Chester Zoo Gorillas at Chester

Javan Rhino said:
Chester has the highest visitor numbers of any UK zoo/wildlife park, and this they have managed without hippos, gorillas, polar bears, koalas or pandas. So in short, I think Chester has enough 'abc' species for it to get by, and the absence of these few, no zoo has the complete set of ABC's so I don't see why it is so important for Chester to 'fill the gaps')
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A bit off topic - I know I've said this before, but I really hate this idea of labelling animals as ABCs. Just because you can see them in a lot of places doesn't take away their interest or importance. Most people don't visit quite the number of zoos that we do, just their local one or two. So the tiger is THEIR tiger, the hippo is THEIR hippo and the gorilla is THEIR gorilla. This engagement brings in revenue and creates the animal lovers of the future. We should respect the 'ABC's .
 
mazfc said:
A bit off topic - I know I've said this before, but I really hate this idea of labelling animals as ABCs. Just because you can see them in a lot of places doesn't take away their interest or importance. Most people don't visit quite the number of zoos that we do, just their local one or two. So the tiger is THEIR tiger, the hippo is THEIR hippo and the gorilla is THEIR gorilla. This engagement brings in revenue and creates the animal lovers of the future. We should respect the 'ABC's .
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Don't get me wrong, I think a zoo needs these species for the reasons you state, and when I label things as 'ABC' I don't mean 'common species in zoos,' and I don't mean it derogatory - for example I class pandas and koalas as ABC's, because my definition of the word 'ABC' is a species that everybody knows about - not necessarily a common one.
 
Personally, give me a choice between a Gorilla House and a Small Mammal House, my vote would be for the latter:

Civets, Binturongs, Kinkajou, Squirrels, Wombat ............

:)
 
SHAVINGTONZOO said:
Personally, give me a choice between a Gorilla House and a Small Mammal House, my vote would be for the latter:

Civets, Binturongs, Kinkajou, Squirrels, Wombat ............

:)
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Unless the Gorilla House also has White-tailed Mongoose in it like Heidelberg Zoo has!!
 
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I agree the location of the current giraffe house and paddock is ideal for Gorillas, I just dont visualise the current building as a gorilla house, especially by the standard the zoo has set with current exhibits. EoAF Tsavo, SoTJ, RoRA and the theming around the African Hunting Dogs.

if it was just a temporary holding enclosure untill a custom built house was built elsewhere in the zoo, it could probably get away with making the actual building into night dens with no public indoor viewing and concentrating on planting and theming the paddock and making it otherwise suitable and safe. Planted and themed in such a way that the Okapi could easily move in once the Gorillas moves out to their permanant home.

after a bit of a re-think and research into exhbits elsewhere in the world, I'd like to see the Giraffes moved out over to a mixed Savannah, Okapi are temporally rehoused elsewhere in the zoo, same with cattle house residents. Then the Cattle house and the Giraffe house flattened and the the whole area used to build an African inspired multi exhibit, displaying a number of animals i.e Gorilla, Okapi, pygmy Hippo, black and white colobus. would the current cattle house residents fit in with this plan, my minds gone blank and I can't think what is currently housed there, Im sure it is an African species tho.
 
Pertinax said:
I think all Zoochatters would agree on this-I have always loved the smell in Giraffe Houses too!

Mind you, I like the smell of Gorillas too.:)
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I also love the smell in a Giraffe house. Gorillas too.

I remember at Twycross the Giraffe house used to smell more than it does now. Also Twycross' old Elephant house did too.
 
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