ZSL Whipsnade Zoo ZSL Whipsnade Zoo News 2025

Would adding too many South American species start making the pygmy hippos look out of place?

The odd thing is that for some time I had been thinking that Marwell's semi-aquatic mammal house was getting dated as a concept. Pygmy hippos and tapirs in adjacent enclosures with their indoor quarters in the same building. Now it sounds like Whipsnade are making a souped up version of it.

I will miss the common hippos. I prefer walking around a zoo to a drive through safari park. I don't go to Whipsnade that often, but the along with the elephants, greater one horned rhinos and gaur, they were the species I looked forward to the most.
 
cerperal said:
I think you've hit the nail on the head on the whole do they like them vs are they built thing. Obviously both are strong swimmers, but the new-world tapirs especially love deep water. There's some great videos on youtube of zoos that offer underwater viewing for them as if they can dive, they will. They are far less sedentary in the water than hippos, certainly, while spending a comparable amount of time in it.

It's part of the reason I think that the hippo paddock is better suited for that mix - I genuinely think the viewing is pretty crap from the visitor perspective a lot of the time, especially as Hodor has a particular love of laying on concrete. I'm hopeful that with both species being unthreatening and capable of being contained by something other than steel, they can extend viewing down the side of the pygmy hippo paddock and where the current hippo pool is.

What's to say they acquire giant anteaters for that area as well eventually? Given Whipsnade lacks a South American area, and there's lots of space up that section of the zoo, maybe that's a possible route they take.
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Good food for thought on the swimming talents of both thanks ...it will be super interesting to see if we do see deep diving and those behaviours from both as it isn't something I've seen myself before - you tend to see them in shallower pools in zoos. Would be interesting to see what else might fit down there alongside them.
 
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NMM said:
Would adding too many South American species start making the pygmy hippos look out of place?

The odd thing is that for some time I had been thinking that Marwell's semi-aquatic mammal house was getting dated as a concept. Pygmy hippos and tapirs in adjacent enclosures with their indoor quarters in the same building. Now it sounds like Whipsnade are making a souped up version of it.

I will miss the common hippos. I prefer walking around a zoo to a drive through safari park. I don't go to Whipsnade that often, but the along with the elephants, greater one horned rhinos and gaur, they were the species I looked forward to the most.
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I think that's a possibility, especially when the hippos will share the house with the South American species. But with the oryx, cheetah and ostrich surrounding that paddock I think that it will always keep its African feel, even if they extend that area and acquire more South American species.

I get what you mean about the semi-aquatic house, but equally I think that at its best (and before it got incredibly dilapidated) it was a very good exhibit and also serves the purpose of offering all the species a warm wallow. If Marwell had been able to maintain the exhibit, and moreover kept the important species that shared those hillside paddocks like the rhea, anteater and capybara, then it would seem far less dated, but potentially that's nostalgia talking (given it was my childhood zoo, and by far the highlight of my many, many days there)

Honestly, I 100% agree with everything else you've said. Especially with the whole safari vs zoo thing. But the boat ride at Longleat is surely a contender for one of the best exhibits in Europe, and especially if they add pedestrian viewing it will be a suitable exhibit for them from the visitor side of things
 
JoB198 said:
Dare I say... swap flamingoes for pygmy hippo and the geographical theming would almost be bang on again.
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If they want to breed the Pygmies again the housing would probably work better for where they are but it wouldn't be a bad shout. I wonder if they will take advantage of a little South American theming all the same and do something. There are lots of opportunities in that area of the zoo.

I am with the people who prefer a walkaround to a Safari park too, it'll be a bit of a shame to have a curated view of the new Hippo space but it will be great for them and probably more fun in the off season.
 
