While setting up survey plots to better understand the habitat of the endangered kipunji in 2010, Udzungwa Forest Project researchers stumbled across a tree that they could not identify. The initial specimen collections contained leaves and fruits but no flowers, meaning that the tree could not be verified. This led the research team to embark on their annual expedition to the Udzungwa Mountains two months earlier than usual, in an attempt to catch the tree in flower.
This national programme of events has been designed to encourage people to visit their local zoo, creating a better understanding of BIAZA’s work and inspiring conservation of our natural world.
To kick off this great event, you’ll have the opportunity to meet our Zoo vet, Matt Brash, between 10:00 am and 1:00 pm on Monday 30th May. Author and TV celebrity, Matt and his team have looked after our collection for many years and will provide visitors with a unique perspective on the animal world!
Now, as the culmination of over twenty-four months of research, planning and habitat creation, Tuesday 2nd September saw the arrival of Bawa, a two-year-old male Sumatran tiger, weighing in at a healthy 109 kilos. Just a few days later, Surya, a 17-month-old female, joined Flamingo Land’s newest arrival and both are now settling in well.
Saturday 10th July saw visitors enjoying Flamingo Land’s very first Tanzania Day. Designed to showcase the Theme Park & Zoo’s conservation work in East Africa, the launch of this annual event featured some of the country’s diverse plant and animal species. However, Flamingo Land’s Udzungwa Forest Project (UFP) provided the central theme.
Although a spectacular launch of the Theme Park & Zoo’s latest attraction, Penguin Coast, had been planned for Summer 2010, the focus on creating a truly compatible environment has tempered the project’s development.
In recent years strong bonds have been developed with both Askham Bryan College, one of the UK’s foremost land-based educational facilities, and The University of York. Now, as a result of substantial investment in a dedicated Education Centre and the development of an extensive outreach programme, Flamingo Land are very proud of the wide range of formal and non-formal educational opportunities they provide for schools, visitors and the wider community.
Featuring Matt Brash, our long-serving zoo vet, the programme has seen the man regarded as a James Herriot for the 21st Century deal with a multitude of exotic patients including a depressed iguana, frisky lemurs and a mischievous meerkat… plus many, many more.
There will even be an opportunity to get up close and personal with some of our African animals and animal artefacts, and to experience Tanzanian culture, from daily living to brightly coloured clothes.
This species is very easy to distinguish, with its grey/brown fur on its back, white fronts, black eyes, and black and white banded tail. It is generally quite active during the day time, however when sleeping they will often curl up into a ball, wrapping its tail around itself.
The red bellied lemur has dark brown fur with a black tail, and the males have white bare patches of skin below their eyes making it easy to distinguish them from the females. They can be active during both day and night time depending on the availability of their food, and they feed from ground level up to the highest point of the trees.
The Hamerkop is a brown, medium sized bird native to most central and south African countries and is fantastic at building nests. Even though it is a fairly small animal, it can construct a nest that can reach 1.5 metres across.
Our porcupines live alongside our meerkats and their diet is predominantly a wide variety of vegetables. Porcupines are monogamous animals and live in extended family groups consisting of an adult male and female and their offspring.
The Blue and Yellow Macaw is often considered to be one of the most trainable birds of these parrots with the perceived intelligence equivalent of a 3 year old child.
In the wild, these mongoose would be found in Sub-Saharan Africa in savannah and woodland areas. Their diet consists of fruit, invertebrates, small reptiles and sometimes eggs. Although relatively small animals, they have very sharp teeth and so are well-equipped predators.
The tapir is related to the horse and rhinoceros. Today’s tapirs closely resemble those found roaming the Earth 35 million years ago. The Brazilian or Lowland Tapir is nearly always found close to water and is an excellent swimmer. It is fast and sure-footed on land too, even on the roughest terrain.
As its name suggests, the Scarlet Ibis is completely red – apart from its black wing tips. With long legs and a slender neck, they grow to 75cm (30in) high and have a wingspan of 30cm (1ft).
African Sacred Ibis are wading birds that are black and white in colour. Their long legs allow them to wade through the water without getting their feathers wet. They also allow them to jump and take off quickly should they spot a predator. They have a long beak which curves downwards which also allows them to retrieve their food in amongst mud and shallow water.
The Orange-winged Amazon Parrot has no protective status at the moment, but it is now treated as a pest by farmers.
