Octopus and capybaras: Sergei Sobyanin spoke about the additions to the Moscow Zoo
In 2024, more than 1,500 cubs of different animals were born in the Moscow Zoo. Sergei Sobyanin told about some of the babies in his blog.
“Moscow Zoo is a cozy home for animals from all over the world, where more than 10,000 guests live in friendship. Comfortable conditions have been created for each of them, as close to the natural environment as possible. Even rare and vulnerable species feel so at ease here that they have healthy and active offspring. Growing up panda Katyusha is an excellent example of this,” the Mayor of Moscow wrote.
In summer, the most photogenic family of capybaras, Kuzma and Malaya, had two babies
A pair of Japanese cranes has lived in the zoo for more than 30 years. This is a considerable age for these birds. Nevertheless, last spring they pleased zoologists by hatching a healthy chick.
The friendly flock of bush dogs was replenished with another restless baby. He became the 29th puppy for his parents — male Vitsli-Putsli and female Freya.
In the enclosure “Turya Gorka” in the herd of Dagestan turs seven goats were born. And the blue rams had two lambs.
In the summer of 2023, for the first time in the 160-year history of the Moscow Zoo, a pair of brown hyenas settled there, and in 2024 they gave birth to a puppy.
In the “Primates” pavilion, a cub of a miniature squirrel monkey saimiri was born. For the first two months the mother carried the baby on her back, but now it is already moving independently.
A mischievous addition came to the family of cat lemurs.
The Moscow Zoo's branch in the Vologda Region, the zoo in Santa Claus's estate in Veliky Ustyug, has welcomed a baby polar owl.
In the summer, zoologists rejoiced at the addition of leopard ibexes. This case became one of the first successful breeding of a leopard polo from the Crimean population in the conditions of the zoo.
And in the fall, six snakes of amethyst python — the largest snake of Australia and New Guinea, listed in the International Red Book — were born in the terrarium.
Buklya at Moscow Zoo: Female polar owl brought to Russian capital
Newcomers from all countries
Another 300 animals have moved to the Moscow Zoo from 20 regions of Russia and a dozen other countries.
Among the newcomers are Malayan bear cubs. The names for them were chosen by participants of the “Active Citizen” project. The female, which arrived at the end of August, was named Masha. Another female and a male, named Zvezdochka and Luchik, arrived at the Moscow Zoo at the end of December.
Two young bisons named Maya and Basalt came from Belarus.
Diego, a male giant anteater, was joined by his girlfriend Bella in the summer. So far they live in different enclosures, but they can smell each other. Later zoologists plan to introduce them to each other.
For the first time in 10 years, a giant octopus has arrived at the Moscow Zoo. The cephalopod newcomer has three hearts and as many as nine brains — it remembers perfectly well the employees who look after it. The smartest of the mollusks can be seen in the Exotarium pavilion, which is located on the new territory of the zoo.
And since last year you can watch the animals from home. Moscow Zoo has launched video broadcasts from the cages 10 species of animals. Among them there are the zoo's symbol manul Timofey, as well as large pandas Zhui, Katyusha and Dindin, dwarf hippo, capybaras, meerkats, elephants, gorillas, orangutans, honeyeaters and lynxes.