Original subtitles

Sydney Harbour is home to one of the world's most iconic zoos, Taronga.

Everyone stand as far apart as possible.

But never before... Make sure you've got your mask on. ...has it faced a year

with as many monumental challenges.

It's really hard to see because I'm fogging up.

Atta boy, Jim. Nearly home, mate.

The teams across both of Taronga's zoos... Open. ...meet every challenge

on. And our cameras are there.

Every step of the way.

On this episode, the Great Migration continues.

Super excited to have zebras back at the zoo.

As the zebras make the long trip to the savannah. The smoother I drive, the

smoother they ride and the smoother they should unload at the other end.

Fingers crossed it all goes well.

A heavyweight fight.

Look, Chai.

Look, Chai and his dad battle it out for top spot in the herd.

And with that comes an increased level of aggression.

And an overnight sensation.

You know, we can see this little baby growing inside her, which is incredibly

exciting. As Taronga awaits to the patter of little Flipper.

To be here for the birth of a puppy is incredible. It's a bit earlier than what

we're expecting.

At Taronga Zoo, keepers love to celebrate birth.

New babies at the zoo is always exciting. They are incredibly cute.

And with 5 ,000 animals across their two zoos, there's always a baby arriving.

Our family group is growing very, very quickly considering we only had two just

over a year ago.

But in the case of the Australian sea lion, their babies can take a very long

time to make an entrance.

Hello, Brad.

Hello. How are you going? Good.

We all good to go?

Ready to go.

We're going to do our hair out here? Yeah, she's much more comfortable out on

the exhibit. Yeah, cool. Let's get set up. All right, let's get set up.

So we're just setting up for an ultrasound on Nala, our beautiful

lion. She's actually heading towards the end of her pregnancy.

Nala was paired up with male sea lion Charlie 15 months ago.

We saw a little bit of that nuzzling up on the rocks, which is a really positive

sign that everything's going to go quite well with this introduction.

And just six months later, the team was overjoyed to discover she was pregnant.

Very exciting. I mean, I think that is. We couldn't have asked for anything

better. Yeah, yeah. Oh, absolutely.

You know what?

There's not a lot of Australian sea lions in zoos within Australia, and

Taronga's one of the few that are actually actively breeding the species.

yeah, it's really important for a regional breeding program for Australian

lions. I'll just get the ultrasound machine set up.

Because Nala is such a genetically important sea lion, senior vet Larry

keep a close eye on this pregnancy.

We've been ultrasounding her about once a month so that we can use those

measurements to age fetuses in any future pregnancies we have and other

institutions have in Australian sea lions.

And so it's really, really valuable information that we're gathering from

I'm good to go, Brett. And fortunately for Larry and the Thiel team, after nine

months, Nala's ultrasound had become ultra easy.

Good girl.

Oh, careful now.

The guys do so much amazing training with them and they're so compliant and

forgiving and we can scan them for quite a while and get some really good images

of the developing fetus.

The pup is very active and it's moving around a lot so it's quite hard to get a

decent image but I've found where the head is, it's right here.

In this image, you can just see that dark circular structure just there is

actually the pup's eyeball.

Yes, that's sort of through the skull there.

All right, that's good. At least we've got something to compare measurements

against.

The fetus is huge. I mean, this is only a very small segment of the whole fetus

that I can see on here.

There's much more of it. I mean, it would be like here and here.

It is huge.

We just want to turn it around.

But Larry is searching for one image in particular.

Good girl. All right. Stay there.

Is that close enough for you, Larry?

And it's always a huge relief when it looks healthy.

So you can see there the heart beating. Look at that.

Massive. Yeah, wow.

So let me just quickly get a measurement of this heart.

About six centimeters.

A little bit more.

Nearly done, sweetie.

Oh, don't go, don't go.

Okay.

I think she's called it. Yeah, she's only got three fish left. We might have

call it a day.

Thankfully, Larry has been all he needs for today.

We can see, you know, this little baby growing inside her, which is incredibly

exciting. And then, of course, knowing that it's probably not too far away

coming, you know, being born, it's going to be a great moment to see it out.

It'll be interesting to see your variances in your measurements in the

Yeah, well, hopefully, I mean, at least we've got the good heart measurements

and then that one skull measurement.

