question about Figa

Do you have a cropped photo of your profile picture 🤔🤔 I’d like to do an oil pastel portrait of a manul from this perspective 😻

Judging by the photos and videos, Figa-kun has two favorite pastimes: grooming his precious fur coat and grumbling at people. 

Sometimes he manages to do both at once.

I’m also curious why some manuls make the “eke-ke” sound quite often, while others do so only rarely—or not at all 🤔

I noticed something interesting at the Novosibirsk Zoo: the same manul may eke-ke-ke or not depending on the enclosure it lives in.

For example, Seryy used to eke-ke-ke a lot, but after moving to another enclosure, it seems to me that he began doing it noticeably less often.

I noticed the same thing with Zosya. When she lived in one of the enclosures, she eke-ke-ke’d quite often, but now, in a different enclosure, I haven’t noticed this behavior from her.

All this leads me to think that “eke-ke” may be a reaction to a particular environment or set of conditions, rather than simply a “personality trait.” 

But of course, I’m no expert on the matter. I asked the manul zookeeper at the Novosibirsk Zoo why he thinks Seryy eke-ke-kes. He suggested that it might be connected with anxiety or excitement—that is, perhaps there was something in that particular place/enclosure that triggered such a reaction in Seryy. 

Vika Malyshkoverified_filled, Oh that's so interesting!  I'm trying to imagine what it could be... The view? The other nearby animals? The number of crows? Where they are on the zookeepers' feeding rounds???

mnamosyna (rachael), The intersection of Earth's energy meridians 😸😸😸

mnamosyna (rachael), I think people annoy them.

Sery used to have an enclosure in a prominent spot; now it is tucked away in a corner. And his behavior has changed.

Perhaps it is the same with Figa and Hide.

And the question is whether a manul suffers from increased attention or, on the contrary, finds it fun and interesting.

I am beginning to lean toward the former, especially when I watch old videos of Sery. It feels as though he is more likely irritated and has nervous tics.

mnamosyna (rachael), I’m very curious to understand that too! But I don’t know 🤷‍♀️ I can only share my observations and personal thoughts.

As for the enclosure where Seryi used to live and eke-kek (and Zosya too), if you think about what sets it apart from many other enclosures at Novosibirsk Zoo where manuls live, the first thing that comes to mind is that from there, a manul can see other fairly large animals: lynxes, otters, and possibly a leopard (though I’m not sure about that).

In addition, people can come fairly close to the enclosure. However, this feature is far from unique to Novosibirsk Zoo and does not in itself distinguish this enclosure from many others. For example, literally on the other side of the path lives another manul whom people can approach just as closely, but he does not eke-kek. Or take Sylvester: you can also come almost right up to his enclosure, yet apparently it does not irritate him at all. And he can see the leopard too—and he’s fine with that as well.

Maybe it is a matter of some combination of circumstances and the individual psychological traits of a particular animal. Or perhaps it is something that people do not consider important at all, but that matters to the animal. I don’t know...

But I suppose I agree with the previous message from anna_yu : Seryi looks calmer now, and in my opinion, moving to another enclosure has done him good.

schwentine what do you think Figa's personality is like?  You two are old friends!☺️

Vika Malyshkoverified_filled, Hide, for example, lives in Grusha’s old enclosure and ekekeks. But Grusha didn’t ekekek in it. I think there must be some other reason. On the other hand, Hide’s father is like that too. But for Figa, it doesn’t run in the family. It would be interesting to ask the specialists.

Figa is not constantly making ekeke sounds; when he is relaxed, for example, he is calm. Still, he clearly makes ekeke sounds more often than the other individuals, and he is often heard ekeke-ing as he walks around.

There are also several situations in which Figa is especially likely to make ekeke sounds.

• When zoo staff arrive, especially keepers and veterinarians.

• When he responds to a regular visitor who addresses him by saying, “Figa.”

• Visitors whom Figa himself happens to be wary of (apparently, Figa is a little uncomfortable around large-built people and unfamiliar foreign visitors, among others).

• After 4 p.m., as closing time approaches, when many staff members are passing by, his ekeke sounds become even more intense. Apparently, he has been like this ever since he was at Ueno Zoo, and he looks as though he is telling people to hurry up and go home.

• However, he does not make ekeke sounds when his assigned keeper comes by; instead, he freezes and glares at the keeper. (Sometimes he even lunges at the keeper.)

Figa seems to distinguish people quite carefully—whether they are visitors, regulars, staff members, or his assigned keeper—and may change his response accordingly.

As for Figa’s personality, according to the information board, he is “stubborn and patient, cautious but sometimes bold.”

• He is bold when it comes to things that interest him, and cardboard boxes may be his latest favorite. By the time you go to see Figa around noon, the cardboard box has already been destroyed and flattened.

• His boldness shows in other ways too: surprisingly, he likes being the center of attention. For some reason, he does not seem to mind the animal talks that recently began; even in front of keepers, where he would normally freeze up, he moves around during the talks and even accepts food directly from them.

• Nevertheless, Figa is quite cautious. When he moved from Ueno to Nogeyama Zoo, it took about a month before he showed himself to the keepers, and another month before he appeared in the outdoor enclosure visible to visitors (for details, please see the zoo’s blog).

• And he seems to remember unpleasant experiences very well, which is where his stubborn side comes out.

In particular, although it is currently closed to the public, he strongly dislikes and is wary of people being on the indoor enclosure side. Even now, when a keeper enters the indoor-side corridor, he darts out into the outdoor enclosure, slips into his usual gap between the boards, and freezes.

Figa’s sibling, Safran, seems similarly cautious based on her recent behavior, and their father, Kuryon, was also extremely cautious when he was first put on display. So Figa may have inherited his cautiousness from his father.

The zoo’s blog also occasionally writes about Figa’s life and personality at Nogeyama. It is in Japanese, but the site has a translation feature, so it can be viewed in English as well.

The link is to the latest article, about Figa’s animal talk.

(Viewing it on a PC rather than a smartphone is recommended.)

https://www.hama-midorinokyokai.or.jp/zoo/nogeyama/details/post-12022.php

Vika Malyshkoverified_filled, Personally, I think Figa's personality resembles that of his father, Kuryon.

Kuryon is easygoing now, but when he was first put on display, he was quite cautious, and Safran inherited that cautiousness as well.

And according to the keeper in charge at Ueno, Kuryon apparently used to threaten the keepers terribly, so it is possible that Figa's ekeke vocalizations are something he inherited from Kuryon.

schwentine, Thank you so much for such a detailed reply, schwentine! So, so interesting!! 🤓😍

P.S.: hmm... how are we going to go visit Figa!? We’re foreigners to him, and Roman is 2 metres tall 😮😸 What a predicament!

Odinea / Одинея,

here!!