Leopard Exhibit at Twycross, 18/05/13

The \'Green Mile\' reborn. While still not the most attractive building, this is a much better use - and in a crucial development from the previous leopard exhibit, Twycross now has a divisible outdoor space for leopards. Sadly, you now need exceptional luck to see a cuscus, however, as the exhibit can only been seen at a distance and end-on.

I don't think they have made anything like the effort to landscape this as they did with their previous enclosure. A fake-looking waterfall, upright poles and a few little (dying?) spruce trees stuck in the ground together with the weeds and shrubs left over from the Chimpanzees, doesn't make it look attractive IMO. I feel they could have done better here.

True.

However, I guess it is also a case of finance and having an enclosure occupied with a species (awaiting further development) for the general public. Nothing is more off-putting to the general public than rows of bare empty enclosures.

Pertinax said:

I don't think they have made anything like the effort to landscape this as they did with their previous enclosure. A fake-looking waterfall, upright poles and a few little (dying?) spruce trees stuck in the ground together with the weeds and shrubs left over from the Chimpanzees, doesn't make it look attractive IMO. I feel they could have done better here.

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I don't think the saplings are dying. How big is this cage? It seems a little of a shame they couldn't give it a few weeks to seed some grass over the ground to make it look a bit less bare before the leopards went in.

The waterfall was definitely a mistake, it looks ridiculous against a brick wall!!

Overall though, from what I read on the forum, it seems to be a huge improvement all round.

Chlidonias said:

I don't think the saplings are dying. How big is this cage? It seems a little of a shame they couldn't give it a few weeks to seed some grass over the ground to make it look a bit less bare before the leopards went in.

The waterfall was definitely a mistake, it looks ridiculous against a brick wall!!

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I think you will find the green-looking 'sapling' is an elderberry bush which the chimps didn't touch(elder smells strongly and many animals shun it) I am looking at the little spruce trees to the right of the picture, they are already turning brown it seems to me, while I can't see any other sign of planting.

Re size; this is a long run of partitioned cages which used to hold Chimps, about six cages in all. Now divided(i believe) into two larger areas by opening up some of the dividing partitions(a pity they never did that for the chimps in all theyears they lived here) so they can house the two leopards seperately if need be but still be on show.

A good idea as a way of re-using an existing enclosure when they evidently have no money to build any substantial new ones but IMO they have shortcutted on the finer details, probably to get it ready in time for Easter or whenever it was due to open. The previous leopard enclosure had grass, bamboo clumps, rocks etc- looked like it would win a Gold at the Chelsea flower show. Whether for cost-saving reasons or not-they just haven't bothered this time.

Pertinax said:

I think you will find the green-looking 'sapling' is an elderberry bush which the chimps didn't touch(elder smells strongly and many animals shun it) I am looking at the little spruce trees to the right of the picture, they are turning brown it seems to me.

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yes those are the ones I was looking at; I thought they might be a copper form or something along those lines, rather than being brownish through ill-health.

With a second look at the photo too (with regards to my comment about the waterfall), if the ivy grew right along the brick wall then it would be surrounding the waterfall and it wouldn't look half as bad.

Its been done in a rush, simple as....

My negative comments about this enclosure are probably connected with the fact I have hated seeing chimps in it for so many decades. IMO its an atrocious eyesore at Twycross- I would still much prefer it had been demolished when they moved them out.

It's an awful enclosure for these fabulous animals.

I'm in agreement with Pertinax, it would have been preferable to demolish the whole structure and replace it with lawn.

I'm very much torn. It's better for leopard management, and as a display it's better than when the chimps were in here, and Twycross is already over-endowed with lawns(!), but... well... the building really is ugly as sin, isn't it?

Well, it may be ugly, but it's structurally sound. It provides a better facility for a critically endangered animal that Twycross quite obviously aspire to keep and to breed.

Twycross's new management are trying to change a site that has stagnated for a long time. I don't like the appearance of some of the new facilities, but I applaud the zoo's new-found resolve to try new ways of doing things.