And, you know, based on what we've got so far, we reckon she'll be due in the

next couple of months. Yeah. But it's always a bit, you know, there's a bit of

error in all of that.

Good.

Now the waiting game.

Yeah.

Now everyone's got their flippant cropped.

for this zoo favourite.

Nala is just one of those exceptional animals.

You know, I've worked with a lot of seals, and she is just pretty much

Never puts a flipper on, and that makes our job more rewarding because we can do

things like this voluntarily.

And this may look like a simple health check for our vets, but there's not a

of data out there.

So these kind of procedures and the fact that our vets can work so closely, we

learn a lot about them as a species as well.

But Nala has one more surprise for her keepers, something that none of them saw

coming.

There are two main species of elephant in the world, but Taronga is home to

one of them, the Asian elephant.

Unfortunately, they've been a bit of a poorer cousin to the African elephant.

Much more is known about them. Most people know and understand a little bit

about African elephants and poaching and the threats to them.

What they do have in common is they're very, very big.

They eat a lot and certainly all of that comes out the other end as well. So

we're kept very busy every single day.

So here at Taronga Western Plains Zoo in Dubbo, we have a herd of eight Asian

elephants, four males, four females, and they form part of the larger regional

breeding program that exists in Australia for Asian elephants. Whilst

population in Australia is a small one, it's certainly a very important genetic

one moving forward into the decades to come and why the birth of all of these

calves have been terribly important.

Our region is focused solely on the breeding and conservation for Asian

elephants and trying to create sort of a self -sustaining population here in

Australia.

Much of the success of Taronga's elephant breeding program is due to the

of one male elephant, Goong. As part of the import back in 2006, we brought in a

young male elephant called Goong.

Goong is now 20 years of age and, you know, he's a big boy, four and a half

tonne, and he is the only natural breeding male elephant here in

Look, Chai.

Eleven -year -old Look Chai is one of Goong's son.

Go and get some more breakfast.

Good boy.

Look Chai is a very important elephant in our program. He was the very first

calf born in Australia in July 2009.

And he was the smallest calf that's been born in the program overall at 96

kilos. He now weighs in at over 3 ,500 kilos.

OK, Look Chai, you ready for your buff?

Keep it Brad and Cheryl look after every aspect of Look Chai's care.

Good boy, mate.

The trust in a relationship or a really strong relationship with an elephant can

take a long time, years.

We've been fortunate enough to know Lookjoy ever since he was born, so every

single day of his life we've been doing these routines.

So these bars are a very important part.

Of our program. I mean, this is basically the foundation of our

with all of our elephants. So we do the bars every single day.

Not necessarily to get them clean. It's really a trust and cooperation exercise.

You know, looking behind his ears, you know, looking at the ear veins there in

case he gets sick one day and we need to take a blood sample.

Lifting his foot up, checking his toenails, things like that.

So it's a bit soft, like a leather pad.

So stepping on rocks all day out in the yard, they can get them stuck in their

pad. So every day we have to check them to make sure there's no rocks stuck in

them, see if they have any nails that need filing, check their pad, make sure

they haven't pulled up any pieces of it, because then we can cut that away so

they don't catch it on anything.

Good boy.

Very good, mate.

Thank you, Luchai. Good boy.

From a baby to a bull, Brad has seen Lok Chai mature to the point where he is in

musth, meaning he's ready to breed.

So a musth period with bull elephants is a period of heightened testosterone,

about 50, 60 times more than what is normal. You see some draining from the

temporal glands, the veins down the cheeks there, and also dribbling urine.

And with that obviously comes an increased level of aggression.

Hello? We're talking about you.

Again.

We're always talking about you.

The problem is, Luk Chai and his father Kung are now both in Ma.

And that is causing some family friction in the herd. This condition of must,

basically we've now got Look Chai, you know, coming into must as well to try to

challenge Goong. And now there's just a little bit of sort of, oh, I want to see

if I can take on Dad. And whilst that's healthy competition, there's a breeding

program and a group of unrelated females in Melbourne who much require their own

breeding bull. And so it's time for Look Chai to...

Depart.

Lokchai.

Here, Lokchai. So, after caring for Lokchai since his birth, it's now time

to say goodbye.

