must admit that finding that my local zoo’s colobus were not the familiar mantled guereza but a different and much rarer species has made me much more interested in them.

Otherwise, the Mount Kilimanjaro guereza is very similar to the other colobuses, certainly in terms of behaviour and housing. Going partly off my experiences seeing the species at Colchester, and making inferences from displays with other colobus species, I can say that they could be kept in all manner of displays – they can be kept in open-topped and mesh enclosures, as mentioned above, but can also live in drive-through safari enclosures and walkthrough enclosures. They can also be mixed with many other species, including gorillas, other monkeys, bongo, duikers, red river hogs and meerkats.

Another thing that makes me want the Mount Kilimanjaro guereza specifically, as opposed to the mantled species, is its more impressive appearance. The Mount Kilimanjaro guereza is, in the words of one of the first scientists to describe it, remarkable for the volume of its brush-like tail. They can also be told apart by the bold white colour of their tail, as opposed to the mantled guereza which often has grey or black hair streaking into the white tail. The white mantle of fur on the back of the Mount Kilimanjaro species is also longer, with the hair growing to twenty inches long. I would say, in appearance, the Mount Kilimanjaro guereza is the more impressive animal.

View attachment 348928
The pictures above compare two subspecies of mantled guereza (left and centre) with the Mount Kilimanjaro guereza (right), showing the much greater volume and more vivid white colour of the tail of the latter species

There is also the matter of rarity – if two very similar species, both of which can be successfully kept and bred in captivity can be choices, I would prefer the more threatened species as a means of raising some awareness of them. And although it could be argued that a species restricted to a few parts of Kenya and Tanzania would be useless as representation elsewhere, I don’t think that is actually the case in reality. To use another similar example, all bongo in captivity, even those kept in West African or Congo-themed areas of zoos, are actually the East African mountain bongo, as they are the rarer variety.

Variations (if any): I can’t think of any noticeable differences in colouration among members of this species; I would be fine with these animals not getting any variations at all.

References (I am including images of displays for mantled guereza as well, as I can image the two species can be kept similarly):
The open-topped climbing frame enclosure for Mount Kilimanjaro guereza formerly at Colchester Zoo:

Eastern Black-and-White Colobus enclosure - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

Island enclosure for mantled guereza:

Colobus island - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

Outdoor enclosure for mantled guereza, mixed with meerkats:

Black-and-white colobus and Meerkat enclosure - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

Outdoor enclosure for mantled guereza and lowland gorillas, showing the climbing equipment available:

Gorilla Exhibit at Lisbon Zoo, 24/05/11 - ZooChat

Home to Western Lowland Gorillas and Kikuyu Colobus.
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

Huge enclosure for mantled guereza, mixed with De Brazza’s monkeys:

Monkey Exhibit at Port Lympne, 01/08/10 - ZooChat

Part of the huge Kikuyu Colobus and De Brazza's Guenon mixed exhibit.
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

The Snowdon Aviary at London Zoo, now turned into a walkthrough for mantled guereza:

Snowdon Aviary - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

This drive-through enclosure used to use mantled guereza, although they had gone by the time this picture was taken:

African Jungle Reserve at Woburn, 20/06/10 - ZooChat

Home to Patas Monkeys, Barbary Macaques, Drills and Eastern Bongo.
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

A photograph by yours truly of a Mount Kilimanjaro guereza at Colchester Zoo with a baby born earlier that morning:
View attachment 348929
Click to expand...
Even tought I mostly advocate for the rarer species too, there doesn't seem to be a real consensus regarding the elevation to a species level of C. caudatus. So I honestly would prefer the inclusion of the "general" mantled colobus, or if we really go for a rarer species, there are some good alternatives too (king colobus and Angolan colobus).
 

Cynogale bennettii II

Cynogale bennettii II
Central American river turtle
Dermatemys mawii

1679317844705.png


Continents: North America
Countries: Belize, Guatemala, Mexico

1679317833290.png

The IUCN has not mapped this species, but this map does show where the species occurs

Biomes: Aquatic, Tropical

This species primarily inhabits deep rivers and oxbow lakes for much of the year, moving into flooded forests and smaller rivers during the nesting season. They are so aquatic that they often remain trapped in lakes during the dry season rather than move overland to find other bodies of water. If the water is well-oxygenated they may remain underwater indefinitely, as they are able to absorb oxygen from the water with a breathing apparatus inside their throat.

