One animal to improve a collection.

Scottish Wildcat said:
Looks like Komodo99 beat me too it, but I was discussing Komodo Dragons for Edinburgh the other week (At the science summer school week they do there). One of the things Edinburgh is really missing is a large reptile, I suppose a crocodile or alligator would work equally as well (I was hoping they would get one of the alligators from Five Sisters but as we know...). The dwarf mongoose enclosure by the margay would work well for a monitor of some kind, so would the sandy exhibit in the hippo house. But if Edinburgh got the dragons they would be the only ones in Scotland (I'm pretty sure at least)>

Edinburgh could also benefit from another medium-sized carnivore; cheetah, wolf, lynx, hyena, or something similar.

As for the Highland Wildlife Park, I wish they would bring back some of the native species they once had on display: the badger, otter, pine marten, golden eagle, boar, etc
Click to expand...
There are only four collections that hold Komodo Dragons in the UK at the moment and they are Chester,Colchester,London and Crocodiles of the World.Edinburgh used to have them though.

I do agree with you saying that they should have a large reptile star as part of their collection as most zoos have this as either being a decent sized crocodilian or large constrictor snake.

It is a shame that Edinburgh no longer have their Amur Leopards and Jaguars.I personally think that maybe Cougars or Snow Leopards could make nice attractions.
 
Thinking more about what could improve Dudley Zoo here are a few idea's

1 - Use the bank opposite the Chimps for a large Snow Leopard enclosure with the bank making a more realistic back drop than the current exhibit.

2 - Let the Chimps move to another collection and use the area for a much improved Orangutan exhibit extending the current indoor house and increasing the outdoor climbing equipment.

3 - Remove the fun fair and replace it with a much needed new Reptile House.

4 - Knock the old Reptile house down and use the Bank and the area created by the removal of the R/H for a new Klipspringer exhibit
 
Fossa for Chester Zoo, Komodo Dragon for Paignton Zoo, African Wild Dogs for Blackpool Zoo, Seba's Short-Tailed Bats for Birmingham WCP, Gila Monsters for West Midlands Safari Park and a Duiker species (any) for either Twycross or Dudley Zoo (Because we could definitely do with some Duikers in our Midlands zoos) :)
 
Komodo Dragons seem to be a popular choice here which is a good thing.Shame they are not as popular in UK collections as they are in North America.
 
The smaller Komodos I've seen have been really active so make a cracking reptile exhibit.

The thought of seeing reptiles and snakes was often really exciting to me but the actual experience of seeing a dozen or so partially hidden comatose animals was often a real let down. Modern Zoo husbandry seems to paying off massively across many zoos as the reptiles seem so much much active than in my past experience.
 
redstarsmith said:
The smaller Komodos I've seen have been really active so make a cracking reptile exhibit.

The thought of seeing reptiles and snakes was often really exciting to me but the actual experience of seeing a dozen or so partially hidden comatose animals was often a real let down. Modern Zoo husbandry seems to paying off massively across many zoos as the reptiles seem so much much active than in my past experience.
Click to expand...
Chester Zoo's Komodo Dragons are particularly active as they have never been sleeping or hiding during my visits.The small female Mezcal in the outdoor enclosure is very active as I watched her walk around,attempt to burrow into the ground,engage in a brief staring competition and even jump into a bush to avoid a family coming past and would come out once they left.
 
Bringing this thread back, I have some ideas. (I know this is one animal each, but I have too many ideas)

Chester Zoo: Snow Leopard, Western Lowland Gorilla, Pygmy Hippo, Fur Seal (any species), Sloth Bear, Andean Condor (return), pure-bred Aldabra Giant Tortoise if possible, any venomous snake.

Blackpool Zoo: Sun Bear, Indian Rhino, Striped Hyena, any large bird of prey, Anaconda.

Welsh Mountain Zoo: Grey Wolf, Macaque (any species), Markhor, Civet (any species), a nice collection of pheasants, Pallas' Cat.

Cotswold Wildlife Park: American Black Bear, Sumatran Orangutan, Eastern Bongo, Giant Otter, Komodo Dragon, any large freshwater fish.