Down at the marine precinct, everyone's buzzing.

Word has quickly spread around the zoo that pregnant Australian sea lion Nala

has some big news.

Hi, Nala.

Her pup isn't due for another two months, but Nala has other ideas.

Hi! Hey, Nala. And only three weeks after the last ultrasound, the SEAL team

welcoming an early surprise.

What's your puppy doing?

Nala has actually given birth overnight.

It's a bit earlier than what we were expecting from our ultrasound

and our mating observations.

And it's a little female, which is exactly what we were hoping for.

Nala's early arrival is due to the Australian sea lion's unique breeding

They have this period of what's called embryonic diapause. So the embryo will

develop to a certain size and then it stops developing.

And this is diapause. And in the Australian sea lion, it's not a fixed

time either. It can be anything from four to six months or so.

That made it tricky to nail down a due date.

But the great news is that so far... Nala's new pup seems perfect.

This is Nala once more. She's eaten a bit this morning already.

There you go.

Super healthy little pup. She's about seven kilos birth weight. And, you know,

she'll grow quite rapidly in the early weeks because mum's milk's fantastic.

So far, so good.

And Nala is happily doing everything that a proud mum should.

Mom's very protective over the pup, so she'll always generally keep herself

between us and the pup.

And Nala's chosen that bed for her pupping area, and so she wants to keep

pup as close to that point at the moment until she gets a little bit older and

can adventure a little further away.

In the wild, you'd be seeing the same kind of behavior.

In this early stage, Mom would stay with the pup. It's that important bonding

stage.

Around day three, day four, mum will go out and find some food.

But in that time, she would stash her pup in a little rock cave or crevice or

under a bush or something like that.

That's why in Sonala, we're seeing that behavior where she thinks that that bed

is her safe zone.

So, you know, that's where she can stash her pup. It's a nice, comfortable area

for her, and so she's happy to keep the pup there.

She definitely watches it, doesn't she?

Going for a walk again.

Yeah, that's in trouble for a mum from wandering.

Going too far.

If the pup starts to venture too far away, you'll find Nala will actually

her. So like a lot of animals and seals don't have hands to pick up their young,

so they scruff them, so they'll actually lightly grab them and drag them back.

Not allowed to go too far.

Oh, you scared yourself.

But new mum Nala isn't the only one beaming.

I'm fairly new to our marine team, so to be here for the birth of a puppy is...

Incredible. It's definitely a career highlight. And the fact that we've got a

beautiful, healthy baby girl is just, we're all over the moon. It's amazing.

very, very exciting time.

Previously here at Taronga, Nala was the last female we had born in our breeding

program. So we've had three boys since then.

So it's great to have a girl.

Now, all this little one needs to do is clear her very first vet check.

Look, Chai, come on, bud.

Good boy.

11 -year -old Asian elephant Look, Chai is ready to breed, and this is causing

competition and friction between other elephants in the herd at Dubbo.

Hormonally, his body is telling him that, you know, oh, gee, I'm raring to

I'd like to sort of see, I'd like to do what my dad does.

So Look Chai is being transferred to Melbourne Zoo to hopefully breed with

females there.

The move to Melbourne will give him plenty of fun opportunities ahead, we

All right, Look Chai. Keep it Brad and Cheryl have been training Look Chai for

four months in preparation for his move.

So we're four days away from the journey and the transport of Look Chai from

Dubbo down to Melbourne Zoo.

And this has involved a lot of logistical work and a lot of training

conditioning of Luk Chai to enter the specially designed crate that we have

him to undertake this journey.

So we're about to start Luk Chai's crate conditioning session and to do that we

need to put these bracelets on both of his front feet and they will just allow

us to restrain him into the crate on the day of the move. So we practice with

this just like we will for the real thing on the day.

When dealing with a three -and -a -half -ton elephant, safety for animal and

keepers alike is paramount.

Steady.

And to ensure no surprises and that Look Chai isn't spooked, Brad does the exact

same routine he's been doing for the last four months.

Trunk.

Atta boy.

Steady.

Steady.

Steady, steady. Look high.

Foot.

Steady.

Steady.

