Russians zoos are looking to acquire a massive 3000 capybaras. And from that point the animals already living in the zoos will be able to reproduce to maintain their population, Sergei Pisarev, member of the presidium of the Union of Zoos and Aquariums of Russia, director of the Barnaul Zoo, told RIA Novosti.
Earlier, Pisarev informed RIA Novosti about the shortage of capybaras in Russian zoos against the background of a trend in society for these animals.
“There are currently 495 registered zoos in Russia, almost 500, multiplied by two, so that there are two animals in each zoo. It’s like with alpacas, which are also very popular, they are usually not taken one at a time, alpacas do not live alone, the same applies to capybaras,” said Pisarev.
According to him, applications for capybaras are regularly received by the Union of Zoos and Aquariums of the Russian Federation. At the same time, given the popularity of capybaras among young people, some zoos want to have not only a couple, but also a whole family of such animals. Furthermore, the animal itself is meant to live in a cluster. Capybaras are not the loner type.
“Therefore, our estimate can be increased even further. I think that about 3,000 capybaras would definitely spread well across Russian zoos,” the member of the presidium emphasized.
Tokyo Tokushima Zoo, having learned about the shortage of capybaras in Russia, told RIA Novosti that it is ready to cooperate with Russian zoos to breed capybaras.
“We are ready to cooperate. This may be an exchange of views, and in the future, if necessary, we will receive Russian veterinarians and keepers to share our experience. We are ready to advise and provide any other types of assistance,” said Zoo Deputy Director Nariomi Kitamura.
He explained that to begin with, it’s enough just to contact the Tokushima Zoo in any way. “Our veterinarians and keepers are ready to assist. We could exchange opinions then. If they contact us (from Russian zoos – ed.), we will provide all possible cooperation and assistance,” Kitamura said.
Tokushima Zoo until recently held the honor of being #1 in terms of the number of capybaras in Japan. The first three capybaras appeared here in 2007, and already in 2016 there were 35 of them. By 2021, the number of capybaras through natural reproduction has grown to 90 individuals.
Capybaras are happy in big groups, spending large amounts of time in water, and need to live in a fairly warm environment, meaning there will need to be lots of preparatory work done to host this popular but somewhat alien animal for the Russian climate.