Whipsnade Zoo: Clouded Leopard, Bornean Orangutan, Black Rhino, Polar Bear, Sunda Gharial, Shoebill, Seceratary Bird.
 
Paignton - Great hornbill, Orependola, Palm Cockatoo, Okapi, Giant Otter, Gelada, Rock Wallaby, Komodo Dragon, Shoebill, Sable Antelope, Owstons Civet, Bird of Paradise & Volcano rabbit.
 
PaleoMatt said:
May be tricky considering only one collection has them in the western world :p
Click to expand...

I don't think the thread question was "which species already in loads of zoo's would you like to see added to a Zoo" was it ? :P

Surprised they are only in one collection.

It was a long time ago but I remember going to Sea World In Orlando, maybe 2003/2004 and they definitely had Emperor Penguins near where the Polar Bear was in the Arctic section.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Zia
Some things have changed since my last list of ideas for this thread - for example Chester have announced plans to get pygmy hippopotamus and one of the zoos I chose (Tropical Wings) has closed. So I decided to redo my list with twelve zoos, each with just a single species chosen. I have also included reasoning for each one:

AFRICA ALIVE! – Impala

- If memory serves, the ankole cattle have a very large enclosure that I think would be better-used housing a wild animal species; impala are my preferred choice because Africa Alive lacks any gazelle-like species, they are an active and attractive species and a breeding herd would fill the space well

BRISTOL – Greater bilby

- Bristol is one of the few zoos building up a strong marsupial collection in the UK but equally it is better suited for smaller marsupials that can be kept indoors; they would work well in the desert section of Twilight World moving into either the old sand cat or yellow mongoose enclosure

CHESTER – Martial eagle

- Large predatory birds are among the few major species groups absent from Chester; the martial eagle is one of the more prevalent species in Europe, is threatened in the wild and is an impressive species

COLCHESTER – Yellow-throated marten

- At the moment, the large enclosure by the Wilds of Asia house seems fairly wasted on the small group of non-breeding lion-tailed macaques which very seldom use their outdoor exhibit – yellow-throated martens are highly attractive, almost manic when they are active and are more climate tolerant so would be more likely to be active outdoors on a cooler day

HAMERTON – Marbled polecat

- With its exposed site, some of the most ideal species would be those that naturally inhabit fairly cool windswept places – although the Pallas cat and bobak marmot are two species I considered, the marbled polecat would be a species I could particularly see flourishing at Hamerton

HIGHLAND WILDLIFE PARK – Asiatic black bear

- Not much to say with regards to this – a second bear species for HWP would be excellent and the Asiatic black bear suits the overarching theme of the park (threatened mountain wildlife) very well; there are bears available from rescue centres in Asia that could also provide good PR for a park building them a home

LINTON – Ground cuscus

- Linton is another of the few British zoos working particularly with marsupials; although it is not the rarest of marsupial species available the ground cuscus is visually appealing and the zoo’s shaded site and style of enclosure would suit them down to the ground

THE DEEP – Flapper skate

- A couple of these in the largest aquarium of the Cool Seas display would make a wonderful exhibit; not only that but they could provide a link to the local marine life, with the flapper skate formerly a widespread species in the North Sea before it was almost completely eradicated

WILD PLACE – Pere David’s deer

- The Bristol Zoological Society has worked with this species in the past, they are still an extremely rare species that is nonetheless easy to accommodate and they are among the larger and more impressive species of deer available

WILDWOOD – Javan banteng

- A bit of an odd species perhaps, but I think they would be the best stand-in for an aurochs the park could house – they are a highly endangered species with a resemblance to the aurochs and as such would make a better use of space from a conservation standpoint than one of the ‘re-bred’ domestic cattle varieties

ZSL LONDON – Rusty-spotted cat

- The Land of the Lions section is fairly poor for actual Gir Forest species – with a little changing of the exhibit space the enclosure used by the dwarf mongooses can become home to these cats; they would have been better inhabitants from a conservation point of view and a much better marketing alternative for the exhibit (along the lines of, ‘You’ve met the biggest cat of the Gir Forest, now meet the smallest’)

ZSL WHIPSNADE – Chinese dhole

- Whipsnade is a huge site well-made for exhibiting large mammals; the dhole is another reasonably active, highly social species that would do very well in a large enclosure that Whipsnade can easily provide; Whipsnade is unique in that easily between ten and twenty large mammal species could be added without unduly affecting its character – striped hyaena, Barbary macaque, black rhinoceros, black sable antelope, blue wildebeest, Somali wild ass, golden takin, Iberian wolf and Persian leopard would make an ideal top-ten new additions
 
Last edited:
These are some great suggestions! I like the ones for Chester, Colchester, Highland Wildlife Park and Wildwood especially.
 
