Curious fossa access "Midongy" delights zoo visitors
It looks a bit like a cross between a cat and a marten and even among scientists the systematic categorisation has not yet been fully clarified: the fossa. The animal is only native to Madagascar and is the largest carnivore there. This endangered and rare species has been kept at Chemnitz Zoo since 1994. After the old male fossa died in the summer at the advanced age of 23 for fossas, the zoo endeavoured to find a young successor. He arrived at the zoo a week ago and has settled in well.
Zoo Director Dr Anja Dube: "Our new Fossa is one and a half years old and very curious and playful. The zookeepers have already given our new arrival his name: Midongy - named after a national park in Madagascar."
Fossas love warmth, but in good weather they can also be observed in the outdoor enclosure. Incidentally, according to the zoo manager, fossas are solitary animals. The female, which is also kept at Chemnitz Zoo, is too old for breeding, so a young female will later provide offspring together with the male.
More information online at www.tierpark-chemnitz.de
Winter opening hours of the zoo: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., last admission 3 p.m.
Winter opening hours of the wildlife park: 8 am to 4 pm.