My report on the Norfolk and Suffolk long weekend.
Firsty of all I was pleased to get a life tick when a weasel ran across the road. We also sa a wild stoat on the previous day.
Day 1
Pensthorpe was excellent for wild birds and insects, especially damselflies, even saw a common frog. I was disappointed with the captive collection, but it did have a nice surprise. I was reading the labels on hte red squirrel enclosure and mentioned to Zoogiraffe that there was a label for Corncrake. He replied there's one standing there. A lovely sight but very difficut to photograph, they move so fast, and when they stand stil they seem to merge into the background. We counted four specimens. The walkthrough aviary by the exit was nothing special but it did contain a lot of bearded reedlings, the first time I had seen this species.
Amazon Zoo. I didn't know quite what to expect but I found it quite pleasing. My first sighting of pumas in a long while, I had forgotten how big they are. I loved the tropical house which is on two levels, a winding path takes visitors down to ground level. A nice group of spectacled caiman is housed here.
Day 2
Suffolk Wildlife Park. Definately my favourite zoo of them all. I don't use the name Africa Alive! becasue I think it is just too silly. Suffolk had some unusual exhibits such as African barn owls, straw-coloured fruit bats and blesbok. The latter had two babies, the first baby hartebest I have seen. They vere very active and very cute. By using the interpetation for this exhibit I found myself to be almost as big as a white rhinoceros. One of the party asked me 'in which direction?'
The park reminded me of Colchester in parts and of Whispnade in others. I was very impresse with the lemur islands. They hold 0.2 bongos. They also had a nice Ankole bull.
Great Yarmouth Sealife and Amazonia Reptiles. I agree with Zoogiraffe's comments. The latter is the worst collection I have ever been to. I got the impression that the owner did not really want us to take cameras in, but stopped short of saying so because he would have lost the admission money.
Thrigby Hall is smaller in acreage than Bristol but it doesn't seem like it. I can only describe this zoo as strange. The animals were in good condition and some of the enclosures were interesting. It was nice to see painted stork for the first time in almost forty years and Indian crested porcupine for the first time in almost thirty years. Again I liked the tropical house, of which the Amazona one is clearly modelled. A life tick for me was a long-tailed sibia. A place I enjoyed a lot.
Shorelands was a pleasant (very) little zoo. A short tour by the owner on a day when they were not open was very much appreciated. There are some nice birds on view here, including full-winged demoiselle cranes, the oldest breeding female is 44. I was impressed by a small group of one of my fvourite parrots, blue-throated conure. I met an old friend here and I can't wait to return and see the park when it is in operation. I agree with Zoogiraffe and thinki it will become an excellent place for Zoochatters to visit.
The last zoo was Banham. I was pleased to get three life ticks in Cape fur seal, Sri Lankan leopard and western gentle lemur. Otherwise I think it is just an average collection with nothing memorable. If I go back to Norfolk I would not be disappointed if I did not visit again. The tropical house was on the cool side.
My order of preference is.
1.Suffolk Wildlife Park/Africa Alive!
2.Thrigby Hall
3.Amazona Zoo
4.Shorelands
5.Banham
6.Pensthorpe
7.Great Yarmouth Sealife
8.Great Yarmouth Amazonia Reptiles
I enjoyed the three days we spent in Norfolk and on the whole there were more good points than bad points for me. Ieven got the chance to see a few trains at Norwich station.
Firsty of all I was pleased to get a life tick when a weasel ran across the road. We also sa a wild stoat on the previous day.
Day 1
Pensthorpe was excellent for wild birds and insects, especially damselflies, even saw a common frog. I was disappointed with the captive collection, but it did have a nice surprise. I was reading the labels on hte red squirrel enclosure and mentioned to Zoogiraffe that there was a label for Corncrake. He replied there's one standing there. A lovely sight but very difficut to photograph, they move so fast, and when they stand stil they seem to merge into the background. We counted four specimens. The walkthrough aviary by the exit was nothing special but it did contain a lot of bearded reedlings, the first time I had seen this species.
Amazon Zoo. I didn't know quite what to expect but I found it quite pleasing. My first sighting of pumas in a long while, I had forgotten how big they are. I loved the tropical house which is on two levels, a winding path takes visitors down to ground level. A nice group of spectacled caiman is housed here.
Day 2
Suffolk Wildlife Park. Definately my favourite zoo of them all. I don't use the name Africa Alive! becasue I think it is just too silly. Suffolk had some unusual exhibits such as African barn owls, straw-coloured fruit bats and blesbok. The latter had two babies, the first baby hartebest I have seen. They vere very active and very cute. By using the interpetation for this exhibit I found myself to be almost as big as a white rhinoceros. One of the party asked me 'in which direction?'
The park reminded me of Colchester in parts and of Whispnade in others. I was very impresse with the lemur islands. They hold 0.2 bongos. They also had a nice Ankole bull.
Great Yarmouth Sealife and Amazonia Reptiles. I agree with Zoogiraffe's comments. The latter is the worst collection I have ever been to. I got the impression that the owner did not really want us to take cameras in, but stopped short of saying so because he would have lost the admission money.
Thrigby Hall is smaller in acreage than Bristol but it doesn't seem like it. I can only describe this zoo as strange. The animals were in good condition and some of the enclosures were interesting. It was nice to see painted stork for the first time in almost forty years and Indian crested porcupine for the first time in almost thirty years. Again I liked the tropical house, of which the Amazona one is clearly modelled. A life tick for me was a long-tailed sibia. A place I enjoyed a lot.
Shorelands was a pleasant (very) little zoo. A short tour by the owner on a day when they were not open was very much appreciated. There are some nice birds on view here, including full-winged demoiselle cranes, the oldest breeding female is 44. I was impressed by a small group of one of my fvourite parrots, blue-throated conure. I met an old friend here and I can't wait to return and see the park when it is in operation. I agree with Zoogiraffe and thinki it will become an excellent place for Zoochatters to visit.
The last zoo was Banham. I was pleased to get three life ticks in Cape fur seal, Sri Lankan leopard and western gentle lemur. Otherwise I think it is just an average collection with nothing memorable. If I go back to Norfolk I would not be disappointed if I did not visit again. The tropical house was on the cool side.
My order of preference is.
1.Suffolk Wildlife Park/Africa Alive!
2.Thrigby Hall
3.Amazona Zoo
4.Shorelands
5.Banham
6.Pensthorpe
7.Great Yarmouth Sealife
8.Great Yarmouth Amazonia Reptiles
I enjoyed the three days we spent in Norfolk and on the whole there were more good points than bad points for me. Ieven got the chance to see a few trains at Norwich station.
Last edited:
It is now time to move on and pick on someone else for punching a seal.