Well from this picture I think Colchester have managed to create some thing that looks worse the the lovely Orang exhibit,but I will reserve making a proper judgement until I see it later in the year.
I put another photo in the gallery taken from above which might give you a better idea of proportion ..... when you see it for real, I'd say that probably the bottom third is rockwork.
Foz said:
Does the mound of fake rock hide anything like a house or something?
I don't think the rock conceals a den but I'm not sure. When you're standing at the bottom, there's a corridor to your right which leads up to the anteaters and otters, and which has the white tiger on your right. On your left at the start of this corridor is (if I recall correctly) a couple of very small viewing windows into a den (it might even be called a leopard cave or something like that) but I don't think it correlates with the rocks by the pool and waterfall.
Hopefully it will grow better with time. Provided this happens I think it will be set to be a good exhibit. Even with lots of fake rock work all over it.
Phew! As much fake rock as you could shake a stick at...
Colchester seem to be going overboard with this stuff nowadays, each new exhibit seems to have more than the last. I guess it is because its cheap and easy to apply compared to real rocks. But the end result is always a complete eye-sore I think.
I saw a photo of a wild one- it was crossing a log over a river in deciduous scrub forest. I believe they live in rugged terrain -rocky areas, with both pine and decidous woodland.
I would have just put in a few boulders and much more planting in the new enclosure. I think the Leopard will tend to avoid the open rockwork areas anyway.
The back of the enclosure doesn't look too 'leopard-proof' to me either.
I saw a photo of a wild one- it was crossing a log over a river in deciduous scrub forest. I believe they live in rugged terrain -rocky areas, with both pine and decidous woodland.
I would have just put in a few boulders and much more planting in the new enclosure. I think the Leopard will tend to avoid the open rockwork areas anyway.
Yeah, I think a little more terrain like the back and sides and a little less of the rockwork would have given a better exhibit. But it's mostly an aesthetic thing.
Yeah, I think a little more terrain like the back and sides and a little less of the rockwork would have given a better exhibit. But it's mostly an aesthetic thing.
I think the exhibit is meshed over, so that shouldn't be a problem.
Yes, silly me, I can see its meshed over now. It would have to be or they'd soon be out.
I still wonder how much the leopard(s) will actually use this large open 'lump' of terraced rock. The idea is okay but in reality I agree that just a vegetated slope down to the front would have been as effective, and probably less costly. Still, now they've got the 'rock-icing' machine they need to use it I guess. And maybe it also covers dens which are underneath it?
As previous posters suggested too, more Tree Logs etc would have allowed the Leopards to access some of the empty 'air space' the enclosure contains.
I do not understand why so many collections aim to create enclosures that are aesthetically pleasing to the public yet so inappropriate for the animals; this space could have been used more wisely for the leopards. There is nowhere for the animals to escape/shelter by the looks of things or any aerial platforms or climbing apparatus. Yet again a poor design and poor finish by the zoo, the money could have been used better.
