VietNamNet Bridge  – Vingroup has issued a press release admitting that about 135 monkeys had fled from the cages of the Vinpearl Phu Quoc Safari, the first semi-wild zoo in Vietnam.

Rhinos at Vinpearl Phu Quoc Safari. Photo: Zing

According to the press release issued on Sunday (Feb. 21), 135 monkeys (originating from Vietnam) weighing between 150gr -200gr escaped from cages, which were designed for larger monkeys.

Vinpearl said this was the native monkey species on the island of Phu Quoc. The group affirmed that no other animals had fled the zoo, which opened two months ago.

The press release was issued after a zoologist blogger wrote about the death of thousands of animals at the Vinpearl Phu Quoc Safari. Vingroup said it was not true.

Vingroup admitted that more than 100 birds and animals died because of the impact of the long shipping process, which weakened the animals. Also, they were trying to adapt to the new environment, soil and climate.

Vingroup said Vinpearl Phu Quoc Safari is currently in phase 1 of operation, with around 3,000 animals belonging to 150 species, including rare animals like Arabian Oryx, tigers, lions, black and white lemurs, rhinos, elephants ...

Earlier, the Zoo News Digest blog of expert Peter Dickinson wrote about the death of more than 1,000 birds and 700 animals at the Vinpearl Phu Quoc Safari. According to the expert, about 500 monkeys had escaped.

A source said that Dickinson had been invited to work for Vinpearl Phu Quoc Safari, but Vingroup denied that. According to information on LinkedIn, Dickinson has over 47 years experience in management of zoos in the world.

According to Zing, some international experts are interested in the origin of the rhinos at the Safari.

Experts checked information from South Africa authorities, who said they did not know about the transportation of the rhinos. There is no information on the supplier of rhinos to the Vinpearl Phu Quoc Safari.

In an interview with BBC, Ms. Loraine Liebenberg, from the Save Our Rhinos in South Africa, said she had known that the Department of Environment of South Africa (DEA) had not granted any license to transfer rhinos to Vietnam.

An expert who previously worked at Phu Quoc Vinpearl Safari said the death of some animals is normal.

The expert said that Phu Quoc Vinpearl Safari has one of the biggest and the best veterinary hospitals in Southeast Asia.

Tuoi Tre Daily quoted Mr. Pham Tuan Linh, the zoo manager, as saying that there are 10 foreign experts working at the Phu Quoc Safari Hospital.

The contracts with two experts from Australia and the UK expired in January 2016. The remaining 8 experts include five people from India and three others from France, Singapore, and Thailand.

Phu Quoc Vinpearl Safari opened last December. It is Vietnam’s first semi-wildlife park, covering an area of 500 hectares. The park preserves approximately 3, 000 animals representing 150 endangered species around the world. It is the biggest zoo in Asia.

The zoo is divided into different areas, including South America-Amazon, Wild Africa, and the Night Safari.

 

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