Zoo is veritable nursery
So far this year 150 animals have been born at the Guadalajara Zoo, from recent newborns such as hippos Tammy and Tachita to mountain goats and Tembo, a giraffe of just five months. Muluk, a puma cub born in the spring of 2011 had to be separated from her mother, who wasn’t born in captivity — but captured in a Jalisco pueblo — to ensure his mother didn’t kill him. Long-time zoo employee Jose Luis Rodriguez Avila, who is director of the mammals there, said the zoo has had success in breeding 90 of the 98 species of mammals in its collection, including the big cats that inhabit Mexico and Jalisco: pumas, jaguar, ocelote, linx, jaguarundi, tigrillo. Over the years, only a few animals have not had offspring that survived: elephants, chimpanzies, anteaters and tapirs. Due to space limitations and the lack of programs to reintroduce animals to the wild, birth control is used to reduce overpopulation of the zoo, he said.