One of the enclosures for Rusty-spotted Cats at Port Lympne. This cage is for two females (Padukku, Palawela), both were born 22nd April 2004. 22nd of April is also my date of birth, and I joined to ZooChat that day in 2008!
Wonderful effort.The planting is what really makes it.I hope other collections will take note.This enclosure is the result of sensitivity & creativity , not just the result of handing over a fat budget to some architect & construction company.
Well, at least you got to see them. When I was there last October (2009), I did not see either one - and I was standing near their area for about two hours photographing the indian wildcat. (Fortunately, I had just gotten some good photos of this species two days earlier at Le Parc Des Felins).
I will be at Port Lympne for two days this coming September (2010), so maybe I will have better luck this time.
There is a second set of Rusty-spotted Cat exhibits near the Red Pandas with indoor viewing, which is helpful for at least seeing them, though the viewing isn;t very good for anything other than a 'record' shot (i.e. you get 'see, I saw a Rusty-spotted Cat' rather than 'look at this great shot I got of Rusty-spotted Cat' ).
Arizona Docent, ask the keeper about the time of feeding, and You will see very active cats. As Maguari said correctly, this enclosure is not the best place for photographing them unless you are not professional (which I am not). This is one of my best photos about one of the females, be honest, really poor quality. Ohh, and it was raining!
I only saw one exhibit, the one by indian wildcat, which I think is the one pictured here. However, I could get a good shot through the wire with my telephoto lens if they had appeared.
The park is so big (huge, massive, colossal) that I did not see some parts in the middle, like the red pandas (and apparentley other rusty spotted cats), even though I was there from open until close. That is why I plan to spend two days there on my next trip (plus I really like the quaint town of Hythe where I stayed). Anyway, thanks for the tip.
