Offspring of the South American ratites
Evening guided tour of the zoo - on 31 May, 7.30 pm
On Wednesday 8 May, two nandu chicks hatched in the South America enclosure at Chemnitz Zoo. They are led by the only cock. As is typical of most ratites, the male alone is also responsible for brooding.
As the cockerel, which can sometimes become quite aggressive during the rearing of the young, behaves in a relaxed manner towards both hens and visitors to the walk-in South America enclosure, no separation is necessary. The nandus share the communal enclosure with the alpacas.
Nandus used to be called "pampas ostriches" because of their similarity to ostriches, but at up to 1.60 metres tall, they are much smaller than their African relatives. They are very sociable and can occur in groups of more than 50 animals. During the mating season, however, the males become territorial. The females then form small groups, which are courted by the territory owners. If the male is successful, the females all lay their eggs one after the other in the prepared nest and then move on as a group to the next male. The up to 20 eggs, which can sometimes be from twelve different females, are then incubated by the cock for just under a month and a half.
Evening tour of the zoo
On Friday, 31 May at 7.30 pm, there will once again be an evening tour of Chemnitz Zoo - but this time only for adults (minimum age 18 years).
What do the animals in the zoo actually do in the evening or at night? Who goes to sleep and who only really wakes up in the evening? These and other questions will be explored here.
The tour lasts approx. 90 minutes. Participation in the tour costs 10 euros per person. As the number of participants is limited, please register in advance at tierpark(at)stadt-chemnitz.de by 3 pm on 30 May.
Tickets can be purchased at the zoo ticket office during regular opening hours once registration has been confirmed. For organisational reasons, there will be no box office. Cancellations and participation with dogs are not possible.
Opening hours in summer:
Zoo: 9 am to 7 pm, last admission 6 pm
Game enclosure: 9 am to 6 pm, last admission 5 pm