Steady. These conditioning sessions are important. So even if it's weeks or

months ahead, it's really the culmination of his behaviour and

throughout that time, making sure that he feels safe and secure and

And that's the ultimate goal here, is just to make sure that his confidence

increases every single time that we do this. So we don't want to take a

step. Every single time we do it, we want him to feel fantastic and leave the

session feeling, oh, that was no big deal.

Atta boy, let's try.

Once the braces are on, Lookchai has been trained to walk into the crate,

will take him to his new home in Melbourne.

Good boy.

Come on, bud.

All right, Lookchai, let's see your foot.

Good. Steady. And the reason that we want his foot up here is that we have to

attach a chain to these bracelets for the move.

And on the day, it's just a matter of linking this chain up with the bracelet

he is safe and secure. And it's the exact same as our seatbelts. When you

travelling at speed or you want to keep yourself safe, you have to be restrained

in. And we want that for Look Shy during this transport as well.

All right, other foot.

Well, it's important that the conditioning sessions replicate the

Any professional sportsman will tell you the way that they train is to make sure

they replicate sort of match conditions, and that's what we do. And it's

important that we replicate exactly what it's going to look like on the day.

Steady. All right.

Very nice.

Good boy.

With Lukci's big move now only days away, just a few paddocks over, two

more passengers await their turn in the departure lounge.

We have a male and female, Buona.

And Kaya, they're travelling to Sydney to become part of the new Savannah

exhibit that's just recently opened.

The plain zebra lives on kind of the plains areas of Africa, which is similar

here in Dubbo.

All the zebras here and everywhere around the world are black and white.

have a very striped pattern, and every pattern on every zebra is different, a

bit like our fingerprints.

So when zebras get together in a big group, I believe it's called a dazzle

because it creates kind of like an optical illusion. Because of that stripy

pattern, if you're a predator, it makes it more challenging to pick out an

individual to prey on.

Zebra are easily spooked, so they're notoriously risky to transport.

Like a horse, a broken leg spells disaster, which puts a lot of pressure

Roger, who's driving them to Taronga.

I guess one of the biggest challenges for me is there's no seatbelts back

for zebras.

The smoother I drive, the smoother they ride. And the smoother they ride, the

smoother they should unload at the other end.

And Roger heads off.

Back in Sydney, keepers are busy putting the final touches on the zebra's new

home. Shavings in all of them. Shavings in all of them. Okay.

Let them work out where they're most comfortable.

Which they'll be sharing with their new housemates, the giraffe.

Well, the good thing about giraffe and zebra is that they don't compete for

out in their natural environment, out on the savannah.

The giraffe obviously eat from high up in the acacia trees.

They're browsers, whereas zebra are grazers, so they eat the grass off the

ground.

These two animals can actually act as sentinels for each other, and as they

don't compete, you quite often will find herds of giraffe mixing with herds of

zebra.

They may coexist in the wild, but the Taronga giraffe haven't shared their

in years, so keepers are hoping to avoid any confrontation.

They've all got their own individual temperament, so fingers crossed they all

get along and we don't have any issues with rivalry or competition, but they

should be okay. I hope so.

There you go. Make it nice and comfortable.

With their new home ready and their first meal waiting... I'm going to fluff

this up to make it a little bit easier for the zebra to get their muzzles in

eat. It is a really high -quality loosened hay, so hopefully they'll find

delicious.

Keepers are about to find out exactly how easy this zebra introduction is

to be.

This morning, vet Kimberly has a very special job.

So, I'm off today to see one of our new arrivals.

I'm very excited because I haven't seen this little guy before.

She's heading down to the Marine Precinct to conduct the very first vet

Nala's newborn pup.

So I just want to confirm she's at Seal Bay.

Thank you.

As Taronga will be tracking the pups' health over the coming years, it's vital

to get benchmark readings as early as possible.

I hear them talking.

But they'll have to be quick, as this will be the first time that Super

Protective Mom and her pups have been separated.

I hear a lot of noise, Brad.

Yeah, yeah, we can hear it.

And by the sounds of it, she's not happy about it.

Okay, so the plan is you're going to grab and I'll microchip and we'll be

Yeah, I mean, everyone's probably a little bit stressed out because no one

hearing them call.

You know, we want them to be as happy and content as possible. So naturally

us, we're a little bit heightened because we're trying to get the process

as quickly as possible.

