Zoo "Confessions"

I too quite like ZSL London's Land of the Lions (except the overhead walkway bit that is all hemmed in by walls and is just a glorified exit tunnel)

I also don't really care much for Reptile Houses or Aquariums; I didn't go into the Aquarium at Zoo Koln. I do however quite like tortoises.
 
I started caring a lot more for aquariums and reptile houses when I got my current camera, which has a sensor a lot more light-sensitive than my previous camera and thus has more options for aquarium and reptile house photography.

I only really began to appreciated the nocturnal house concept and specifically Antwerp's Nocturama about a year before it closed forever.

I wish I had taken more photos, especially of rare or now gone species, at several zoos in my early years of zoo photography, including when I was at Walsrode as a teen.
 
A far more embarassing confession that I forgot in my initial post...

On my first and to date only visit to Chester Zoo, I looked forward to four target species - Tuatara, Tentacled Snake, Balabac Chevrotain and Coquerel's Sifaka. Sadly, avian influenza meant that Monsoon Forest (where the snakes are kept) and Tropical Realm (where the Tuatara and chevrotain are kept) were both closed, but I still had hope in the sifakas.

I made it to Madagascar, where they are kept, and it started pouring it down with rain. The Fossa and lemurs were nowhere to be found, so, too tired and cold to cope with the rain, I didn't check for any indoor viewing, and head into Dragons in Danger, the nearest building. Once the rain had passed, I completely forgot about the sifakas, concluded that there was nothing special in Madagascar, and spent the last hour or so of my day returning to highlights from across the visit, namely Spirit of the Jaguar, Realm of the Red Ape and Elephants of the Asian Rainforest. As it was the day before New Year's Eve, I brought myself a Chester Zoo calendar for the new year as I was leaving. In a restaurant that night, I looked at the calendar, saw a picture of the sifakas, and never felt that humiliated in my life.
 
I have been visiting Chester Zoo for well over a decade and I only discovered the aviaries behind Oakfield Manor, near the site of the old Roman Gardens in April. I am so glad I did as I finally manged to see many of the current bird species that I still hadn't seen at Chester such as the Collared finchbill and Cabot's tragopan.
 
Back when Colchester Zoo still had its Iberian wolves, I used to enter the only cubicle in the men's toilets (the now-closed ones next to the king vultures) so that I could stand on the seat and see them from the little window there without having to go on the road train.

I think I must have kept at least a couple of people waiting to use the cubicle for its intended purpose.
 
dillotest0 said:
Interestingly dromedary camels seem quite rare in UK zoos these days. A few collections have them, but most camels in zoos these days are Bactrians.
It seems also African Elephant are experiencing a decline of sorts - with some older singletons [e.g. Duchess] dying off, and the biggest breeding herd in the country [at Howletts] scheduled to be sent off for PR purposes.
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I agree. I wonder if Blair Drummond's singleton will ever move somewhere else.
 
Of all the animal species I've had the pleasure of direct interaction with, over 43 years (not a typo) worth of visiting zoos and oceanariums, I've never done any kind of giraffe encounter. Not sure why, now I think about it... maybe just interested in other stuff?
 
Bactrian Deer said:
I haven’t either:p
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It's a species I have only ever seen once at Chester Zoo. There are a handful in the UK, and a somewhat larger handful in Europe. Not sure how things are in America...
I recall when Water and Wetlands was still on the table Marwell was intending to get them. Somehow for some years I thought I recalled reading that Marwell got them and even bred them..?? but alas it was a false memory - and it may well have been nurtured by the fact that Marwell already had short-clawed otters, which could've caused confusion somehow.
 
First off i want to start by saying i'm new here and this is my first every chat so hello everyone, but moving on i think this is a confession and at hot take but i think Central park is the weakest in terms of animals IMO of Wcs zoo because Bronx is on another level, Prospect has things like dingo,hamadryas baboons, and some really nice bird species(and a pallas cat). Queens is debatable but it still has its (impure) bison herd, spectacled bear, puma, and its amazing bird aviary. i do think central park is good but it could be better in its collection IMO (sorry if i offended anyone with this i just think it is not the best).
 
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elefante said:
I like white tigers. I know they serve no conservation value but I would love to see them in zoos still.
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I do feel the same about tabby/golden tigers despite the fact that they lack conservation value and the fact that I am not a fan if big cats. I still want to see one.
 
If captive tigers are not part of a rewilding plan, does it matter if they are white, golden or tabby? If colour variants encourage more visitors to join organisations that conserve wild tigers, perhaps they have more conservation value than pure subspecies.
 
Dassie rat said:
If captive tigers are not part of a rewilding plan, does it matter if they are white, golden or tabby? If colour variants encourage more visitors to join organisations that conserve wild tigers, perhaps they have more conservation value than pure subspecies.
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In the case of white tigers at least, they are severely inbred and very prone to defects and health issues because of it. Becomes more of an ethics issue, regardless of their draw to visitors.
 
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