By Simon Jones
Published Jun 4, 2015 at 8:00 am (Updated Jun 4, 2015 at 8:06 am)
Photos by Nicola Muirhead

Otters Thai and Tao are good friends and at 13, are two of the
oldest residents at Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo

At 95 years old, Crooked Nose the Galapagos tortoise holds a unique record at the zoo.

Although he is middle aged in tortoise terms, he is the zoo’s oldest resident and typical of the establishment’s ageing population that requires constant attention.

Wildlife experts continually source new species to bring to Bermuda from across the world to provide fresh genetics and the next generation of animals.

They also have to deal with a myriad of paperwork and a minefield of legal regulations that control the international movement of animals.

Thanks to its unique location, expertise and global links, Bermuda’s zoo has been able to build up an enviable record of keeping species well beyond their predicted lifespan.

Its willingness to take on animals that other zoos would not consider has enabled staff to be at the forefront of global breeding projects and succession planning programmes. “We do tend to take on a lot of animals that are middle aged that perhaps other zoos don’t want,” said curator Ian Walker.

“But that gives us the opportunity to excel in a space that not many others exist in. For example, we were the first zoo to breed Galapagos tortoises and we recently successfully bred tawny frogmouths for the first time in Bermuda.

Galapagos tortoise Crooked Nose is 95
and the zoo's oldest resident

Sally the tortoise is the second
eldest senior in the zoo at 48

“Our male tawny frogmouth, Kermit, is 19 years old, and these birds have lifespans of about 16 years.

“We have a population now in which many of our animals have surpassed their life expectancy, which is a credit to the care and expertise here.“Our male tawny frogmouth, Kermit, is 19 years old, and these birds have lifespans of about 16 years.

“But that also provides us with added challenges when it comes to supplementing the population and establishing the next generation.”

Just last year the zoo welcomed the arrival of three mature wallabies from New Zealand to its collection as part of it succession planning programme.

The animals would have been exterminated as pests had the zoo not stepped in and seen an opportunity.

In seals, Charlotte, 34, and Archie, 38, they have had animals which have well surpassed the expected captive lifespan of 25 to 30 years.

Flying foxes Keller and Buffy, who are 24 and 25 respectively and brought in from Florida, have also exceeded the normal 16-20 year lifespan.

“We are fortunate to have some of these animals like the flying foxes as long as we have, and the reality is that we will not have them for much longer,” said registrar Barbara Outerbridge.

Kermit the tawny frogmouth is 19 - years older
than the average life expectancy for the species

Charlotte the seal is 34

“Some of the zoo population are quite senior in age and we have to look at bringing in new individuals of these species to secure future generations. The process can take up to nine months and does not always end in the successful arrival of animals so we have to look a long way ahead. We have to look at the current collection and anticipate which species we have to bring in.”

As for Crooked Nose he arrived in Bermuda back in 1932, about four years after the aquarium was founded.

The zoo’s oldest resident could live for another century and see yet more changes to the ever-evolving population of the establishment.

“It’s a pretty incredible story really,” said Dr Walker. “I tell people we got him because the Titanic sunk.

Elmur, the second oldest of the lemurs, is 23

Alice the lemur is 28

A man called John Jacob Astor VI died on the Titanic and his son, Vincent Astor, used to own the Bereman Estate on Ferry Reach.

“When John Jacob died his son became something of a philanthropist and together with his good friend and our former zoo curator, Louis Mowbray, would often take his motor yacht down to South America and take animals back to New York.

“Some of these animals would stay in Bermuda, and Crooked Nose was one of those.”