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Female tiger expected to leave Beardsley Zoo next week
Koshka, a 3-year-old female Siberian tiger born in Bridgeport, will leave Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo for the Denver Zoo on or about Dec. 15, weather permitting.
The departure of Koshka — pronounced “Koosh-kuh” — follows a similar exodus by her brother Viktor, who was transferred to the Detroit Zoo last month. Nikka, their sister, will leave the Beardsley Zoo for the Potter Park Zoo in Lansing, Mich., in March 2009.
Two new Siberian tigers — also known as Amur tigers — are expected to arrive at the Beardsley Zoo in early 2009 to replace the three departing siblings.
Visitors can sign a going-away card for Koshka in the zoo carousel building, said Zoo Director Gregg Dancho.
“We have all seen [Koshka] and her siblings grow up here at the zoo and now it’ll be everyone’s last chance to see her here, so why not bring the kids and come give Koshka a special send off?” Dancho said. “And don’t forget to sign her bon voyage card.”
A male tiger by the name of Booski is due to arrive mid-winter from the Detroit Zoo, and a female tiger should come to Bridgeport in spring from the Rosamond Gifford Zoo in Syracuse, N.Y. The hope is that the new male and female tigers will breed sometime next year.
The tiger exchange is part of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ Special Survival Plan (SSP), which helps to ensure the survival of selected wildlife species. The program manages the breeding of a species in order to maintain a healthy and self-sustaining population that is both genetically diverse and demographically stable. Most species in the SSP program are endangered or threatened in the wild.
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