Wow.

So how old is she now?

Two weeks tomorrow.

Two weeks tomorrow.

All right, we just need to give her her microchip.

We're putting the microchip in now when she's only two weeks old because we can

still restrain her, we can still handle her.

Once she gets bigger, it's going to be really, really difficult to get our

on her.

We put microchips in most of our zoo animals for identification.

It comes in a big needle, but it's pretty much standard for zoo animals.

And it's the same thing people use in their dogs and cats to identify them.

With the microchip in place, Kimberly is keen for a quick look at the latest

addition to Taronga's family.

Can you just lift her up? Let me just have a look at her. She looks great,

Oh, yeah, everything looks good. Her umbilical cord looks fine.

Right in the line of fire.

Okay, good. Let's put her back with mom.

Oh, she's gorgeous.

She's exquisite.

She's perfect in every way.

This is just a real blessing for us because we've recently lost one of our

adult males.

So it's been a real sad year in the field department.

And we're really excited to have this new life brought into our group.

So I'm very excited. I feel a bit emotional about it, actually.

I heard she was very cute.

And I was like waiting for my time to come down and see her.

So, mission accomplished in this quick once -over. Thanks, Kimberly. Glad we

actually hear you now.

Now there's just one thing this pup is missing.

A name.

Atta boy, let's try.

11 -year -old Luke Chai has been trained to enter this crate in preparation for

his move to Melbourne Zoo.

Good boy!

Good, Luke Chai. But after months of preparation,

at the last minute, world events have brought plans to a sudden halt.

Unfortunately, Lookchai's move has been postponed due to the current pandemic

situation with state borders being closed and everybody's lives being

into turmoil.

Unfortunately, that's affected Lookchai as well and that won't change until this

pandemic allows borders to reopen and things to get back to normal.

Lookchai, move up.

Lookchai, come here, bud.

Well, all the positives that were going to come out of this move still remain.

I mean, this is really just a temporary setback. You know, Lukci still needs to

find a herd of his own to be able to take that next step in his development

become a breeding bull. And whilst, you know, the development of Lukci and

becoming a breeding bull is important, we certainly are appreciative of the

extra time that we're going to get to spend with him also.

And its keepers aren't the only ones happy that Lookchai is staying put for

One elephant that won't be complaining with Lookchai staying is Sabai.

Lookchai's been an elephant that his younger brother Sabai has looked up to,

obviously, ever since he was born. And so the delay has meant Sabai's going to

learn a little bit more about interacting with other members of our

that's certainly going to only be a positive for Sabai.

So while it's good for his younger brother Sabai, Luk Chai must wait a

longer for the next stage of his journey.

Today, Taronga's African Savannah Precinct welcomes a couple of new

The zebra are arriving really soon, and it's really exciting.

It always comes with a little bit of worry from us keepers, though.

Thankfully, Roger's long drive from Dubbo was uneventful. Generally, once

are moving in the truck, the animals in the back usually settle more. When you

stop, they become a little agitated.

But once the truck's moving, they tend to go into their prance.

The finish line is now in sight.

We just want to make this as smooth as possible.

It's easier if you're back in here.

We can go this way and then reverse in.

All that's left is to get them out.

But with every new step, there's a new concern.

It always comes with a little bit of worry from us keepers, though, because

are a flighty animal, they are a very strong animal, they can kick out, they

also potentially bite.

They do take fright quite easily.

Yeah, babe.

He's had to open the crate now, so fingers crossed. Looks good though.

To keep the area as calm as possible for the zebra, all extra keepers are moved

away, giving them the space they need to unload.

Super excited to have zebras back at the zoo.

Hopefully they'll unload well and settle in quite quickly.

Best case scenario for us here at Taronga Zoo now is that the zebras have

arrived, that they unload nice and slow.

And after seven hours on the road, they happily oblige.

Oh, they're so little.

We'll give them a couple of days period for them to make their way into their

stools or their barns. So we won't push them into their barns. We'll just wait

till they're comfortable in their environment.

They've got a food trail leading into their barn.

We just let them relax in their barn for a bit, give them a week, then we put

them with the giraffes. Fingers crossed it all goes well.

It's been two months since her birth, and Nala's pup is settling right into

Taronga family.

