Zoo Begins Shipping Some Species to New Homes

Four penguins were shipped from the Los Angeles Zoo this week on their way to new quarters at an Illinois zoo, the initial step in what eventually may be the exodus of as many as 18 species from the aging facility.

A buffalo, two bears, two sea lions, a zebra and a small herd of antelope, sheep and goats are among the animals that will be removed from the zoo’s collection once suitable foster homes can be found, the zoo’s general curator announced Thursday.

The changes are part of a long-range plan to have the animal park feature fewer species, in larger and more naturalistic exhibits, said curator Les Schobert. It is possible that some of the animals, or other members of the same species, might return once the zoo has been renovated.

“Certainly a lot of people are very attached to these animals,” Schobert said. “I’m sympathetic to that, but at the same time we had to make some difficult decisions to make this a safe environment and a better facility for both animals and keepers.”

Schobert and other zoo officials said they hope to farm out 69 animals to eliminate exhibits that are unsafe for keepers because of substandard moats or gates, that contain just one animal, or that have been badly damaged by erosion.

Manuel Mollinedo, the zoo’s interim administrator, said the reduction in the collection should help the zoo resolve citations by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, clear up safety issues raised by state occupational safety inspectors and prepare the facility for an upcoming accreditation review by the American Zoo and Aquarium Assn.

Once the moves are completed, much of the zoo’s hillside exhibit area--which now houses Rocky Mountain goats, a zebra, Chinese water deer and several types of antelope--will be empty. The empty stalls will be replaced by vegetation and perhaps a few new exhibits, Mollinedo said.

Among the species scheduled to be cut from the collection are Barbados sheep, pygmy goat, ibex goat, markhor goat, sloth bear, spectacled bear, camel and several types of antelope--pronghorn, greater kudu, sable and Japanese serow.

The alterations will put only a minor dent in the zoo’s collection, with 442 species and more than 1,200 specimens remaining.

Zoo officials have not found homes for all of the creatures, an endeavor that may be particularly difficult when trying to place older animals or less popular species. Those that can’t be placed will be housed in non-public holding areas at the zoo, Schobert said.

Perhaps the zoo’s most controversial exhibit, the African penguins, has already been cleared out. Four penguins, the survivors of a collection ravaged by malaria and other ailments, were shipped Tuesday to a zoo in Springfield, Ill.

The zoo’s previous director, Mark Goldstein, was forced out of his job earlier this year after a report criticizing conditions at the zoo.