Chester Zoo Chester Zoo Discussion and Questions 2024

Fallax said:
I don't recall a specific reason being given as to why it was cancelled but I might have missed something. It has been speculated to be due to cost or because a new chimp enclosure is a priority.
Click to expand...
The latter is the main reason. I can also imagine Chester not wanting to take on a bachelor group, but a breeding troop, from the start. It is typical for new holders in the EEP to be given surplus males initially.
 
jtrbmvcq said:
The latter is the main reason. I can also imagine Chester not wanting to take on a bachelor group, but a breeding troop, from the start. It is typical for new holders in the EEP to be given surplus males initially.
Click to expand...
Yes I think Chester would prefer a breeding/social group if they ever had them-again. Having had them previously, though a long while ago now, they might not consider themselves as new holders anymore either.
 
Fallax said:
I don't recall a specific reason being given as to why it was cancelled but I might have missed something. It has been speculated to be due to cost or because a new chimp enclosure is a priority.
Click to expand...
You’re right on both counts I think . It’s my understanding is that it is mainly a cost issue, and also to a lesser extent the footprint for the proposed Africa Forest area doesn’t currently allow for gorillas.

It’s not just the initial cost of building a gorilla facility but the annual costs of needing more keepers and the running costs. I also think if Chester did gorillas they would give them a massive area with multiple indoor and outdoor options (look at the Sumatran Orangutan enclosure!!) and there just isn’t really enough space to do this as well as give all the existing African forest species a better and bigger facility, and bring on other new species (Pygmy hippo and Columbus have been mentioned before).

I assume the chimps would take over the majority of the area currently used by the giraffe. They need at least 2 outdoor areas which can be linked or separated off and the indoor areas need to be way bigger than currently.

There’s then okapi, Congo buffalo, bongo (assuming they’ll be back on show as they’re such a massive conversation project), red river hogs, mandrill, rollaway monkeys, several bird species and then the fish/ reptiles/amphibians/ invertebrates. Plus new species already mentioned plus I assume more to come.

I can’t wait to see what it’s gonna look like and how they’re going to deal with the logistics of it all…

There’s gonna need to be a huge chain reaction of smaller projects to house a lot of the species currently in tropical realm. I hope they don’t all just go off show. I assume the Madagascan species (Aye ayes / tortoises / amphibians / reptiles / birds ) would likely go into the current dragons in danger, so they’ll need to build another large indoor area for Komodo’s (and other SE Asian species currently in tropical realm and dragons in danger) somewhere in Islands ( maybe where it was originally planned to go). I think there’s room for some of the smaller South American species (amphibians / reptiles) to go into Spirit of the Jaguar (to replace the ant exhibit).

Let’s hope the visitor numbers and hotel occupancy rates go trough the roof to pay for it all.

Exciting times ahead.
 
ZooNews2024 said:
2019.....?
It is now October 2024...!
Click to expand...

Indeed - it has never been clear precisely why the 2019 animal inventory was never uploaded onto the website (despite the inventories for all preceding and following years being made public), nor why the zoo had later indicated there was no intention to make the 2019 inventory public retrospectively.

Either way, it appears that the information has indeed now been added to the zoo website.....
 
I was originally told that the inventories were classified. So I asked why all the ones up until 2018 had been published (this was in 2019). I did not get a reply.
 
Ed123 said:
There’s gonna need to be a huge chain reaction of smaller projects to house a lot of the species currently in tropical realm. I hope they don’t all just go off show. I assume the Madagascan species (Aye ayes / tortoises / amphibians / reptiles / birds ) would likely go into the current dragons in danger, so they’ll need to build another large indoor area for Komodo’s (and other SE Asian species currently in tropical realm and dragons in danger) somewhere in Islands ( maybe where it was originally planned to go).
Click to expand...
I think this makes a lot of sense. I think moving the Komodo dragons over to Islands in a new exhibit (not sure whereabouts that would fit in though) and then moving the aye-ayes and giant jumping rats to the Dragons in Danger exhibit is a good idea. It would make sense for both, the Komodo dragons would be with the Indonesian species and the nocturnals would be near the other Madagascan species. The aye-ayes would also have larger enclosures with offshow areas that they currently don’t have. With the size of the building, Chester could also potentially look to get more Madagascan nocturnal species like mouse lemurs and tenrecs.
 
