Lehigh Valley Zoo, part 4

 

The heart of the lower section of the zoo is dedicated to African hoofstock.  Ostriches (a male and female) share one space with a pair of Plains Zebra.  Next to them you'll find a pair of male Masai Giraffe.  They are both 7-years-old.  Tatu has lived at the Lehigh Valley Zoo for the past 5 years, Joshua arrived from the Houston Zoo to be his companion a year ago.  The move was precipitated on the death of 20-year-old Murphy, a longtime resident of the zoo.

Across the path a large habitat is home to small herd of critically endangered Scimitar Oryx.  The six adults were joined by a newborn calf on August 4th, following a previous birth last November.  The zoo is very successful at breeding this species with 10 live births in the past nine years.  Besides the newborn oryx, the zoo received three young Common Elands as a new species.  Largest of the antelopes, they are gorgeous.

The final animal is an Kordofan Aoudad; a type of mountain goat native to the Sudan's eastern hills that skirt the shore of the Red Sea.

Oryx and Common Eland Habitat

Scimitar Oryx

Common Eland

Masai Giraffe Habitat

Joshua [R] and Tatu [L]