It's crazy, and a little bit sad, to think how much the zoo's animal collection has declined in just over a decade. Chessington was a zoo that I always wanted to visit, and when I finally made it there in 2022, I was disappointed by how little there was in terms of animals. No more Creepy Caves, Monkey and Bird Garden, or Squirrel Monkey Walkthrough, and other notable species such as clouded leopards have also departed. And what little remains ranges from average to outdated in terms of exhibit quality. I should reserve judgement, as I didn't have time for the aquarium, which appears to be the collection's most notable feature, but to see that the place has gone from a zoo with a few rides to a theme park with a few animals is heartbreaking.
Thanks for the analysis. It's really rewarding for me to hear from fellow zoo nerds when looking at old maps. Some zoos go from strength to strength and places like Omaha and Pairi Daiza are scarcely recognizable from what they looked like in the 1990s. Then there's the Chessingtons of the world, slowly regressing in terms of being a proper 'zoo'. And I'm guessing that the aquarium there is much the same as other Sea Life facilities. Small, neat, but not especially noteworthy.
Part the reason as to why I chose to drop the Aquarium as opposed to any of the other zoological offerings was that, judging by the fact that it was within a larger zoo, I assumed that it would be very small and dull. It was seeing this map, which claims that the Aquarium contains ‘over 20 marine life displays,’ that made me realise it might have been a little more expensive than I had anticipated. Still, it doesn’t seem to be anything special, but maybe worth visiting if I return. I had hoped to see all of Chessington’s zoological offerings, but as I was visiting with friends who were far more interested in rides than animals, this sadly wasn’t an option.
Chessington as a whole I would argue has seen substantial investment into its animal offerings. When wild Asia opened in 2010 lorikeet lagoon opened with a broad bird collection including but not limited to rainbow lorikeet, Himalayan monal and baers pochard. Zufari opened in 2013 adding amongst others giraffe and white rhino. In 2018 land of the tigers opened brining four amur tigers to the zoo providing the animals with three or four relatively big enclosures. In 2020 the rainforest opened with sulcata tortoises, coati and capybara (the later of which is no longer present). In 2022 shipwreck coast opened with bagot goats and rats. I do think the world of Jumanji was a missed opportunity to added some more animals to the zoo perhaps a few invertebrates or herptiles in the bazaar portion of the land or even mandrills but it is what it is.
Whilst the monkey and bird garden now named amazu does not feature a much bird life it still houses several American species including spider monkey, squirrel monkey, racoon, skunk, saki, amazon parrot and more. Wanyama village did have a few empty exhibits on my last visit but overall it still remains a good exhibit. similarly with trail of the kings it may houses different species to what it did in 2010 but the exhibit does keep a good collection with Asiatic lions, western lowland gorilla's, binturong, red fox, several and Busch dogs. The children's zoo now sponsored by YooHoo and friends remains well stocked with a broad array of domestic species. There are several species scattered throughout the park not belonging to a exhibit such as the otters, reindeer, sea lions and even a couple of reptiles in the hotel. I hear sea life and penguin cove got refurbished recently.
Additionally I would be willing to argue that of all the UK theme parks with zoos or aquariums (Paulton's park, Chessington, LEGOLAND, Alton towers, flamingoland and Drayton manor). Chessington has the most animals and continues to invest in its collection