She loved a little sand mound the other day.

It's her mission to conquer the summit by the end of the day.

She has everything she could ever need, but there is one thing missing.

And that's about to be fixed. So today we're announcing the name of Nala's new

pup. There was a competition held for zoo guests to enter to help us select

name.

The name Amali has won in a landslide and it's also a winner for the keepers.

I love the name. It's the name the keepers were hoping for because it is a

of a tribute to the pup's late grandfather, who unfortunately was a

was really special to a lot of the keepers here at the zoo, but he did pass

earlier this year.

Cool. Ready to go?

Actually, I'll grab a couple of toys to pique her interest in that space.

So armed with a shiny new name, Amali, as always, is ready for some fun in the

sand.

It's great for the guests that come because she's right in prime viewing

and she's totally fine with all the guests that have come up.

She absolutely loves it. She rolls around in it. She's generally completely

covered head to toe in sand.

Sea lions like Amali, they're generally living on beachy environments, unlike a

lot of the fur seals that tend to haul out on more rocky areas.

So, you know, it's very natural for her to enjoy the sand as much as she is for

her species.

But for the moment, the sand is her limit.

Nala's pup still hasn't taken to swimming out in the exhibit.

Hasn't built up the confidence to go for any more of a bit of a dip off the

edge. And as you can see from Nala's behavior, she's really encouraging doing

those slow swim -bys and hanging close to the edge.

You might see little air bubbles popping up, and that's just her exhaling before

she pops up and grabs another breath.

I don't think it'll be too long, and I think Nala will be really happy if she's

in swimming sooner rather than later, but that's completely her choice. We

her to develop that at her own pace because it's all that confidence

that comes naturally in her own time. And for now, we're totally happy for her

to hang out here and play in the sandpit.

But all that sand needs to be washed off somehow, so keepers will be eagerly

awaiting Amali's first plunge.

It's been six months since bull elephant Look Chai's move was put on hold, but

Keeper Brad has just received some good news and is keen to share it.

Look Chai, come here, bud.

We've just got word, mate.

The move's back on, so pack your bag.

With the current pandemic, the situation's normalising a little bit

borders being reopened, clearance has been granted that the move for Lookchai

will now proceed.

This is not farewell. Once he leaves Dubbo, he's still a huge part of our

program and from a personal perspective, I'll always cherish all the time that

I've spent with Lookchai.

4 .30 the next morning, and keepers are going through Look Chai's daily routine

here in Dubbo for the very last time.

Morning breakfast. So this is some horse pellets, some wheat germ, and a mix

that they really enjoy. We also are able to put a bit of vitamins and mineral

additives in there for their diet, and that's catered to each individual

depending on their age.

Yeah.

Look Chai trunk.

Today, Look Chai is off to Melbourne Zoo as part of an Australia -wide breeding

program.

This is essentially Look Chai's last breakfast with me. And so, you know,

been almost 11 years of doing this every single day.

And, yeah, so it's quite a poignant moment for our relationship.

And, yeah, this is the breakfast that he'll eat in the crate before we

the journey down to Melbourne.

Months and months of hard work and training have led up to this moment.

Look Chai, move up.

It's really the culmination of the relationship that both Cheryl and I have

with Look Chai. So it all comes down to this morning and we're just about to put

these bracelets on for the last time. This is for the real thing.

Foot.

Chunk.

Look Chai, chunk.

Good ball.

Steady. Good.

Steady. Foot.

Chunk.

Very good.

Daddy?

Good boy, Look Chai. Very good.

Okay, let's do it.

And just as they practised over and over, Look Chai loads into the crate.

Yeah, you're right. It's open. Three.

Good boy, Look Chai. Good boy, Look Chai. Come on, mate. This is the last

Good boy. Move up.

Good boy. Put your foot up.

Excellent, Look Chai. Very, very good boy.

Good boy. Steady.

Steady, Look Chai.

All right, Look Chai, other foot.

Good boy. Good boy. So just fixing the restraints now. We've got one more to

One's on.

All right.

Good. Very good, boy.

This morning's gone great.

Both the restraints are on.

And you can see he's nice and calm in the crate here. He's eating his

which is exactly what we expected.

