Diminutive Denizens animal pack

[DarthQuell]

Ok, so, basically this is a concept that will feature 7 habitat animals that are small, very small.

So, what I mean by small: about the size of a capybara and smaller.
So, following a similar format to the SEA pack, it'll have 2 star animals, 1 exhibit, and 3 semi-known species and 2 obscure species (or vice versa)

1. Capybara - honestly, y'all figured it out when I said the size requirements. But still, I didn't think I wanted one until I saw them at the zoo, and boy howdy they are adorable
2. Tasmanian devil - another star, this guy is a fierce little scavenger with a nice, glossy black fur. Bonus points to Frontier if they can make it speak gibberish and twirl and have a taste for hares/rabbits "Especially rabbits... abwapwa raspberry"
3. Wombat - any wombat, but I think the common one is most common in zoos. But who wouldn't want this teddy bear in their zoo?
4. North American ringtail - imagine this beautiful procyonid in your zoo. I love them, I wanna see one in real-life. They used to be tamed by miners to control the rodent population, giving them the alt. name "miner's cat"
5. Fossa - known because of the series Madagascar, the fossa is a cat-like predator from Madagascar that can be found in zoos
6. Prairie dogs - small and adorable, these are fun to watch poking up out of their holes; like a meerkat substitute, in a way
7. Howler monkey - any species is great, but the one that most think of seems to be the black howler monkey
8. Coral snake (E) - specifically, I'm interested in the Texas coral snake and the Eastern coral snake, both beautiful and dangerous

Honorable mentions:

1. Asian small-clawed otter - why? Well, I already chose 2 stars. Ti get him you'd have to replace either Taz or the capybara, which nobody wants either. I think this little guy is even more likely than the other 2
2. Fanaloka - "Hello Julian. It's Karl, your 'neh-may-sis'. This was on my radar, but I favored the fossa over the fanaloka
3. Raccoon - I prefer the ringtail, but the raccoon was so close
4. Coati - same as above
5. Quoll - the wombat won only because I've seen them once in a zoo, but never a quoll

So, what would y'all choose? Any ideas?

 

[biggest_dreamer]

I cannot stress how badly I need this sort of pack to happen, lol. Small mammals are always the species I end up devoting the most time to during zoo visits, without fail. I could (and have) watch tanukis, lemurs, otters, red pandas, bush dogs, meerkats, tree kangaroos, koalas, capybaras... for hours and will gladly walk right past the lions and tigers and elephants to get the chance to do so. But enough gushing, here's what I'd go with:

1. Capybara. In an ideal world we'd get these guys in some other pack given their popularity and leave more room to play around in this one, but irrespective of any other hypothetical packs I've got to include them. Such a staple species, no way around it.
2. Matschie's tree kangaroo. During my time on these forums I've come to realize that Matschie's tree kangaroo is more common in the US, while Goodfellow's is more common elsewhere in the world. This species choice isn't (entirely) out of regional bias, though. Matschie's tree kangaroo is just so much cuter! It's got a dopey teddy bear face. I love it! But like, I wouldn't hate Goodfellow's by any means. Either way, if we only get one more marsupial, all my hopes are going towards a tree kangaroo.
3. Fishing cat. This is the quintessential small mammal house cat in my eyes. Sand cat would be a close second. We desperately need a proper small cat in the game, and this one has a unique looking face and would be capable of diving to boot. Perfect inclusion.
4. Golden lion tamarin. I could honestly cap this pack off with a couple monkeys and lemurs, but I'm trying to churn out something more realistic and balanced here. It's kind of crazy that the capuchin is presently our only small monkey as well as our only New World monkey. The golden lion tamarin would help carry some of that load, and it's visually striking and notably endangered to boot.
5. Coatimundi. I could also swap this one for the raccoon or ringtail, but the coatimundi "feels" the most exotic of the three, and it's the only one I've personally seen in a zoo. It's also more visually interesting than the kinkajou, and far more commonly kept than the olingo. But really, I wouldn't be disappointed with any procyonid.
6. Black-tailed prairie dog. They put the effort into adding tunneling, so we may as well get some use out of it. I wavered a bit between them and the banded mongoose, but I opted for the one that looks more distinct from the meerkat and is also from a less represented region.
7. Tanuki. My 100% bias pick. They're hands down my favorite species not presently in the game. They're so uniquely cute, so fluffy in their winter coats, such fun characters in Japanese folklore... I don't think they're even featured in a single zoo in America anymore after Zoo Atlanta's duo both passed away last year, but they seem common enough in European zoos to make up for it.
8. Axolotl. If the theme of this pack is cute and goofy creatures, I can't think of a single exhibit species that better embodies that spirit than the axolotl. I can't even think of any potential runners up here.