Red List status: Critically Endangered, with a declining population.

Captive presence: This species is kept in relatively few places, but some locations have a lot of individuals. At a turtle breeding centre in Mexico (open to the public), there are over 800 Central American river turtles. They also live in a couple of more traditional zoos and aquariums in their native Mexico and Guatemala, at least four zoos in the USA, one in Austria and at least one zoo in Japan.

Reasoning: As well as being quite striking in appearance, with its yellow and brown-spotted head, the Central American river turtle has an advantage of being very large. Compared to the giant Asian pond turtle (see #5 in this thread), with its 48cm shell, this species has a shell up to 60cm long and weighs up to 22kg. They are, if anything, even better suited to being a habitat species in Planet Zoo.

As well as being large, these are very special turtles for several other reasons. Firstly, they are critically endangered and part of a large-scale breeding programme in a number of zoos and turtle breeding centres. They are the second-highest scoring reptile species on the EDGE (Evolutionarily Distinct, Globally Endangered) list, as they are the last survivors of a group of turtles that evolved in the Cretaceous period. They are almost completely aquatic and rarely surface, even to bask. Unusually among turtles, their eggs can survive underwater for several weeks.

In terms of enclosure type, they can often be kept in large, outdoor and open-topped displays. Their size means that they would not really function that well as an exhibit species, so having them as a habitat species would really be the best option.

Their large size and herbivorous diet make them suitable for housing in mixed displays. While they are kept with other turtles, more importantly in terms of Planet Zoo they are able to be kept with spectacled caimans, as they are too large to be threatened by relatively small crocodilians.

Having these turtles in the game would add a colourful, highly threatened and evolutionarily distinct species of large turtle which would also add good representation for Central America.

Variations (if any): As well as the normal colour, with the yellow ‘skullcap’ and spotted cheeks (as seen above), they do come in some other colours, including where the head is entirely brown, some with a pale off-yellow ‘skullcap’ and some with most of the head being bright yellow – those four variations would be entirely suitable for representing this species.

References:
A small pit-type outdoor enclosure for Central American river turtles:

Central American river turtle enclosure - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

A large single-species outdoor enclosure for Central American river turtles:

Central American River Turtle Exhibit - ZooChat

July 31st, 2010.
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

An outdoor display for several mixed species of turtle and spectacled caiman:

Caiman and turtles mixed exhibit - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com
 

Cynogale bennettii II

Cynogale bennettii II
Desmarest’s hutia
Capromys pilorides

1679556440641.png


Continents: North America
Countries: Cuba

1679556475930.png


Biomes: Tropical

The Desmarest’s hutia is a widespread species on Cuba, able to live in all kinds of habitats including montane and lowland rainforest, coastal semi-arid areas, marshlands and semi-deciduous forests. Although they can climb, they spend most of their time on the ground and has a preference for areas with lots of caves or extensive root systems where they can hide.

Red List status: Least Concern, with a stable population.

Captive presence: This species is kept in 20 zoos across Europe, but perhaps surprisingly I cannot find any reference to them being kept in zoos in North America.

Reasoning: The Desmarest’s hutia is the largest native land mammal surviving in the Caribbean, an area with very little representation at the moment. I would say that, personally speaking, they are probably the best habitat animal to include in Planet Zoo from the Caribbean islands region.

Hutia are able to be kept in a variety of enclosures, including both entirely indoor tropical-themed spaces and outdoor enclosures. For quite a prolonged period (nine years, give or take a year) they were also kept free-roaming in a large walkthrough tropical house.

As their being kept in a walkthrough suggests, hutia are very placid animals (comparable in some ways to a capybara). This means they have been successfully kept in mixed enclosures with all kinds of other species including small monkeys such as tamarins, marmosets and squirrel monkeys, sloths, iguanas, tropical birds and other rodent species including agoutis and squirrels.

