A RARE white rhino and endangered banteng calves are among the new residents at Marwell Zoo being tallied up for the annual animal stocktake.
Keepers must complete an audit of every mammal, bird, reptile, amphibian, fish and invertebrate as a legal requirement for the zoo’s licence and have counted more than 2500 residents.
Species such as Caribbean giant cockroaches and stick insects are counted in groups, but all others are recorded individually.
Last month, the zoo celebrated the arrival of four-year-old white rhino Zahra as part of the endangered species breeding programme, joining the zoo’s ‘crash’ of rhinos named, Kiri, Sula, Pembe and Jabari. It is hoped one day she may mother calves to secure the future of the species. Southern white rhinos were previously hunted to near extinction, leaving only approximately 20-50 individuals at the end of the 19th century. Successful conservation efforts have helped to grow the number to around 18,000. However, they are classed as near threatened in the wild and remain at risk from illegal hunting for their horns.
A third endangered banteng calf was born last weekend, joining two youngsters born in November. Banteng, which are a new species for Marwell, are found throughout south east Asia including Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.
Other exciting arrivals in 2021 included parma wallabies, the smallest species of the Macropus family, a male Linne’s two-toed sloth, a Humboldt penguin chick, bearded emperor tamarin, a male tapir, red river hogs, and another new species: coppery titi monkeys.
Debbie Pearson, Animal Registrar, said: “Every year we complete the audit in accordance with zoo legislation to ensure the numbers we have on record tally with the animals we have on the ground before sending the final figures to our local authority.
“This year we have more than 2,500 different animals across 141 different species. It’s been an exciting year with some welcome additions to the breeding programmes and some firsts for Marwell.”
The annual inventory is shared around the world via a database designed to ensure the best possible management of worldwide conservation-breeding programmes.
Although the audit is undertaken once a year, keepers continually count the zoo’s animals, the record of which is published at the end of January.
Marwell offers visitors the opportunity to get up close to amazing members of the animal kingdom from Amur tigers to towering Rothschild’s giraffes in 140-acres of beautiful, spacious parkland. Conservation charity Marwell Wildlife owns and operates the zoo, so every penny spent at the zoo supports amazing projects to conserve habitats and species both in Hampshire and around the world.
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