Lafone said:
If they want to breed the Pygmies again the housing would probably work better for where they are but it wouldn't be a bad shout. I wonder if they will take advantage of a little South American theming all the same and do something. There are lots of opportunities in that area of the zoo.
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Oh I know it's not a simple swap. I just think everybody forgets the flamingoes when talking about the geo theming because they go with NOTHING and are in the weirdest place. At least the tapir/capy would be 'at the end' of the African section and not smack in the middle.
 
JVM said:
have negative reputation
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Unfortunately these days if you're a UK zoo there is very little you can do to avoid looking like you have a negative reputation on this website (Chester excepted). Almost every decision or change made by any of the larger zoos seems to be treated as the coming of the apocalypse from what I can see.

Whipsnade is one of the most pleasant and distinctive zoos in the UK, whose recent developments have been really effective (aquarium, monkeys, etc) - and dropping from two species of hippo to one doesn't change that.

I'm as sorry to see the hippos go as anyone but honestly you'd think ZSL was having them hollowed out and turned into dodgem cars in a touring fair ground from the reactions in here.

We need to appreciate that we don't have all the information and that also, at the end of the day, it's the zoo's decision which species to keep.

What this story basically is: zoo decides two animals it holds would be better held in a newer enclosure at a another zoo a few hours down the road. Yes, they're a big charismatic species that will be missed. But that's what it is.

Discussing this decision, even on the basis it is unpopular, shouldn't mean coming to this thread to be presented with gaslighting allegations, self-harm analogies, or black arm band protests.

All I can recommend is some fresh air and perspective all round I think.
 
Maguari said:
I'm as sorry to see the hippos go as anyone but honestly you'd think ZSL was having them hollowed out and turned into dodgem cars in a touring fair ground from the reactions in here.
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Don't give Longleat any ideas for their next ride :D
 
I to will miss the common hippo , having seen them since childhood. But would prefer the whole hippo enclosure being used for pygmys, and a south American section created they are not short of space at whipsanade . They could then do a mixed exhibit with tapir, capybara, mara and rhea with other species added at a later date .
 
Samuel Carter said:
I to will miss the common hippo , having seen them since childhood. But would prefer the whole hippo enclosure being used for pygmys, and a south American section created they are not short of space at whipsanade . They could then do a mixed exhibit with tapir, capybara, mara and rhea with other species added at a later date .
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Decisions about individual species are made with the EAZA/EEP's in mind and lo and behold pygmy hippo feature high on that list. Plus they are a cool conservation story both ex situ and within range states. Some EAZA zoos support some of the in situ conservation work in Liberia and Cote d'Ivoire.

As for common hippo, I do believe that zoos with a larger outlay and countryside zoos are more fit for the larger common hippo. It is high time the species gets away from pair holdings towards breeding group with say 5-12 individuals.... The small and compared with its distant cousin ... diminutive pygmy hippo these are well placed for city zoos and even the set up at Whipsnade is more set for pygmy hippo than it has ever been for common hippo (and they kept them more or less as non-breeding anyways...).
 
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Kifaru Bwana said:
Decisions about individual species are made with the EAZA/EEP's in mind and lo and behold pygmy hippo feature high on that list. Plus they are a cool conservation story both ex situ and within range states. Some EAZA zoos support some of the in situ conservation work in Liberia and Cote d'Ivoire.

As for common hippo, I do believe that zoos with a larger outlay and countryside zoos are more fit for the larger common hippo. It is high time the species gets away from pair holdings towards breeding group with say 5-12 individuals.... The small and compared with its distant cousin ... diminutive pygmy hippo these are well placed for city zoos and even the set up at Whipsnade is more set for pygmy hippo than it has ever been for common hippo (and they kept them more or less as non-breeding anyways...).
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Always thought this myself, to have a decent pod of hippos would require more water space and larger indoor housing as well as significant grazing land . I do hope common hippos return , but it would require a large investment.
 
Maguari said:
Unfortunately these days if you're a UK zoo there is very little you can do to avoid looking like you have a negative reputation on this website (Chester excepted). Almost every decision or change made by any of the larger zoos seems to be treated as the coming of the apocalypse from what I can see.