Their fairly small size, docility and ease of keeping, combined with their interesting geographical and behavioural features, means that hutias are kept by all kinds of zoos – very large and well-regarded places such as Rotterdam Zoo keep them in a Caribbean-themed area, but they can equally be kept by much smaller or newly-opened zoos to provide an attractive yet easily-managed display. I feel the hutia would add a lot to the game.

Variations (if any): Another positive of the Desmarest’s hutia is that it comes in a broad range of colours – their base colour is a dark brown, but they also come in all-black and grey, with varying levels of white colouration. Some have white only around the snout, some have a white head and neck while others are primarily white in colour.

References:
An indoor tropical-themed enclosure for hutia:

Rotterdam Zoo - Hutia exhibit - ZooChat

A view of the exhibit for Desmarest's hutias in the Caribbean section of the Oceanium in the American theme in Rotterdam Zoo. This section focuses on endangered island species of the...
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

A more distant view of the above enclosure, showing the viewing area:

Desmarest's Hutia exhibit, Oceanium - ZooChat

Antilles, Oceanium Diergaarde Blijdorp, September 2009
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

An indoor beach-themed enclosure that mixes hutia with Cuban iguanas and Socorro doves:
1679556557039.png


A basic outdoor mesh enclosure:

Desmarest's hutia exhibit, 2019-06-01 - ZooChat

www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

A basic outdoor open-topped enclosure, with simple climbing frame, for hutia:

Enclosure for cubian hutias (Capromys pilorides) - ZooChat

Enclosure for cubian hutias (Capromys pilorides) at Prague Zoo.
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

A mixed enclosure for Desmarest’s hutia and red-rumped agouti (both species visible):

Cuban Hutia and Red-Rumped Agouti - ZooChat

Cuban Hutia and Red-Rumped Agouti 25th March 2018
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

An indoor mixed enclosure for Desmarest’s hutia, variegated squirrel and Azara’s agouti (all three species visible):

Small mammal mixed exhibit at Munich Zoo 2006 - ZooChat

Home to Varigated Squirrels, Cuban Hutias and Azara's Agoutis.
www.zoochat.com www.zoochat.com

A view of the indoor walkthrough tropical house where hutia free-roamed for a long period, alongside other species:
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/randers-tropical-zoo-south-america-dome.19135/
 

Cynogale bennettii II

Cynogale bennettii II
Decided I'd come back to this. Got a few more planned - hopefully I'll get up to a nice round 45 species before too long.

Temminck’s tragopan
Tragopan temminckii

1702034462828.png


Continents: Asia
Countries: China, India, Myanmar, Vietnam

1702034491425.png


Biomes: Taiga, Temperate

The Temminck’s tragopan is an altitudinal migrant in its mountain home, moving from evergreen coniferous forests down to more temperate bamboo and rhododendron forests as the temperature falls in winter.

Red List status: Least Concern, with a declining population

Captive presence: This species is kept in at least 121 zoos across Europe, plus 1 in Kazakhstan, a number of zoos in North America and more in their native China and India – only 2 zoos in India keep the species, but one of those two is a conservation centre for tragopans that keeps 21 individual birds.

Reasoning: This fairly large and chunky pheasant would, I think, add a lot to the game. They are primarily a mountain bird but can also live in more lowland forested areas as well – they would be one of the ideal birds for an Asian mountain-themed area, as they live alongside many of the game’s existing species such as snow leopards, takin and both giant and red pandas.

I would possibly give these birds a mixed-species bonus with the cranes and possibly the takin – they tend to be rather placid birds that have been successfully mixed with all sorts of other birds, plus some deer, antelopes and caprids. They have also been mixed with lar gibbons, but I would hesitate to give them a bonus together.

They are often kept in aviaries of varying sizes, but can also live in fully open-air enclosures – they live in a large safari-type paddock in one park here in England. They are a suitable species for walkthrough habitats.

As well as their utility, their beauty and the possibilities of making one from a peafowl are also considerations. Their bright colours are a definite point in their favour, and much of their animations could be borrowed from the peafowl. The main difference would be in the courtship display.

