I was early arriving in Chester for the AGM so I took a walk along Flag Lane beforehand. The onagers, blackbuck and Philippine deer were visible, the deer have a baby. It seemed strange to see the zoo empty and quiet. The only noise was the wind in the trees. The butterfly house is almost complete.
I attended the first part of the AGM and made some notes. Hopefully I covered most of what was said but early on it was difficult to hear the speakers because someone brought a baby to the meeting.
The zoo achieved a monthly record of 250,000 visitors in August 2007, and had a best ever attendance figure of 1,233,044 (or as the zoo put it 1,335,773 - counting children under 3 years of age, which I think is stretching things a little).
Membership of the NEZS is in excess of 32,000, and there are 9,000 junior members.
Chester Zoo is in second place in the list of attendance at admission charging attractions behind the Tower of London.
Professor Reid attended an Amphibian Ark fund raising event in the US where he met Kermit the Frog and his owners, Disney Corporation. Disney made a donation of $250,000 to the project.
The zoo has increased the breeding and survival rate of field crickets to provide a food source for the amphibians which they hope to breed.
Feeding visitors has not been forgotten either with many items now being obtained from fair trade sources.
The veterinary department has a thermal image camera. One of the first successes was to alert staff to an infection in giraffe Molly's legs. As a result she was treated without the need to catch, restrain and sedate her. It's much better for the animal and the staff.
Two more series of Zoo Days (20 episodes each) are being filmed.
The zoo has no interest in acquiring either bonobos or giant pandas.
The Zulu dancers are coming back by popular demand, all the way from Huddersfield.
The cheetah complex has been copied from the successful breeding centre in the U.A.E.
One female Warty Pig has given birth to 3 babies, and the other female is thought to be pregnant.
An endocrinologist is studying oestrus in the black rhinos and has produced a chart allowing the keepers to know when to introduce the male. This has already proved to be an asset with calves expected in September 2008 and May 2009.
The pair of Indian rhinos are getting along extremely well.
£160,000 has been spent on the planning of the Natural Vision (Super Zoo) project. The final bill for the planning is estimated at £3.8 million. Half of this is to be provided by the North West Regional Development Agency. Plans will be submitted to Chester City Council in September 2008, with a start date of summer 2009 if all goes well. The first area to be opened up will be the land south of the oryx and zebras which borders the A41. This will become an African area. The present path running alongside the oryx and zebras will be refurbished and the whole area will be made more welcoming.
Future developments could face opposition because of green belt restrictions.
An exhibit for common hippos is proposed, and it will include underwater viewing.
Chester Zoo aims to be the number one wildlife attraction in Europe.
Zoogiraffe I totally agree with your comments about the interest factor of the meeting. I went to an AGM around 15 years ago, and yesterday was my second. I only went to this one to hear about the Super Zoo plans.
I really wanted to go.
