ZSL London Zoo ZSL London Zoo News 2021

A slightly superficial analysis - but I think one that possibly cuts to the heart of the London Zoo malaise:

The zoo seems to have orientated itself in recent years towards the 'Instagram' 'Experience' 'New Fad' crowd. I'm basing this on how the zoo presents itself in its marketing, in Timeout, social media, etc. As a 30 year old 'professional' living in London, I see a lot of my friends/social media acquaintances/etc visiting the zoo as a one off experience. They would probably never go to a zoo to see animals as an activity to be enjoyed in itself, but as a 'zoo date' or 'instagram opportunity' they are all over it. It's convenient and comparable in price to an evening out in London.

I'm not a businessman, but conceivably, ZSL believes that London is a big enough capital city that the usual fodder for zoo visits, by which I mean season ticket holding families and interested people like us zoochatters, can be cut out in favour of tourists and one-off experience seekers.?

I have to say that I don't think this a sustainable model, but I do think this is what they are trying to do.
 
oflory said:
A slightly superficial analysis - but I think one that possibly cuts to the heart of the London Zoo malaise:

The zoo seems to have orientated itself in recent years towards the 'Instagram' 'Experience' 'New Fad' crowd. I'm basing this on how the zoo presents itself in its marketing, in Timeout, social media, etc. As a 30 year old 'professional' living in London, I see a lot of my friends/social media acquaintances/etc visiting the zoo as a one off experience. They would probably never go to a zoo to see animals as an activity to be enjoyed in itself, but as a 'zoo date' or 'instagram opportunity' they are all over it. It's convenient and comparable in price to an evening out in London.

I'm not a businessman, but conceivably, ZSL believes that London is a big enough capital city that the usual fodder for zoo visits, by which I mean season ticket holding families and interested people like us zoochatters, can be cut out in favour of tourists and one-off experience seekers.?

I have to say that I don't think this a sustainable model, but I do think this is what they are trying to do.
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I believe you have a strong point perhaps overlooked by some. I feel the management are way out of touch with the real world and perhaps to comfortable in their well paid job as long as it keeps paying them, what ever they feel they are doing its not working and at the end of the day its got to fall onto someones shoulders!
 
I never felt the need to post until now but can see that only one link to the plans has been shared on this thread and no longer works. Worth reading through the design and access statement in the documents link below. Gaining two new buildings, I feel very optimistic about the zoo. It also mentions the existing reptile house will be repurposed to house more suitable species:

21/00421/FULL | Erection of new Reptile House and Galapagos Tortoise House. | London Zoo Outer Circle Regents Park London NW1 4RY

The revised plans for the Snowdon also seem very positive. No parrots (one less threat to the vegetation) with a more extensive monkey house now along the site of the current shelter, able to house two separate groups. Only the first two design & access statements open for me but they're both worth spending some time looking over:

20/02587/LBC | Replacement of metal mesh and door and restoration of the Snowdon Aviary to encompass new monkey species, apparatus and informal housing for aviary species, safety and balustrade alterations to 'M' bridge, replacement of concrete shelter and erection of new animal house annex and links, alterations to the education building to the west of the aviary, removal and replacement of trees and landscaping alterations including installation of new gate for construction and emergency vehicles, together with demolition of north pheasantry aviaries and re-landscaping. (Linked to 20/02586/FULL). | London Zoo Outer Circle Regents Park London NW1 4RY

The old buildings are going nowhere, in more prosperous times I'm sure they will be brought back to life one-by-one.
 
oflory said:
A slightly superficial analysis - but I think one that possibly cuts to the heart of the London Zoo malaise:

The zoo seems to have orientated itself in recent years towards the 'Instagram' 'Experience' 'New Fad' crowd. I'm basing this on how the zoo presents itself in its marketing, in Timeout, social media, etc. As a 30 year old 'professional' living in London, I see a lot of my friends/social media acquaintances/etc visiting the zoo as a one off experience. They would probably never go to a zoo to see animals as an activity to be enjoyed in itself, but as a 'zoo date' or 'instagram opportunity' they are all over it. It's convenient and comparable in price to an evening out in London.