Variations (if any): Personally, I would be fine with just the single colour morph for the males, as in this species the males and females are very different in colouration. That would, I think, be variation enough.

References:

A smaller themed aviary for tragopans (including an ibex skull):

A smaller themed aviary that mixes tragopans with two species of squirrel:

A larger walkthrough aviary for tragopans, kept alongside storks and kites:

A large mixed-species aviary housing tragopans, muntjac deer and lar gibbons:
 

Cynogale bennettii II

Cynogale bennettii II
Rhinoceros iguana
Cyclura cornuta

1702058799739.png


Continents: North America
Countries: Dominican Republic, Haiti

1702058821628.png


Biomes: Desert (?), Grassland, Tropical (?)

The main habitat of the rhinoceros iguana is extremely dry limestone forest. Because of its dryness and location in the tropics, it could be argued that desert and tropical biomes fit, but I believe in-game the dry forest biome mainly falls under grassland.

Red List status: Endangered, with a declining population

Captive presence: This is a rather common species in captivity. They are kept in at least 79 zoos in Europe, at least 20-29 holders in America, 14 zoos in Australia, plus zoos at least in Taiwan, Singapore, Israel and Sri Lanka.

Reasoning: Probably the first question many would have about this animal would be wondering why it should be a habitat animal, when all other iguanas have been exhibit animals? The answer lies in the fact that the rhinoceros iguana is one of the so-called ground or rock iguanas – an arboreal space such as ones for green iguanas would be useless to it. In that sense, they are more like the monitor lizards in behaviour than the in-game iguanas.

With that out of the way, the rhinoceros iguana has a lot going for it. It would be a fairly easy addition to the Caribbean that is widely-kept in zoos. They are also regularly kept in outdoor enclosures – either year-round in warmer climes or, in temperate regions, they may temporarily get access to an outdoor space. One fun thing about the rhinoceros iguana is that they often shelter in burrows, so could potentially get one of the burrows as an enrichment item.

Rhinoceros iguanas are fairly placid animals, and have been mixed with a number of in-game species including both species of giant tortoise and the Cuvier’s dwarf caiman. However, I would probably not give the iguana a bonus for sharing with any of these species. They have also been successfully kept in walkthrough enclosures, and I may be more convinced to make them suitable for such a thing in the game.

All in all, they are a fairly large lizard that benefits from big enclosures, that often have outdoor access. They would also add a completely new group of lizards as habitat animals, which can only be a good thing.

Variations (if any): The rhinoceros iguana mainly comes in either uniform grey or brown colours; I would have two variants, one of each colour.

References:

An indoor arid-themed single species enclosure for rhinoceros iguana:

A rocky single-species outdoor enclosure for rhinoceros iguana at Disney’s Animal Kingdom:

A semicircular outdoor enclosure, with a desert theme:

A larger desert-themed outdoor enclosure:

A more vegetated outdoor enclosure, from a zoo in Sri Lanka:

An outdoor mixed enclosure for rhinoceros iguana and Aldabra giant tortoise:

An outdoor mixed enclosure for rhinoceros iguana and Galapagos giant tortoise:

A rhinoceros iguana free-roaming in an indoor tropical house:
 

Cynogale bennettii II

Cynogale bennettii II
Azara’s night monkey
Aotus azarae

1702058932731.png


Continents: South America
Countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Peru

1702058955008.png


Biomes: Grassland, Tropical

This species of night monkey has the widest range and biome spread of any night monkey. They occur from the southern banks of the Amazon in tropical rainforest right down to the Gran Chaco dry forests in Argentina and Paraguay.

Red List status: Least Concern, with a declining population

Captive presence: The second most common night monkey in European zoos, with nineteen zoos housing them. They are also kept in some zoos in their native South America, plus in Israel and Taiwan at least. Many zoos in America and East Asia that keep night monkeys are not entirely certain what species they hold, so Azara’s may also be kept there as well.

Reasoning: Although not the most commonly-kept nor the most threatened species of night monkey, I have chosen the Azara’s for several reasons. One reason is that they are among the largest of the night monkeys, weighing in at around 1.2 kilograms. That would make them intermediate in size between the squirrel monkeys that I would like to have and the capuchins already in-game.

