New play area, July 2012

I loathe playgrounds in zoos, of course, and when I visit with my own children I will usually tell them that the play areas are infected with diseases, and thus need to be avoided. But this new development at Burgers seems rather stylish - confident architecture, tucked into the corner of the zoo, nicely done - and separate from the animals nearby (the wall in the foreground is that of the pygmy hippo and blue duiker enclosure).

sooty mangabey said:

I loathe playgrounds in zoos, of course, and when I visit with my own children I will usually tell them that the play areas are infected with diseases, and thus need to be avoided.

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Now that sounds a bit harsh, not to mention potentially courting mental scarring in later life...

a little correction, the wall on the right is from the enclosure of the bongo and red duiker

sooty mangabey said:

I loathe playgrounds in zoos, of course, and when I visit with my own children I will usually tell them that the play areas are infected with diseases, and thus need to be avoided.

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Sounds like you loathe children too.

Playground are fine, if they help young children burn off some pent-up energy what harm is there?

Dicerorhinus said:

Sounds like you loathe children too.

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Not at all! I have four of my own; I spend my life working with children. There was a degree of ironic over-statement in what I wrote....

Dicerorhinus said:

Playground are fine, if they help young children burn off some pent-up energy what harm is there?

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No harm at all - which is why I was applauding a nicely done playground here at Arnhem. On a personal level, I do steer my children away from playgrounds at zoos because I feel that we can, and do, go to playgrounds at any time, in the local park. A zoo visit is something more special than that. And besides, I think there is often more fun to be had in 'unofficial' playgrounds - in a zoo context, for example, scampering around those enormous lion statues at the entrance to the Alfred Brehm house is far more fun than sticking to slides and swings...

Are playgrounds in zoos not generally of a much higher standard than can be found in the local park?

I'll admit that the playgroundification of Bristol zoo is a little alarming particularly when it starts to bleed into exhibit design. The transformation of the bird house was unfortunate.