Disused enclosure on South Road- 20/4/2025

Sad to see the decline of this side of the zoo.

Lowland anoa i think were the most recent inhabitants here, prior to that babirusa.

Directly opposite the hippos there used to be peccary.

And in the house opposite (up the slope and slightly to the left as you look out of the hippo house) held takin and before that malayan tapir.

Lions also used to be in this part of the zoo roughly.

Yes, I remember it once had a big herd of peccary, and before that Takin, although it was remodeled after they left.

@Skukuza Thank you for the detailed description of some of the inhabitants that used to live in this part of the zoo. It does show decline but I think it also shows great potential for Marwell to be able to increase species numbers in a straightforward manner on the South Road with many existing unused enclosures, as well as open space. This is if the management should so choose to of course.

Agreed.

Certainly some of the paddock areas could be reused with minimal expense.

I believe this was the area that was touted for the relaunch as a wetlands area so who knows what the future holds.

I still like to turn right across the front of the giftshop and head down that side of the zoo first as it gives a quieter visit but the incentive is ever decreasing

I think if Read was able to repurpose the old warthog yard it's not hard to see a space like this being used for something.

Sadly I believe there are some unseen expenses in order to convert these back to animal use, and would cost a lot more than it would seen. Hopefully they are able to make the investment, though. It's a significant piece of land that's going unused.

I’ve been thinking about this side of the zoo this afternoon and there have been some other notable casualties whilst I have been visiting.

Rhino house (not at the detriment to the zoo but certainly a loss for this side of the park)
Tropical house (as above)
Sitatunga (as above)
Tamarin walkthrough in children’s area
Macaque island
Owl aviaries
Kangaroos


for balance there have been some additions.
Thriving through nature
Snow leopard extension
Education centre
Being the ones I can think of.