Another reason for choosing Azara’s night monkey specifically is because of a quirk of their behaviour – while most night monkeys are strictly nocturnal, the Azara’s is the only species that can be equally active day or night.

In general, night monkeys are friendly and well able to live in both walkthrough enclosures and mixed-species displays. Among the animals they can be mixed with are other small primates, sloths, tamanduas, pacas, agoutis, tree porcupines, birds, bats, iguanas, tortoises and a variety of other animals; probably the only in-game species I would be fine giving an enrichment bonus to however (considering most of their enclosure-mates are either missing from the game or exhibit animals) is the nine-banded armadillo.

This species is also among the more attractive of the night monkeys – several species are grey all over, but the Azara’s has the contrasting black and white fur on the face and bright orange fur on the belly as well as the woolly grey fur.

A fun addition for this species is that, like other night monkeys, they have a throat sac to help amplify their calls and will often call communally to maintain territory, so they should receive the chorus behaviour if they came to Planet Zoo.

Variations (if any): Some pictures I have seen on this species seem to show that the black colouration on the sides of the face has a different extent among different individuals; I would be happy to have one with partial coverage and another with fuller black bars. Otherwise, I am fine with the individuals looking identical.

References:
Note – Because there is little difference in housing requirements for night monkeys, the gallery includes exhibits for multiple night monkey species.

A large nocturnal walkthrough exhibit that houses night monkeys alongside other nocturnal species such as paca, tamandua, tree porcupines and bats:

A diurnal indoor enclosure for night monkeys at the same institution, mixed with sloths, flying foxes and birds:

The walkthrough Forest House at Artis Zoo, which houses night monkeys alongside a mix of other rainforest species:

A single-species outdoor enclosure, with partially-opaque fencing to darken the space:

An outdoor walkthrough enclosure for night monkeys, shared with marmosets and tree porcupines:
 

Cynogale bennettii II

Cynogale bennettii II
Indian star tortoise
Geochelone elegans

1702059084716.png


Continents: Asia
Countries: India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka

1702059107330.png


Biomes: Desert, Grassland, Tropical

This species of tortoise occurs in grassland and dry woodland habitats, while also living in the Thar Desert in the northwestern part of India and tropical forests in southern India and Sri Lanka.

Red List status: Vulnerable, with a declining population

Captive presence: This is one of the most widely-kept chelonian species in captivity, with them being housed at 65 zoos in Europe, between 20 and 29 zoos in America, 12 zoos in Australia, 3 zoos in New Zealand and 2 zoos in Singapore, plus zoos in Armenia, Taiwan and the UAE. In their native India, a total of 25 zoos keeps the star tortoise, with 495 individuals split between them.

Reasoning: This is the eighth largest tortoise species in the world, weighing close to 9 kilograms at their maximum size. They are definitely large enough to be a habitat species.

The star tortoise is an ideal smaller reptile to come to the game – they represent a continent without any habitat chelonian, are extremely attractive, can live in large groups and are among the most widely-kept of all reptile species in zoos (not necessarily the most abundant, but at least a few zoos in many countries keep them).

Star tortoises also have a lot going for them in terms of enclosure design. Their smaller size means they could have a smaller overall enclosure size than other tortoises, they can be kept behind very low barriers, they flourish when kept in outdoor enclosures and can be kept in mixed-species enclosures, but there are few Indian species in-game they can be mixed with. I would say peafowl would be fine, but other potential mixes for this species will be coming in the near-future on this thread.

Variations (if any): The adult star tortoise has very little variation in colour on the shell, but the younger tortoises have shells with fewer yellow radiating lines than the adults, so there can be some variety of pattern in a breeding group. There is also a variation in size between the males and females, with the females being considerably larger.

