Is it still communicating a redevelopment (ex-Takin area sign)?
Paignton Zoo Paignton News 2020
- Thread starter Brum
- Start date
Gigit
Well-Known Member
It says 'Please bear with us while we get this enclosure ready for some new residents'
Gigit
Well-Known Member
I only saw two Ural owls and the spotted eagle owl, who used to be in the Brookside aviary, in the aviaries behind the big cats today. And possibly only speckled pigeons in the Brookside aviary? I heard someone say they were 'just pigeons'. It is rather worrying that visitors are commenting on FB about empty enclosures. Maybe they would be more generous if the zoo explained that they had serious problems with TB for a couple of years even before covid19 got started.
Andrew Swales
Well-Known Member
Be careful about giving too much credence to social media comments about empty enclosures. I dont have any detail about Paignton, but we dont have a single 'empty' enclosure and 'empty' enclosures are our commonest complaint, quite often made by people standing a few feet from an animal which is perfectly visible. Sometimes (though rarely if we are honest) this is a blatent attempt at black-mail - 'the enclosures are empty - give me my money back - or I'll rubbish you on social media' would result of course in a free day out subsidised by everyone else - but usually they have just not looked. As one of our keepers said, 'the easiest way not to see something is not to look for it'.
The Lego animals and the increasingly numerous keeper talks and presentations (maybe pre-Covid?) fuels this assumption that animals must be visible just inside an enclosure (ideally an enclosure so large that you cant see the far side) just at the precise moment you walk past. They fact that animals are living entities, living their own lives in their own homes, making their own decisions; appears to be becoming increasingly blurred...
I agree with what you are saying, however, we regulars have a keen & experienced eye. There are more & more empty enclosures and bigger spaces appearing between empty enclosures at Paignton. There are also many big enclosures with only one to two residents present where before there were many more. The social media comments & reviews are not looking favourable right now. I’m a loyal supporter & I’m losing the faith....
I agree. Paignton is at a low ebb at the moment. So many factors have combined that the cupboard is looking quite bare now.
Near the entrance, Reptile Tropics and the Desert House are closed (re-roofing and/or Coronavirus restrictions), so even the new cavies are invisible. In the middle of the zoo, the maned wolf enclosures are being completely refurbished, although on my last visit I heard the wolves behind the bongo (and I suspect that, if the wind were in the right direction, a keener nose than mine could smell them too). At the top of the zoo, the Bird Show and the Reptile Nursery are closed by Covid restrictions, as is the Ape House in the valley, and the lemurs can't be released into the walk-through because they cannot use volunteers to staff the area. The former elephant, camel and takin enclosures are empty, so is the newly re-fenced paddock behind the maned wolves (it used to hold Darwin's rheas) and the field beside it, which was cleared for the first stage of the Savanna project, is still lying fallow. The former tortoise lawns, by the Reptile Nursery, are just grass now; the old echidna enclosure is still empty and so is the former colobus section of Monkey Heights. Even the good things that are happening have very little visitor appeal: the zoo has just posted a video about the crocodile lizard youngsters - but they can't go on show now, the Nguru spiny pygmy chameleons are wonderful and another important success story, but they are so small and so cryptic that they almost invisible in their new vivariums - why isn't there a display board about them on the wall? And don't ask my opinion of using the valuable display area of the former tenrec house for dozens of individual tanks and pools for small nocturnal native crayfish
Gigit
Well-Known Member
I agree. Paignton is at a low ebb at the moment. So many factors have combined that the cupboard is looking quite bare now.
Near the entrance, Reptile Tropics and the Desert House are closed (re-roofing and/or Coronavirus restrictions), so even the new cavies are invisible. In the middle of the zoo, the maned wolf enclosures are being completely refurbished, although on my last visit I heard the wolves behind the bongo (and I suspect that, if the wind were in the right direction, a keener nose than mine could smell them too). At the top of the zoo, the Bird Show and the Reptile Nursery are closed by Covid restrictions, as is the Ape House in the valley, and the lemurs can't be released into the walk-through because they cannot use volunteers to staff the area. The former elephant, camel and takin enclosures are empty, so is the newly re-fenced paddock behind the maned wolves (it used to hold Darwin's rheas) and the field beside it, which was cleared for the first stage of the Savanna project, is still lying fallow. The former tortoise lawns, by the Reptile Nursery, are just grass now; the old echidna enclosure is still empty and so is the former colobus section of Monkey Heights. Even the good things that are happening have very little visitor appeal: the zoo has just posted a video about the crocodile lizard youngsters - but they can't go on show now, the Nguru spiny pygmy chameleons are wonderful and another important success story, but they are so small and so cryptic that they almost invisible in their new vivariums - why isn't there a display board about them on the wall? And don't ask my opinion of using the valuable display area of the former tenrec house for dozens of individual tanks and pools for small nocturnal native crayfish
I don't want to kick the zoo when it's down and nobody was more pleased than me when it re-opened and I could resume my visits. During lockdown, I discovered that there are some things I can live without but zoo visiting isn't one of them. It doesn't look at its best but we Zoochatters know why. Casual visitors don't understand and now that the publicity about zoos having to close has waned, they've probably forgotten that zoos still need financial help and instead of donating, they just want their money's worth.