Bristol Zoo-Swift Parrot
An underrepresented critically endangered species in zoos, plus Bristol has many Australian species already- imagine a good sized flock in the wallaby walkthrough!

Chester-Javan Warty Pig
A stretch I know, but Act for Wildlife has done work with the species, and it'd fit into the zoo's collection very nicely.

Cotswold Wildlife Park- Aye-aye
Ultimate edition to an excellent lemur collection.

Crocodiles of the World- Gharial
For reasons of taxonomic completeness, critically endangered-ness and general awesomeness.

Knowsley Safari Park-Przewalski's Horse
a notable absence from their otherwise extensive equid collection. Alternatively barbary macaques as a more conservation significant, climate-suited replacement for the baboons.

Lakeland Wildlife Oasis-Gray's Monitor
The collection seems to be developing a decent collection of threatened reptile species. I also considered suggesting tree monitors or Louisiana pine snakes, but i feel the Gray's monitor would have the greatest impact.

Wildwood-Northern Goshawk
As much of a fan as I am of @DesertRhino150 's suggestion, I just feel like this species, and the story of it's reintroduction to Britain, slot into Wildwood's collection very nicely indeed.

Wingham- Snow Leopard
They've got a lot of very nice cat species already, and are in the process of opening a Himalayan-themed extension, so this seems to fit well.
 
Last edited:
I think any zoo, outside the area between Singapore and Sydney, would be improved by adding a species of lory, even if they have one, two or three species already - so Walsrode and Loro Parque would probably be exceptions too. Lorikeets are fine, but lories are more fun.
Specifically I would suggest koalas for Newquay: they don't require much space and would like the mild climate, and they would attract the punters too. Build a nice little house on the site of the old fossa enclosure, replant the maze with eucalyptus and stand by the turnstile :)
For Paignton, I would like to see a decently sized, active and attractive nocturnal species, perhaps greater galago or doroucouli. Then they could build a nice new nocturnal house which would also display the kiwi and the loris that visitors can't see properly now.
 
Paignton~As said Komodo Dragon
London~Asian crested Ibis, Koalas
Chester~Gerenuk(none in U.K),
Whipsnade~Gerenuk aswell//Polar Bear
Flamingo Land~Shoebill
YWP~Okapi or Cheetah
WMSP~Sable Antelope
CotswoldsWP~Indri

Also, Pure African leopards should be added to a Collection but I’m not sure which zoo would exhibit the species best.
Just a thought :)
 
Last edited:
Thought I’d give some input. No harm in fantasising!

Twycross - With the elephants going they need some more star species. They’re getting tigers soon, supposedly, and I can’t imagine the elephant paddock being used for anything other than rhinos. I think a reptile house is something that Twycross is desperately missing so I’ll say that Nile Crocodiles would be a big hit.

YWP - Yorkshire has become such a hit of a zoo because it’s pretty much entirely made up of crowd-pleasers, and I think that penguins would be the next logical step! Preferably, for me, king penguins.

Hamerton - There is a lot of unused space at Hamerton (or space used for endless amounts of donkeys) so I’d like to see them add another large species. Maybe some sort of bear? I think that Asiatic black bears would fit in quite nicely up near the tigers.

ZSL London - After seeing them and falling in love with them at Leipzig last year, I think that Chinese Pangolins would be a fantastic addition at London, or any zoo for that matter! They fit in well with ZSL’s conservation message.

Bristol - I’d love to see them continue the trend of keeping rare, endangered and unusual species from Australia/New Zealand/ New Guinea. Someone else mentioned bilbies, so I’ll go with the numbat. 5 years ago I wouldn’t have thought it possible, but with bilbies coming over to Europe soon, there may be a chance.

As you can see I have put too much thought into this...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top