SALISBURY, MD - The Salisbury Zoo has announced the arrival of their new male ocelot Dale.
Born at South Carolina’s Greenville Zoo, Dale was recently housed at the Caldwell Zoo in Tyler, Texas before coming to Salisbury. The Salisbury Zoo says Dale is now eight years old. While wild ocelots have a lifespan of seven to ten years, those in human care can live an average of over 15 years, according to the zoo.
The Salisbury Zoo has housed ocelots since 1984, with its most recent female Anahi transferred to the Buffalo Zoo in New York. Coincidentally, the Zoo says Dale and Anahi are siblings from separate litters.
Native to the southwestern U.S., ocelots face various challenges such as habitat loss, vehicle collisions, and illegal poaching for their coats. The species is considered critically imperiled in their U.S. habitats, with only an estimated 50-80 remaining in Texas, according to the Salisbury Zoo.
Zoo officials say the addition is part of the Ocelot Species Survival plan, an initiative intended to ensure the stability of animal populations under human care and reestablish wild ocelot populations through managed breeding efforts.
For more information on Dale and the Salisbury Zoo, you can follow this link.