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Submitted Photo Kiota is a male African lion residing at Roosevelt Park Zoo in Minot.

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Submitted Photo Roosevelt Park Zoo in Minot has two Amur tigers.

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Living a solitary life is normal for several species of animal. While living in the care of humans can change some of their natural instincts, we make efforts to allow them to maintain the behaviors and instincts that they would need in the wild. Solitary animals often have a territory that they range across. They patrol this area and work to keep competing animals out of it.

Zoo staff is often asked why some animals are kept by themselves and why they don’t have others of the species in with them. Most apparent is with animals like the Amur tigers. We have a male and female that are kept in separate habitats. The only time the two will be together is when the female is in heat and they come together for breeding purposes, after which, they again go their separate ways, much like they would in the wild. Even animals of the same sex are difficult to maintain in captivity, unless they are brought up together like Luka and Dimitri who are currently living at the Oregon Zoo in Portland.

With leopards on the other hand, males and females can live together in the same space, until the female is bred and then will no longer have a male in her proximity. Protective of her cubs, the male becomes a threat and causes her stress. Again, adults of the same sex cannot be introduced without major aggression between the two that could ultimately lead to one’s death. With this knowledge, the facilities we are constructing today are designed for managing these animals in a manner that works best for them. Our older female Clover was born as a litter of three females who were all raised together. There is a chance that one of her sisters may be recommended to be transferred to the Roosevelt Park Zoo for holding. Even though the two were raised together, they are both independent animals and may not even realize they are sisters. For the safety of all, if her sister were to be transferred here, she too would be maintained separate from the others.

Our third large cat species, the African lions, on the other hand are very family oriented and are kept as a group, even when cubs are present. They develop this family dynamic that works beautifully if no outsiders are introduced to the group. The pride can have only one dominant male and any other males that are not a part of the “family” would have to answer to him. This is one of the reasons we maintain Kiota separate from the rest of the pride. It is for his own safety.

Being solitary does not just pertain to the large cats. Most believe that all hoofed stock are herd animals, and they are correct, in most cases. The okapi is naturally a solitary animal found deep in the forests of the Congo in Africa. For this reason, Akili is maintained by himself, because that is what is natural for him. While most species run in herds, flocks, or schools, there are several independent souls that have adapted to and prefer to run alone.