It would be different if they were allowed to be modified to current standards while still keeping the character of the building (is this really a building, though) along the lines of what has happened at the Bronx Zoo where the Lion House has been transformed into a beautiful Madagascar exhibit. But my understanding is that in the case of London here, you can't really alter them in any way, which is what leads to "Zoo Museum Syndrome".
Well the stork and ostrich house is being incorporated into the new tiger enclosure and has already been part of the bird safari aviary. The Lubetkin roundhouse has a bat enclosure inside. The Casson, whilst not particularly imaginative inside, has excellent enclosures for bearded pigs, and shortly will have a new tapir enclosure on the other side. The Blackburn Pavillion for birds is excellent and the reptile house has interesting and creative displays.
Even the Mappin Terraces, although some are critical, has had quite a radical makeover within the bounds of legislation.
I can understand critiques of London in terms of collection, but as an old zoo with significant heritage limitations, it is doing a much more creative job than it has in the past of working well on the site it has.