And, you know, his behaviour's been fantastic this morning. All the

has all come down to this and it's all paid off.

I'm very proud of Lachai.

He's just taken it in his stride as he's done everything throughout his life. So

we need to get the truck down here, the crane. Just need a little bit of light

on the situation.

And whilst all of we wait for that to happen and the wheels to...

get in motion, so to speak. He's just going to sit here and enjoy some

breakfast.

What a good boy.

All right, Look Chai, we're just going to shut the doors, mate, and then we'll

be on our way, okay?

Good boy, Look Chai.

It's going to be a long journey for Look Chai, but a beneficial one.

When he arrives at the other end, he will have all the space and opportunity

needs to be the successful breeding male elephant he was born to be.

You want to have a look?

Take a look.

Down at Sydney's brand new African Savannah precinct, the Dubbo zebra are

settling into their new home.

Usually a move is quite stressful for an animal, however these two here, they

really don't seem to have minded that much.

This is Kaya, younger of the two zebra and she's our female.

She's the cheekier of the two individuals and also a lot smarter and

more motivated to work with us and also challenge us as well.

This is Buana. He's our fully intact stallion. He's got a lot smoother of a

than Kaya and he's also got a lot thicker black stripes.

He's a very sort of calm, chilled individual.

Doesn't really get bothered by much. He's more interested in food than

else.

Initial concerns were that the giraffe, who haven't shared their space with any

other animals for years, might not welcome their two new housemates.

Us as keepers, we were quite worried.

However, what we've actually seen is that these guys here are really, really

calm individuals and the giraffe have responded really well to having a zebra

around them again.

But in fact, they're getting on so well, they're almost inseparable.

So what the zebra have actually worked out is if they hang out underneath the

giraffe, they get to eat their food. The giraffe don't mind because they don't

have to share. They're just getting all the leftovers.

And basically now wherever the giraffe go, the zebra are quite close behind.

The giraffe and zebra live happily side by side on the African plains.

And now Taronga have achieved that same dynamic.

on the shores of Sydney Harbour.

It's a big achievement, but an even bigger relief for all involved, and

them one step closer to their end goal, to fully populate their own African

savannah.

Ten -week -old Amali is learning everything she needs to know to be an

Australian sea lion.

But the only skill left she needs to master, It's sort of an important one.

It's how to swim.

And every day, keepers encourage Amali, giving her every possible motivation to

dip her flippers in the pool.

Today, Amali's swim coach is Keeper Lindsay.

Hello.

So this is a really important step, getting a pup used to deep water. When

they're first born, they can't swim and they just start paddling around the two

weeks of age mark.

She looks a bit tentative today.

She's wandering around there, not quite taking the plunge yet, but we'll give

her a chance. She's usually pretty confident with mum around because she

mum keeps her safe.

So hopefully she'll jump in very soon.

So, with a little nip of courage, she's in.

Oh, there she goes. Yay.

Has mum just making sure she's okay and not getting herself into any trouble?

You can see she's swimming just like a big seal.

Has totally worked it out.

One thing she hasn't learnt to do yet, but that will come, is dive really

deeply. So as her confidence grows and she sort of finds her flippers, you can

say, she'll start to dive a little bit more deeply and search around the whole

pool like her mum Nala does.

Australian sea lion pups have a really long maternal care, so their mums will

look after them for 12 to 18 months. And during that time, they have to teach

them things.

Teach them how to swim, teach them how to hunt.

You can see she's starting to even explore up the wall now.

She's getting very confident.

She's swimming just like a pro, really. She's doing so, so well.

And as Lindsay watches on, a breakthrough.

She's actually diving down really deeply with her mum, which is the first time

I've seen her do that. So she's obviously learning how to hold her

they do forage along the bottom of the ocean in the wild. So learning to go

and search and hunt for food is really important as well.

Next step after this will be the big exhibit pool. So that'll be really great

see her out there. Here she is.

Hello.

With Amali's confidence high from her dip in the training pool, within a week,

Lindsay's wish is granted.

And Amali has taken her place by her mum's side.

This important and precious Australian sea lion is now a fully fledged part of

the SEAL team.

And guess what? and keepers alike can look forward to enjoying this cheeky

little sea lion's antics as the newest member of Taronga's ever

-growing family.