 

[Antimony96]

A lot of these are animals I'd hope would be covered in future packs. But ignoring that:

Black-tailed prarie dog
White-nosed coatimundi
Asian small-clawed otter
Pallas's cat (same logic as @biggest_dreamer in picking the fishing cat, but this one is my preferred small feline)
Matschie's tree kangaroo
Golden lion tamarin
Fossa
Japanese rhinoceros beetle (exhibit)

I decided to exclude the beaver and capybara because they're much heavier than anything else on this list, with the latter averaging just under 50kg.

 

[Urufu1997]

Ok, so, basically this is a concept that will feature 7 habitat animals that are small, very small.

Tardigrade please

 

[Urufu1997]

Tasmanian devil - another star, this guy is a fierce little scavenger with a nice, glossy black fur. Bonus points to Frontier if they can make it speak gibberish and twirl and have a taste for hares/rabbits "Especially rabbits... abwapwa raspberry"

Funfact (of which I'm not completely sure if it is really true): if you are referring to the Tasmanian Devil from Looney Tunes, it was originally supposed to be a Wolverine but for some Reason People called it a Tasmanian Devil and it became Cannon.

Also yes, we need Tasmanian Devils in the Game. They are so awesome. They are only in one Zoo outside of Australia I think but they can give it to us if they also gave us the Proboscis Monkey (and the Titan Beetle. I think I've read once that they aren't even kept in any Zoos)

1. Prairie dogs - small and adorable, these are fun to watch poking up out of their holes; like a meerkat substitute, in a way
2. Howler monkey - any species is great, but the one that most think of seems to be the black howler monkey

Both absolutely needed. If we shouldn't get Prairie Dogs for some Reason, Marmots would be also great (and walk through suitable)

Raccoon - I prefer the ringtail, but the raccoon was so close

Want them so much in a North America Pack

Quoll - the wombat won only because I've seen them once in a zoo, but never a quoll

Quolls are really cool. Also never seen one in a Zoo. Maybe they aren't kept outside of Australia or only very rarely

It's kind of crazy that the capuchin is presently our only small monkey

We do also have the Japanese Macaque
But we definitely need more Monkeys

Tanuki. My 100% bias pick. They're hands down my favorite species not presently in the game. They're so uniquely cute, so fluffy in their winter coats, such fun characters in Japanese folklore... I don't think they're even featured in a single zoo in America anymore after Zoo Atlanta's duo both passed away last year, but they seem common enough in European zoos to make up for it.

Yes. Perfect for Russian, Japanese, Chinese(?) or invasive Species themed Areas. I need them so badly in the Game

 

[biggest_dreamer]

I love Pallas's cats so much but I've never actually seen them before. In a perfect world I'd love to see a small cat specific pack with them, fishing cats, sand cats, servals, caracals, maybe even bobcats (assuming we get a European lynx elsewhere) but I seriously doubt such a specific pack is on Frontier's radar.

 

[Urufu1997]

I love Pallas's cats so much but I've never actually seen them before. In a perfect world I'd love to see a small cat specific pack with them, fishing cats, sand cats, servals, caracals, maybe even bobcats (assuming we get a European lynx elsewhere) but I seriously doubt such a specific pack is on Frontier's radar.

