On the other side of the holding complex are the aforementioned series of habitats for the zoo's Eastern Mountain Bongos. They share this space with a pair of Stanley Cranes and some Egyptian Geese.I'll be honest, the Bongo heard at the Virginia Zoo baffles me a little. The website claims that there currently 6 members of the herd: a bull male named Bob, three mature females named Betty, Juni & Jesi; and two yearling calves, one male, Baxter, and one female, Joy. On this visit there were four out: Bob, who is easy to identify, and three females (two of whom were adolescent). The mature female was obviously pregnant. The younger pair never stood up. I don't know when a male's coat turns dark. I suppose it is possible that the two resting Bongo were Joy and Baxter... During a previous visit, I encountered Bob and no fewer that 6 other adult females. Clearly, Bob is prolific. Clearly the zoo has either sent some of their Bongo elsewhere or have an offsite facility to accommodate the overflow. They have a good relationship with the Metro Richmond Zoo. That zoo has a couple of herds of Eastern Bongo with numbers close to 20. It wouldn't surprise me that when animals get to be a certain age, they are transferred to Richmond, a zoo with tremendous amounts of extra space, and large numbers--dozens of species--African of herbivores. Clearly they go somewhere. Clearly Bob keeps the newborns coming.
All of this notwithstanding, you have to agree, they are beautiful animals.
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