I'm not a businessman, but conceivably, ZSL believes that London is a big enough capital city that the usual fodder for zoo visits, by which I mean season ticket holding families and interested people like us zoochatters, can be cut out in favour of tourists and one-off experience seekers.?

I have to say that I don't think this a sustainable model, but I do think this is what they are trying to do.
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I don't think that this is necessary a superficial assessment.

It seems at least to me to be pretty accurate about the new ZSL strategy and I'm sure that the same could sadly be said to be true for many other zoos and public institutions like museums.
 
FBBird said:
That’s not so much ‘old Elephant and Rhino house’ (that was demolished late 1930s) as the Cattle Sheds, where the first White Rhinoceroses were housed.
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The black rhinoceros "Lorna" was kept in the old Deer & Cattle Sheds too; she was moved there from the old Antelope House where I also saw her.
 
Panthera1981 said:
I only remember seeing rhino in the Casson. Did the Deer and Cattle sheds have any merits over the Casson? Was there indoor viewing for example?
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I'm sorry to disagree with others but, back in the days when the Deer & Cattle Sheds were used soley for ungulates, you could go inside the building; I went in on a number of occasions when a very young child in the late 1950s / early 1960s. (And I have vivid memories of seeing the black rhino "Lorna" inside.)

However after the deer were moved to the newly opened Cotton Terraces, the former deer side of the house was used for canids (bush dog, maned wolf, crab-eating fox, New Guinea singing dog.....) transfered from the old North Mammal House. Once the former deer enclosures were occupied by wild dogs, the interior of the house was closed to visitors and I never went inside again.
 
Tim May said:
I'm sorry to disagree with others but, back in the days when the Deer & Cattle Sheds were used soley for ungulates, you could go inside the building; I went in on a number of occasions when a very young child in the late 1950s / early 1960s. (And I have vivid memories of seeing the black rhino "Lorna" inside.)

However after the deer were moved to the newly opened Cotton Terraces, the former deer side of the house was used for canids (bush dog, maned wolf, crab-eating fox, New Guinea singing dog.....) transfered from the old North Mammal House. Once the former deer enclosures were occupied by wild dogs, the interior of the house was closed to visitors and I never went inside again.
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I would be very interested to see photographs of the inside.
 
oflory said:
A slightly superficial analysis - but I think one that possibly cuts to the heart of the London Zoo malaise:

The zoo seems to have orientated itself in recent years towards the 'Instagram' 'Experience' 'New Fad' crowd. I'm basing this on how the zoo presents itself in its marketing, in Timeout, social media, etc. As a 30 year old 'professional' living in London, I see a lot of my friends/social media acquaintances/etc visiting the zoo as a one off experience. They would probably never go to a zoo to see animals as an activity to be enjoyed in itself, but as a 'zoo date' or 'instagram opportunity' they are all over it. It's convenient and comparable in price to an evening out in London.

I'm not a businessman, but conceivably, ZSL believes that London is a big enough capital city that the usual fodder for zoo visits, by which I mean season ticket holding families and interested people like us zoochatters, can be cut out in favour of tourists and one-off experience seekers.?

I have to say that I don't think this a sustainable model, but I do think this is what they are trying to do.
Click to expand...

Regent's Park is able/ chooses to follow a completely different model to any other British collection due to its location and the perception (to overseas visitors) that it is the "national" collection.

Whether that is wise is another matter.

Given the current state of the place it's just as well it doesn't need to rely on repeat visitors.
 
Tim May said:
I'm sorry to disagree with others but, back in the days when the Deer & Cattle Sheds were used soley for ungulates, you could go inside the building; I went in on a number of occasions when a very young child in the late 1950s / early 1960s. (And I have vivid memories of seeing the black rhino "Lorna" inside.)
Click to expand...

I hadn't realised that. I can't remember ever going in there on my very early visits to the zoo, maybe it just wasn't included in those early visits. but I've been in there after it was closed to the public.
 
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