We could also get something like the flat headed Cat as a lesser known Species

 

[Aramar]

Also yes, we need Tasmanian Devils in the Game. They are so awesome. They are only in one Zoo outside of Australia I think but they can give it to us if they also gave us the Proboscis Monkey (and the Titan Beetle. I think I've read once that they aren't even kept in any Zoos)

Tasmanian devils are found in 5 or 6 European zoos and I think some American zoos have them too. You must be thinking of platypus

 

[Urufu1997]

Tasmanian devils are found in 5 or 6 European zoos and I think some American zoos have them too. You must be thinking of platypus

Pretty sure it was only one Zoo. Probably just read a old Article some Time ago.
Just checked it on Zootierliste.de
There are currently 6 European Zoos keeping Tasmanian Devils and 3 in New Zealand (so weird that they've updated the Site to also show Zoos outside of Europe but only some Countrys)

 

[biggest_dreamer]

I know that at the very least San Diego Zoo has them, and per their website: "The San Diego Zoo is one of only a few zoos in the United States that cares for Tasmanian devils, making these newest additions extremely significant." A quick search suggests that Saint Louis, Toledo, Columbus, San Francisco, and Fort Wayne Children's Zoo also have them, but that might be the very extent of the list and I didn't look deeply enough to confirm all of them 100%. So definitely very uncommon, but not nonexistent. I certainly haven't ever seen them before, though.

That uncommonness is part of the reason why I'd personally hope to see a tree kangaroo and wallaby over them, if it really came down to it. Ideally I hope to get them all at some point, but I usually tend to prioritize more common species.

 

[Magnolia]

Oh man I’d love a pack like this, the meerkat and the fennec fox being announced Immediately got me excited for the other small mammals that could potentially be added to the game. My picks would be:

Southern Tamandua
Sand Cat
Prehensile-Tailed Porcupine
Fishing cat
Fossa
White-nosed coati
North Island brown kiwi
Ball python as exhibit animal

These were all pretty much lifted straight from my top 20, capybara was left out just because out of all of the animals listed so far I think it has the best chance of being added eventually. Ball python was chosen as exhibit because incredibly common in capitivity in both zoos and as a pet, I have a bias as I have 4 of them lol

 

[Maccasaurus]

Small animals

1. North American beaver
2. Platypus
3. Asian small-clawed otter
4. Bolivian Squirrel monkey / vervet monkey
5. Cotton-top Tamarin / golden Lion tamarin
6. Margay
7. Greater bilby
8. Elephant shrew
   

I love the idea of a small mammal pack. I’ve left out some major players leaving the North American beaver to headline. Along with the platypus they make up my star animals. Leaving the Capybara and Tasmanian devil to headline their individual packs. Both are semi aquatic animals, and along with the otter, could introduce some new enrichment items for small aquatic animals. Similar to the SEA pack adding the hammock for the sun bear and clouded leopard.

My three semi known animals being the Asian small-clawed otter, I’ve based my categories off the meta list and only including animals inside the top twenty as stars. squirrel monkey and cotton-top tamarin. I’ve added alternatives for the squirrel monkey and tamarin which might seem more popular. I just like the other two species more. Introducing another smaller monkey and and even smaller new world monkey. Would love to see them add the babies clinging to their backs. And the more obscure ones being the greater bilby and the margay. The margay being a small cat, could be swapped out for the slightly larger and more popular ocelot. The bilby being an important conservation animal popular in most Australian zoos, understand that it isn’t in many zoos outside of Australia that has them however there is a strong push towards releasing them to the wild to increase there numbers.

This pack would also have to include the first mammal as an exhibit animal. Many came to mind including the naked mole rat, the hedgehog, a sloth or a sugar glider but the idea of keeping some of those with out the ability to turn off the glass or at least lower it made me think of an elephant shrew to live in a desert enclosure like the scarab beetle. Animations could include it scurrying between hidey holes and sitting still cleaning front paws.

Anyway just a few ideas. Love the concept.

 

[jcp011c]

I'd definitely buy this! What I would like to see, with the capybara as the "largest" limit:

Capybara, Crested Porcupine, Common Wombat, Asian Small Clawed Otter, American Beaver, Arctic Fox, Wolverine (surprisingly that last weighs much less than a capybara!) That also pulls a lot of animals from all across the world making this a truly global theme.