Whipsnade is one of the most pleasant and distinctive zoos in the UK, whose recent developments have been really effective (aquarium, monkeys, etc) - and dropping from two species of hippo to one doesn't change that.

I'm as sorry to see the hippos go as anyone but honestly you'd think ZSL was having them hollowed out and turned into dodgem cars in a touring fair ground from the reactions in here.

We need to appreciate that we don't have all the information and that also, at the end of the day, it's the zoo's decision which species to keep.

What this story basically is: zoo decides two animals it holds would be better held in a newer enclosure at a another zoo a few hours down the road. Yes, they're a big charismatic species that will be missed. But that's what it is.

Discussing this decision, even on the basis it is unpopular, shouldn't mean coming to this thread to be presented with gaslighting allegations, self-harm analogies, or black arm band protests.

All I can recommend is some fresh air and perspective all round I think.
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I think this is fair and reasonable, and recognise that some responses, including my own, have been intense given the situation. I think it's crucial to acknowledge that the measured reality in this situation is that this is a well considered animal management decision between two highly respected institutions in the UK. There really is no conspiracy here at all.

That said, it's important to recognise where this strength of feeling comes from. For many zoo enthusiasts, myself included, these decisions often play into preconceived concerns about broader trends in the zoo world. Whilst some of these reactions have been extreme, I think almost all reactions have come from a place of genuine passion for ZSL and the species they hold. These feelings are almost certainly amplified when it comes to species as charismatic and important to the history of ZSL as Common Hippo are.

The point about lack of information is key, and more transparency when making such key changes might mitigate some of the backlash. Of course, there will always be some information that must be withheld from the public, but it would be useful to know, for example, whether or not the speculated outdatedness of the hippo house at Whipsnade played a role in the decision to go out of common hippo. That being said, the backlash probably isn't particularly significant at all.

Ultimately, there is room here for disappointment and understanding here. There probably isn't much more constructive to add at this stage, we've spent the better part of ten pages discussing this decision. All we can do is wait and see what comes next.
 
Kalaw said:
Do they?
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Yes. For my first decade on this board, all I knew about London was "they don't have this anymore" and "they don't have that anymore" and "this exhibit could be bigger" and Blackburn seemed like the only spot I actually heard anyone like. It was interesting to see the exhibits in person.
 
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With all this talk of the impending Hippocalypse, someone mentioned earlier on about examples of Whipsnade swapping out one species to be replaced by another. I can only think of 2 recent examples:

White stork/White wallaby mix replaced with Wolverine.

Wolves replaced with African hunting dog.

(the less said about the sealions being replaced by a bunch of executive picnic areas the better imho!)
 
Panthera1981 said:
With all this talk of the impending Hippocalypse, someone mentioned earlier on about examples of Whipsnade swapping out one species to be replaced by another. I can only think of 2 recent examples:

White stork/White wallaby mix replaced with Wolverine.

Wolves replaced with African hunting dog.

(the less said about the sealions being replaced by a bunch of executive picnic areas the better imho!)
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Langurs in the sloth bear enclosure, aardvarks, meerkats and porcupines in the former RRH area (one of my favourite exhibits), tufted deer in the former emu enclosure, warty pigs in what was the rhino/gaur enclosure. Just a few examples
 
Cat-Man said:
Ultimately, there is room here for disappointment and understanding here. There probably isn't much more constructive to add at this stage, we've spent the better part of ten pages discussing this decision. All we can do is wait and see what comes next.
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Thanks for the thoughtful response. It's absolutely fair to be disappointed or even upset but I think we just need to be careful that we are not actively upsetting others in return. I agree with this conclusion 100%. :)

I will say - on actual topic briefly - that I think the way the Capybara news came out was clumsy and certainly didn't help matters because it framed the situation more as a downgrade for the zoo than an upgrade for the hippos.
 
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