I have been thinking about European animals and how they could get included in the game. As I was looking around, one thing that became apparent is how many European species also occur in the Mediterranean region. The Mediterranean Basin is one of the world's greatest biodiversity hotspots - in terms of plant diversity it is the third richest such hotspot in the world, with over half of its 25,000 plant species found nowhere else. The region also has over 300 species of mammal, more than 500 bird species (63 endemics) and a huge diversity of reptiles (43% of which are endemic). The area covers most of southern Europe, the northern coast of North Africa and the Near East part of Asia. With that in mind, I decided to try and come up with a Mediterranean Pack idea. The first is a standard 4+1 pack, with a building set:
1: Iberian lynx - This is one of the most important additions, in my mind: it is the only endemic carnivore in the Mediterranean Basin, is a highly requested species by the community and is an endangered species with a good history of conservation by zoos - recently the first Iberian lynxes were moved to a zoo outside their native range (in France), which makes their inclusion feel a bit more realistic as well.
2: Fallow deer or Alpine ibex - Either one of these choices would add a popular ungulate to the game; both species are fairly docile and well-suited to walkthrough enclosures and both are quite simple to keep. The fallow deer is only native for certain to Turkey but may also be native to southeast Europe and Italy, according to the IUCN. The ibex is found mostly in the Alps but the IUCN does list them as occurring in the Mediterranean region and are a common species there.
3: Crested porcupine or European rabbit - The porcupine is definitely the more-requested of the two smaller mammals; there are actually two crested porcupine species in the Mediterranean basin - the African crested porcupine of North Africa and Italy and the Indian crested porcupine in the Near East. While nowhere near as requested, I think the European rabbit also deserves consideration - it is an endangered species being bred in captivity and is a highly charismatic species. A couple of zoos that keep Iberian lynx also display rabbits nearby to show their importance as a prey species, while Zurich Zoo plans to keep them with koalas, to educate on their impact as a non-native species; I think rabbits could have some versatility in how they are displayed.
4: A larger bird - The Mediterranean is such an important place for migratory and breeding birds, I feel it is necessary to include a species of ground-based bird. Four examples I can immediately think of are 1) Dalmatian pelican - breeds in the eastern European Mediterranean, winters in the Near East and Egypt; 2) Egyptian goose - now restricted only to the Nile Delta in the region, but formerly was native to the Near East and southeast Europe; 3) Waldrapp ibis - still occurs in North Africa, possibly in small numbers in the Near East and and is being reintroduced to southern Europe by zoos; 4) Western swamphen - a chunky, colourful waterbird endemic to western Europe and northwest Africa, frequently kept as a pet and immortalised in mosaics by the ancient Romans.
Exhibit animal: While there are a huge number of options available, I think three possible good candidates would be 1) Mediterranean chameleon - a widespread Mediterranean endemic that occurs in North Africa, the Near East and southwest Europe; 2) Mallorcan midwife toad - a highly threatened species endemic to a Mediterranean island, which would be well-suited to the arid display; 3) Long snouted seahorse - many actual zoos, rather than specialist aquariums, keep seahorses here in Europe including the zoos at Berlin, Chester and Bristol; this is a very stationary fish and would be a suitable exhibit animal that could make use of the estuarine exhibit.
A smaller pack like this would include more content, including extra plants (looking at the other packs, it seems eight is about the maximum number of new plant species) and a building theme. I'm not so well-versed on what Mediterranean-style building themes could be used - perhaps Roman (including mosaics) or even Prehistoric (some of the most famous cave art sites, like Chauvet Cave, are in the Mediterranean and this theme could include statues and replica skeletons of extinct creatures).
On the other hand, if an animal pack were desired, there are plenty of additional options as well. Three that I would like to see if such a pack was made are:
5. Striped hyena - This is another carnivore that is reasonably well-requested; it occurs well outside the Mediterranean region but within it the striped hyena is very widespread; I think this animal would add a versatile species able to use a variety of different biomes that would also be sufficiently different from the spotted hyena, with regards to its social structure and some different behaviours.
6. Barbary macaque - The only native non-human primate in the Mediterranean which is also endemic to the region. In Europe this is by far the most commonly-kept macaque species and is considered sufficiently docile to keep in walkthrough enclosures in a number of zoos - indeed at least one zoo here in the UK is nothing but a Barbary macaque walkthrough. They are native to northwest Africa and have an introduced European population on Gibraltar.