References:

Open-topped indoor enclosures for star tortoises, showing low barrier requirements:

A large indoor mixed-species enclosure housing star tortoises alongside monkeys, sloths, crowned pigeons and small toucans:

An outdoor roofed-over enclosure home to star tortoises and ring-tailed lemurs:

An outdoor roofed enclosure for star tortoises in New Zealand:

An outdoor enclosure for star tortoises, with red pandas in the background enclosure, showing the low barrier requirements:
 

Cynogale bennettii II

Cynogale bennettii II
Four-horned antelope
Tetracerus quadricornis

1702059226508.png


Continents: Asia
Countries: India, Nepal

1702059247516.png


Biomes: Grassland

The four-horned antelope mainly lives on the margins of forest and grassland habitat, and the main biome it inhabits is open dry deciduous forest that is never particularly far from water.

Red List status: Vulnerable, with a declining population

Captive presence: This antelope is no longer kept outside its native range, with the last ones in Europe living at Paris Menagerie until 2009. However, in their native India, the four-horned antelope is one of the most common zoo species – twenty zoos keep the species, with 106 individual animals.

Reasoning: The four-horned antelope is, evolutionarily speaking, one of the most interesting of all antelopes. It is the most primitive of the bovids, barely changed since the family evolved nearly 9 million years ago. Their appearance is also unique – save for a few domestic breeds, they are the only bovid to grow four horns.

In terms of their zoo presence, while they are no longer kept outside of their native range, it cannot be said that this is due to them being overly difficult to keep – they seemed to breed pretty well when they were kept in Europe, and their disappearance seems as much to do with zoos just not being interested in keeping them. However, their abundance in Indian zoos means I would still be very happy to see these animals.

The four-horned antelope is a smaller species – when it comes to antelopes, I would say that the smaller species are the most pressing absences at the moment. Because of their smaller size, they tend not to live in large herds and instead prefer to either live alone or in groups of up to five animals. However, they will live alongside other smaller Indian species in the wild – the Indian peafowl is the only in-game species I would give an interspecies bonus at the moment. In the wild, they share habitat with star tortoises and spotted chevrotains and derive benefits from associating with chital and grey langurs, so in my fictional Indian species roster, they would all be able to cohabitate. Also, one of the last European four-horned antelopes was kept in a mixed enclosure with nilgai. Because of their shyness, I would hesitate to make them a walkthrough-suitable species.

They could have smaller enclosure requirements than other antelopes, but not crazily small either – they need some space to get away from people, and indeed many enclosures I have seen for the species tend to be on the larger side. But if combined with other species, this would make the larger space more interesting.

Variations (if any): In different pictures of four-horned antelope I can find online, there seems to be a variety of different colours – some are brownish in colour, some are a mix of brown and grey and some are more orangey in colour. Those three main patterns would, I think, add sufficient variety to these antelopes.

References:

A large paddock for four-horned antelope in an Indian zoo:

Another paddock in an Indian zoo, which used to house four-horned antelope:
 

Cynogale bennettii II

Cynogale bennettii II
Indian spotted chevrotain
Moschiola indica

1702072488391.png


Continents: Asia
Countries: India

1702072509954.png


Biomes: Aquatic, Grassland, Tropical

The Indian chevrotain is mainly found in tropical evergreen forests, but can also live in open dry forests and agricultural landscapes. They are often linked to hilly environments with abundant boulders and also tend to live nearby to wetlands or other watercourses. The Indian chevrotain, like several other chevrotain species, is a very capable swimmer and diver and can be seen as a semi-aquatic mammal that walks on the bottom of a river or swamp like a miniature hippopotamus.

Red List status: Least Concern, with an unknown population trend

Captive presence: This species is not massively abundant in zoos in its native India, with just six zoos housing them. However, they keep a number of individuals between them, with these six zoos keeping 33 chevrotains. Otherwise, they are seemingly not kept in any zoos outside their native range anymore.

Reasoning: I know that I mentioned the lesser Malay chevrotain on the previous page of this thread but, when I think about it, I would much rather have this species which I consider to be much more attractive in appearance – the white blotching on the base coat makes it a much more visually striking animal to me.

While they are primarily solitary in the wild, the Indian chevrotains can often be kept in quite large groups in a captive setting, especially when the enclosure is fairly large. It can also be assumed, based on experiences with other chevrotains, that they can live in a variety of mixed-species enclosures – one zoo that kept a similar Sri Lankan chevrotain managed to mix them, at different times, with tree squirrels, Victoria crowned pigeons and owls. I would personally make this species compatible with four-horned antelopes, peafowl and star tortoises.