I will be visiting the collection in November for a Tuesday to Thursday visit.

As bird lover I was wondering if anyone could help with the following species as to their location in the collection.
The following list was taken from the 2023 animal inventory.

African montane white eye
African white backed vulture
Argentine ruddy duck
Black browed barbet
Black naped oriole
Black necked tanager
Blue throated piping guan
Brahminy Mynah
Brazilian teal
Bruce’s green pigeon
Chestnut bellied tree partridge
Collared finch billed bulbul
Collared grosbeak
Collared partridge
Common waxbill
Gray breasted parakeet
Grey cheeked liocichia
Himalayan impeyan pheasant
Magpie robin
Hooded vulture
Malay crestless fireback
Malayan peacock pheasant
Orinoco goose
Pink necked pigeon
Purple naped lory
Red avadavat
Red vented cockatoo
Rothchild’s peacock pheasant
Scarlet breasted lorikeet
Scarlet rumped tanager
Secretary bird
Silver eared mesia
Tricoloured parrot finch
Verreaux’s eagle owl
White headed munia
White headed vulture
White stopped laughing thrush
White crested laughing thrush
Yellow crowned bishop
Zebra waxbill

I haven’t visited since 2020 so some of these may have been in the collection for some time.
If some of the species are currently off show I am hoping to return in September 2025.
 
African montane white eye no longer in the collection
African white backed vulture offshow
Argentine ruddy duck flamingo aviary labelled as Lake Duck
Black browed barbet Monsoon Forest
Black naped oriole not sure, I think Tropical Realm
Black necked tanager Tropical Realm upper level
Blue throated piping guan Tropical Realm
Brahminy Mynah Peacock Aviary
Brazilian teal Flamingo Aviary
Bruce’s green pigeon Tropical Realm upper level
Chestnut bellied tree partridge not sure
Collared finch billed bulbul Owl aviaires
Collared grosbeak Elephant house aviary
Collared partridge Rainbow Aiviaries
Common waxbill offshow
Gray breasted parakeet offshow
Grey cheeked liocichia Rainbow Aviaries (I think)
Himalayan impeyan pheasant Owl Aviaires
Magpie robin Islands, Sumatran Aviary
Hooded vulture offshow
Malay crestless fireback Dragons In Danger
Malayan peacock pheasant Rainbow Avaries
Orinoco goose offshow
Pink necked pigeon Dragons In Danger, I think
Purple naped lory Islands
Red avadavat Realm of the Red Ape
Red vented cockatoo offshow
Rothchild’s peacock pheasant Rainbow Aviaries
Scarlet breasted lorikeet Islands, Bali Aviary, labelled as Mitchell's
Scarlet rumped tanager Tropical Realm upper level
Secretary bird offshow
Silver eared mesia Islands, Sumatran Aviary
Tricoloured parrot finch Realm of the Red Ape
Verreaux’s eagle owl offshow
White headed munia Realm of the Red Ape
White headed vulture offshow
White stopped laughing thrush Owl Aviaries, Rainbow Aviaries, assuming you mean white-spotted
White crested laughing thrush Owl Aviaries
Yellow crowned bishop offshow
Zebra waxbill offshow
 
Last edited:
Anoa used to be housed in an enclosure which is now the site of the jaguar coffee shop. One day I was standing by the fence looking at the female and her calf. The female nudged her baby, making it stand up. She then led the calf towards me and stood in a position so that the calf could not move away from the fence. After about a minute she led the calf away. It seemed as though the female was saying 'look what I've got.'
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top