One particular FB poster complains about disappointment, so many empty and neglected enclosures, animals not visible despite signs, the takin yard being cleaned with the animals indoors, a poor man's Windsor Legoland, no elephants despite one being on the adverts (maybe she means the national road signs?), the zoo seeming to just be interested in making money, the entrance fee, speaking to 'many, many' families who won't return. Another claims to have seen more Lego animals than real animals.
The zoo really needs these visitors and even I have become slightly more tolerant of their peak-time presence for the benefit they are bringing. What does it matter if an empty enclosure is 'neglected' - it's good for wildlife. What matters is that people know why it's empty and what plans there are for it. Please, PZ, address people's concerns and spread some positivity!
Andrew Swales
Well-Known Member
Yes - there must certainly be a tipping point with Lego animals (and animated dinosaurs..?) - where even the public begin to think it is all a bit of a cop-out..
Let’s look at the wonderful things Paignton still has on view:
Beautiful lake with primate islands, pelicans, waterfowl and cranes. The train ride is enjoyable, for adults as much as children.
Attractive flamingo pool at the entrance with thriving Chilean Flamingo colony. Great bird collection including Kiwi, Darwin’s Rhea, Argus Pheasant, breeding Southern Screamers, some good Hornbills, an Eastern White Stork.
Takin. Maned Wolves. Bruce the Echidna. Red River Hogs. Hartmann Mountain Zebras. Good Lion and Tiger enclosures. Decent Gorilla and Orang exhibits. Good restaurant and shop.
Still a pretty good zoo to visit and support.
Don’t get me started on its sister zoo, Newquay, which is a perfect little gem.
Beautiful lake with primate islands, pelicans, waterfowl and cranes. The train ride is enjoyable, for adults as much as children.
Attractive flamingo pool at the entrance with thriving Chilean Flamingo colony. Great bird collection including Kiwi, Darwin’s Rhea, Argus Pheasant, breeding Southern Screamers, some good Hornbills, an Eastern White Stork.
Takin. Maned Wolves. Bruce the Echidna. Red River Hogs. Hartmann Mountain Zebras. Good Lion and Tiger enclosures. Decent Gorilla and Orang exhibits. Good restaurant and shop.
Still a pretty good zoo to visit and support.
Don’t get me started on its sister zoo, Newquay, which is a perfect little gem.
And so much more
Gigit
Well-Known Member
Yes, indeed, I agree. We all know that but the people the zoo needs to attract in large numbers are not like us.
I believe the Eastern white stork moved last year and I'm not sure there are any Darwin's rheas left. The kiwi is still on the TV screen, Argus pheasants are audible somewhere, Southern screamers continue to flourish, only black and wrinkled hornbills on show? The train's not running because of covid19. The big cat enclosures are good but the cats have had to split up as a result of TB so are maybe not so visible to passers by. The Ape House is off limits because of covid19 so if the gorillas choose to stay indoors they're a no-show, likewise the orangs to a lesser extent as they are in two groups. Bruce is only on show if he goes outside. So all these wonders might not be instantly accessible to current visitors.
Are there no plans to put the kiwi on display? It seems that the zoo is desperate for money yet they're sitting on some of the most interesting animals in the UK and not letting people see them.
Kiwi are unique in Britain and I would think they'd be as big a draw as Giant Pandas or Kolas yet you can only see them on TV. Kiwis on T.V aren't the slightest incentive for me to visit, I can stay at home and watch kiwis on youtube.
Kiwi are unique in Britain and I would think they'd be as big a draw as Giant Pandas or Kolas yet you can only see them on TV. Kiwis on T.V aren't the slightest incentive for me to visit, I can stay at home and watch kiwis on youtube.
Andrew Swales
Well-Known Member
Giant Panda, definitely not - but I think that given the right push from pop culture (a major TV or film appearance for instance) there *is* a chance that Kiwi could hit the same levels of popularity as Koala at some point, given the fact the species has the right "look" about it to be an appealing pop culture character for children.
But you're definitely right that this isn't the case now.
Andrew Swales
Well-Known Member
The public certainly like them, they bore me silly.Not to you maybe (or actually me, either), but the list of zoos prepared to jump through serious hoops to get them would indicate that your(our) view is not indicative of public interest - and I dont agree with TLD either, not in this case anyway