Being fairly small, this species can be kept in fairly small enclosures but can also live in larger spaces such as indoor walkthrough enclosures and large outdoor spaces – providing underwater viewing areas may also make this small ungulate more interesting to build for.

Although they are not the most abundant species in captivity, their beauty and potential utility makes this one of my preferred options for a new ungulate species in the game.

Variations (if any): The spotted patterns on the back of this animal are unique to the individual; this would help make the animals feel more unique.

References:

Note – Because there is little difference in housing requirements for chevrotains, the gallery includes exhibits for multiple chevrotain species.

This is a larger single-species enclosure for a very similar Sri Lankan species of spotted chevrotain:

This video shows an indoor enclosure for a Sri Lankan chevrotain species, showing them being kept in a group and mixed with crowned pigeons:
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OrfhCm8i2A


This video screenshot shows an Indian spotted chevrotain enclosure in an Indian zoo:
1702072553182.png


The video in question, about the captive breeding and reintroduction of the chevrotain, can be seen here:
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Hqgn44SoK0
 

Cynogale bennettii II

Cynogale bennettii II
Goliath heron
Ardea goliath

1702072649048.png


Continents: Africa, Asia
Countries: Angola, Bangladesh, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, India, Iran, Iraq, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe

1702072671864.png


Biomes: Aquatic, Desert, Grassland, Tropical

The goliath heron lives and breeds close to water wherever it lives. This includes around rivers and pools in the Congo rainforest, on savannah grasslands and open woodlands throughout Africa and, on the Arabian Peninsula, in mangrove swamps along desert coastlines.

Red List status: Least Concern, with a stable population

Captive presence: This species is definitely kept in ten zoos in Europe, several zoos in the United States and two in Saudi Arabia.

Reasoning: This is the world’s largest species of heron, as the name perhaps suggests – fully-grown, they are only 10-20 centimetres short of the height of an average person. They are definitely big enough to be a habitat bird in the game, and one of the most impressive of the wading birds.

They have the benefit of being able to represent many different parts of the world in the game, as they occur on Africa’s coasts and inland habitats almost anywhere with permanent water, as well as in the mangrove swamps of Arabia, the reedbeds of Iraq and Iran and wet grasslands in northeast India.

As part of this, the goliath heron could be mixed with all kinds of other animals, although I would hesitate to give a bonus for any of them. Among animals that goliath herons have been mixed with, examples include all kinds of other birds, monkeys, white rhinos, hippos, antelopes and okapi. While goliath herons have been kept in walkthrough aviaries, I would also hesitate to make them a suitable walkthrough species – smaller herons are dangerous enough, one of this size could be extremely so.

While they are often kept in aviary settings, this is by no means a requirement – many zoos can and do keep goliath herons in open-topped enclosures, especially when mixed with larger mammal species.

In short, the goliath heron would be a good filler species for many sections of a zoo whilst simultaneously being impressive enough to be interesting by itself.

Variations (if any): This species basically has no dimorphism between male and female, but I would personally be fine with all of these birds looking the same.

References:

A photo from San Diego of a goliath heron mixed with a white stork in an open-topped paddock, partially to show how big this heron is – it is a full 25cm taller than the stork:

A large and impressive single-species aviary for goliath herons from a park in Saudi Arabia:

A breeding group of goliath herons, living inside an enormous walkthrough aviary in a French zoo:

A mixed enclosure from Jacksonville Zoo, which houses goliath herons with rhinos, kudu and several bird species:

A mixed enclosure for goliath heron and hippopotamus:

An open-topped paddock for goliath herons with African spoonbill and (possibly wild) grey heron; a number of stork species also live in here:

A mixed aviary display housing goliath herons, several other bird species and okapi (monkeys not pictured):
 

Cynogale bennettii II

Cynogale bennettii II
Kelp gull
Larus dominicanus

1702072778031.png


Continents: Africa, Antarctica, Oceania, South America
Countries: Angola, Antarctica, Argentina, Australia, Barbados, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Falkland Islands, Gabon, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Madagascar, Mexico, Mozambique, Namibia, New Zealand, Peru, Senegal, South Africa, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Uruguay

1702072806858.png


Biomes: Aquatic, Desert (?), Grassland (?), Taiga (?), Tundra (?)

