it is an excuse...if i was the curator or the top people i wouldn't want chimps running around the zoo...espacilly as the farm nearby which will equal a few people. (sorry if this seems slightly rude)
But the females should have contact with a couple of males, and the zoo is preventing this by using this type of fence. To me, that's a lame reason when the fence could have been built to allow them contact with males in the first place.
this enclosure was built at the same time as the geocrom which is an old building, the standards of animal husbandry weren't as good as they are now. also they dont want to prolong the time they are spending in their indoor/offshow quarters since this build has gone pass its predicted date of completion
At long last, an idea of why they have no male Chimpanzees! Can you confirm this is the (genuine) reason?
Whipsnade used to have an electric hotwire surrounding their enclosure and they have males. But I can see Dudley's reluctance now. And its too expensive to change it probably. Are there any real plans to form a more balanced male/female group in the future though- as just females is very unnatural. The talk of moving them to another area seems to be just that- talk.