7. Loggerhead sea turtle - As Mediterranean marine animals go, this is the most widely-kept in captivity and would be quite unlike anything in the game currently. This is also something of a success story for Mediterranean conservation - their protected colonies in the eastern Mediterranean are so successful that some turtles have recently begun spreading west and a few now even nest on the coasts of Spain and southern France.
1: Iberian lynx - This is one of the most important additions, in my mind: it is the only endemic carnivore in the Mediterranean Basin, is a highly requested species by the community and is an endangered species with a good history of conservation by zoos - recently the first Iberian lynxes were moved to a zoo outside their native range (in France), which makes their inclusion feel a bit more realistic as well.
2: Fallow deer or Alpine ibex - Either one of these choices would add a popular ungulate to the game; both species are fairly docile and well-suited to walkthrough enclosures and both are quite simple to keep. The fallow deer is only native for certain to Turkey but may also be native to southeast Europe and Italy, according to the IUCN. The ibex is found mostly in the Alps but the IUCN does list them as occurring in the Mediterranean region and are a common species there.
3: Crested porcupine or European rabbit - The porcupine is definitely the more-requested of the two smaller mammals; there are actually two crested porcupine species in the Mediterranean basin - the African crested porcupine of North Africa and Italy and the Indian crested porcupine in the Near East. While nowhere near as requested, I think the European rabbit also deserves consideration - it is an endangered species being bred in captivity and is a highly charismatic species. A couple of zoos that keep Iberian lynx also display rabbits nearby to show their importance as a prey species, while Zurich Zoo plans to keep them with koalas, to educate on their impact as a non-native species; I think rabbits could have some versatility in how they are displayed.
4: A larger bird - The Mediterranean is such an important place for migratory and breeding birds, I feel it is necessary to include a species of ground-based bird. Four examples I can immediately think of are 1) Dalmatian pelican - breeds in the eastern European Mediterranean, winters in the Near East and Egypt; 2) Egyptian goose - now restricted only to the Nile Delta in the region, but formerly was native to the Near East and southeast Europe; 3) Waldrapp ibis - still occurs in North Africa, possibly in small numbers in the Near East and and is being reintroduced to southern Europe by zoos; 4) Western swamphen - a chunky, colourful waterbird endemic to western Europe and northwest Africa, frequently kept as a pet and immortalised in mosaics by the ancient Romans.
Exhibit animal: While there are a huge number of options available, I think three possible good candidates would be 1) Mediterranean chameleon - a widespread Mediterranean endemic that occurs in North Africa, the Near East and southwest Europe; 2) Mallorcan midwife toad - a highly threatened species endemic to a Mediterranean island, which would be well-suited to the arid display; 3) Long snouted seahorse - many actual zoos, rather than specialist aquariums, keep seahorses here in Europe including the zoos at Berlin, Chester and Bristol; this is a very stationary fish and would be a suitable exhibit animal that could make use of the estuarine exhibit.
A smaller pack like this would include more content, including extra plants (looking at the other packs, it seems eight is about the maximum number of new plant species) and a building theme. I'm not so well-versed on what Mediterranean-style building themes could be used - perhaps Roman (including mosaics) or even Prehistoric (some of the most famous cave art sites, like Chauvet Cave, are in the Mediterranean and this theme could include statues and replica skeletons of extinct creatures).
On the other hand, if an animal pack were desired, there are plenty of additional options as well. Three that I would like to see if such a pack was made are:
5. Striped hyena - This is another carnivore that is reasonably well-requested; it occurs well outside the Mediterranean region but within it the striped hyena is very widespread; I think this animal would add a versatile species able to use a variety of different biomes that would also be sufficiently different from the spotted hyena, with regards to its social structure and some different behaviours.
6. Barbary macaque - The only native non-human primate in the Mediterranean which is also endemic to the region. In Europe this is by far the most commonly-kept macaque species and is considered sufficiently docile to keep in walkthrough enclosures in a number of zoos - indeed at least one zoo here in the UK is nothing but a Barbary macaque walkthrough. They are native to northwest Africa and have an introduced European population on Gibraltar.
7. Loggerhead sea turtle - As Mediterranean marine animals go, this is the most widely-kept in captivity and would be quite unlike anything in the game currently. This is also something of a success story for Mediterranean conservation - their protected colonies in the eastern Mediterranean are so successful that some turtles have recently begun spreading west and a few now even nest on the coasts of Spain and southern France.