The kelp gull breeds near water, and the aquatic biome is a must for it. The nearshore environment could play a factor in biome choice (hence why the African penguin has the desert biome) – if so, the kelp gull breeds along desert shores (near the Namib and Atacama), grasslands (Patagonia and parts of Southern Africa), taiga (in New Zealand, they can breed on mountaintops near to water), temperate (areas such as Tasmania and coastal Australia) and tundra (they breed on the Antarctic Peninsula and South Atlantic islands where king penguins live).

Red List status: Least Concern, with an increasing population

Captive presence: Kelp gulls are not particularly common in captivity, but have been kept in several zoos in their native range including in Australia and Brazil. Antarctic kelp gulls have also, until very recently, been kept in several places in the United States, including the SeaWorlds in San Diego and Orlando, and John Ball Zoo.

Reasoning: Gulls, despite perhaps not having the best reputation, are one of the most recognisable groups of birds in the world – wherever you go, there is likely to be at least some kind of gull nearby. The kelp gull is one of the biggest and most impressive species and has an extremely wide global range, so is an obvious candidate for representing this group of birds.

With such a wide range, gulls can be kept in many different parts of a zoo – if a coastal zone about Australia or New Zealand, Antarctica or southern Africa is desired, then the kelp gull would be an ideal counterpart to these zones.

Kelp gulls have been kept in several types of enclosure – they have been kept in open-topped displays themed with a beach hut and a boat to represent coastal habitats, in aviaries and in indoor polar enclosures. Despite being large and potentially quite predatory, they have been mixed with a variety of other larger birds including Australian pelicans, scarlet ibises and several species of penguins, including king penguins.

Kelp gulls have some interesting biology that makes me admire them and want them in the game – they are quite predatory and can kill prey as big as young seals (although for whatever reason, kelp gulls in zoos do not appear to bother their enclosure-mates), but are also possibly the world’s largest parasites – they eat the flesh from the backs of live whales without killing them, which I think is metal as hell.

Another thing the kelp gull would add to the game is a distinctive coastal sound – they have the traditional gull yelping and laughing calls that are a familiar noise made by many of the larger gulls.

Variations (if any): This species has very little different plumage variations between individuals – there is no difference between males and females.

References:

An open-topped coastal themed display for kelp gulls:

An open-topped display mixing kelp gulls with Australian pelicans:

An aviary in a Brazilian zoo that mixes kelp gull with scarlet ibises:

A photograph of a kelp gull in an all-indoor display, mixed with Magellanic penguins:

This video shows a pair of kelp gulls living with several penguin species (including king, gentoo, chinstrap, adelie and rockhopper) in the all-indoor Antarctic display at Seaworld San Diego – the gulls can be seen sitting on the back cliff at around the 3:15 mark:
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQiztzw73Y4


A library of kelp gull sounds can be found in this link:

Kelp Gull (Larus dominicanus) :: xeno-canto

xeno-canto.org xeno-canto.org
 

KönigDerKaffeebohnen

K
Cynogale bennettii II said:
Rhinoceros iguana
Cyclura cornuta

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Reasoning: Probably the first question many would have about this animal would be wondering why it should be a habitat animal, when all other iguanas have been exhibit animals? The answer lies in the fact that the rhinoceros iguana is one of the so-called ground or rock iguanas – an arboreal space such as ones for green iguanas would be useless to it. In that sense, they are more like the monitor lizards in behaviour than the in-game iguanas.
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The best reasoning would be that the iguanas being exhibit animals is the biggest miss in the entire game, bigger then the HBB, bigger then the lion model, bigger then the awfull brownbear and timber wolf models and bigger then the malayan tapir. The only thing close on a bigger missed opportuinity is the sloth as not only is it the wrong one but also stuck in a hideous looking exhibit thats way to large and unflexible, while the iguanas are "just" in the 4x4x4 boxes.

But neat to see another rhino iguana fan,super underated animal!
 
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