Nice to see them actually adding species to the collection at long last,just think how many they could add if they did up the old walled garden,which they closed very soon after they took over!Just a couple of updates to start the thread
Manor House has now gained full EAZA membership
White Rhino will be arriving later this month (1:0 from South Lakes and 1:0 from Colchester) A major new species for the park
Nice to see them actually adding species to the collection at long last,just think how many they could add if they did up the old walled garden,which they closed very soon after they took over!
Closing the walled garden was a shame and a real testament to there amateur approach-the thinking animals should not be in traditional 'zoo' cages.
Are the primates at Manor House and Dartmoor really that much happier now they have been 'liberated' from there cages and moved to moated or hot wired areas of grass??
I doubt it. JZ
No the actual walled gardens were not un-safe for visitors,although some of the enclosures were starting to show their age,and were in need of a major rebuild to bring them up to standards.It was closed more because the new owners didn't like the idea of keeping animals in cages!Was the Walled Garden at Manor House unsafe in any way? Otherwise their sheltered locations are ideal for Bird Aviaries, Marmosets and Tamarins and other small sun-loving mammal species like Mongooses or Lemurs. Cotswold probably have the very best example of what can be done. Maybe it was too expensive for MH to do it up again but IMO they have lost a lot of potential if they don't intend to re-use it ever.
I think Dartmoor did a good job with their Vervet(?)Monkey enclosure though I haven't seen where they lived before. I think whether 'open' enclosures are better for Primates depends on how much climbing ability they allow, probably this is at least as, if not more, important than the extra space.
It was closed more because the new owners didn't like the idea of keeping animals in cages!
The flamingos have gone.
Manor House is due to join the EEP for Sumatran Tigers this summer: A male and female will arrive as a potential breeding pair - these will be the first big cats housed in the collection
Rarest big cat in the world to be part of a new breeding programme at Anna Ryder Richardson's Zoo - Wales Online
Also, love the headline of the article; I know Sumatran tigers are rare but surely their population hasn't suddenly plunged below the numbers of the Amur or Arabian leopard?![]()
A bit of a pattern here ?
Manor House have white rhinos , Folly Farm are getting black rhinos this year .
Folly Farm got lions last year , now Manor House are getting Sumatran tigers .