Andrew Swales
Well-Known Member
On-line maps are quite variable, depending of the frequency of satellite photography in different areas. Some are quite out of date. Grid Reference Finder has quite a good drawing tool.
Best UK Cheetah enclosure
- Thread starter britishzoofan
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On-line maps are quite variable, depending of the frequency of satellite photography in different areas. Some are quite out of date. Grid Reference Finder has quite a good drawing tool.
They do, as far as I could work out the perimeters using Google Maps cross-referenced with the zoo maps themselves in order to locate the enclosures - but as @Andrew Swales notes, the satellite images can often be out-of-date or low resolution, both of which can make accuracy difficult.
They appear to be working off a more up-to-date satellite map than Google, too!
Andrew Swales
Well-Known Member
I have answered this before, but will do so again. It depends on your definition of 'best', and you haven't defined it. 'Best' from an animal (welfare) point of view, is not always the same, indeed very often not the same, as 'best' from an aesthetic point of view.
You have contradicted yourself here. The title of the thread is the 'Best UK Cheetah enclosure', and you didn't define if it was on-exhibit or off-show. Now you say 'are we looking for the 'best zoo exhibit'. If by 'exhibit you now mean a display of the animal in a living version of a museum diorama, or a pretend representation of its 'natural' habitat, then I certainly wouldn't vote for Hamerton. That doesn't mean we are going change anything soon, though...
Based on the pictures you have shown (some of which appear to be much more recent than others), I certainly will not criticise any, but several are very different to the way we do it.
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I don't know if I've been doing something wrong but I have certainly been taking breeding record with the species (especially an endangered species) into account, as from my point of view it not only points to good husbandry (although not always, and can be due to a number of factors) but also indicates that the zoo is contributing to conservation. In my opinion, the exhibit is there to allow for research, education and making money for conservation initiatives (and to pay bills) but also (and most importantly imo) for conservation. That means that I think it should be taken into account how much that exhibit adds to the zoo's conservation message.
zoogiraffe
Well-Known Member
As @Andrew Swales has said it depends what you view as best,but I would say it also depends on if the enclosures have been designed for breeding or housing a single sex group.So if its breeding its Hamerton hands down,if its single sex then its Wild Place,but for breeding you also have to mention Whipsnade,for a single sex group there isn't much alternative,although Exmoor isn't bad.None on the safari parks even get a look in to me and would be joint bottom of the pile!
Indeed, WMSP has the narrowest cheetah enclosure I've seen. It's long but it's probably only about 20 feet deep, with no real hiding areas either.
Yes you are right some pictures are more recent than others. As I have said before I try to include one photo from each collection to give each a fair chance. Obviously I try and use the photo that gives the best overview of the enclosure (the more recent the better). This will still lead to some exhibits being better represented in the photos than others, which is why it is useful when members expand and provide extra information on the enclosures. You did exactly this with Hamerton so thank you.
Yes, you are right it does come down to what you personally view as best. It is a subjective not objective competition. I'm aware it is more difficult to compare breeding and non breeding exhibits, but you have obviously narrowed it down to the best in each category in your own opinion. I would suggest you then pick the one which excels most within its own category (or something like that).
I am aware this is not an exact science, but that is hopefully what will create debate and lead to tough decisions. At the end of the day it is down to what you think is the best enclosure for Cheetahs in the UK and you can use any parameters you believe are important to reach your decision. I hope this makes some sense.
Andrew Swales
Well-Known Member
....mmmm - Another complication is that most zoos, certainly the larger ones will design and build an exhibit or enclosure for a specific purpose, but that is not the case in collections such as ours. An enclosure for a single sex group can just as easily house a mother with cubs or a mixed sex group of siblings.
Many of our enclosures could house other species - cheetah paddocks have held maned wolves, donkeys, jackals, wallabies, cranes, cassowaries... If you visit and photograph when something else is in the paddock does it fall into a different category? An example in the gallery on here - our cockatoo aviary is labelled as a 'skunk house', simply because someone visited during the few weeks it held a tame skunk temporarily, prior to the arrival of the cockatoos from Australia.
The new bear accommodation we have nearly finished is the first half of a larger complex which will house not only the bears, but also (potentially) a group of cheetah and maybe another carnivore spp in sporadic rotation. Does that mean that it will be a bear enclosure one day and a cheetah enclosure the next, so be included in both categories?
That certainly does complicate things. However, I suggest it would be best to judge it on the exhibit the animal spends the most time in/ is its permanent home. So for example with the Skunks its enclosure wouldn't be the one it spent a few weeks in temporarily. However, there may be more difficult examples, which we will deal with when we get to them. I would be interested to hear others opinions on this.
Andrew Swales
Well-Known Member
That is my point - there is no such thing as permanent.
Then the picture in the gallery needs to be corrected.
I think there are many factors to consider when choosing which enclosure is 'best' - animal welfare being number one in my book although public viewing is also certainly a factor, after all what is a zoo with no animals on show!? That's why I voted for Hamerton - they always have some cheetah that can be well viewed, but also good off-show breeding facilities. The enclosures might not look spectacular but I'm not too bothered as long as the animals can behave reasonably naturally. Another example of my past voting was Monkey World in the chimp category; some would say its ugly and looks unnatural, but the chimps behave like chimps, so it does its job well!
Score update. Hamerton currently has the lead with over 40% of the vote. The ability to rotate the animals across multiple enclosures and for visitors to get close to the animals has given them the edge. Both Wild Place and Whipsnade have also gathered a number of votes and are second and third respectively.
Poll closed. Congratulations to Hamerton on winning the vote for Best UK Cheetah enclosure. This is Hamerton's first appearance in these polls and the win gives them a 100% record so far. This was a vote with many different contenders with 7 collections receiving votes, perhaps an indication of their being many similarities across exhibits. A mention should be given to Wild Place in second and Whipsnade in third who have both performed well in these polls so far. @Rupert89 who were you voting for?
Hamerton: 43.8%
Wild Place: 18.8%
Whipsnade: 15.6%
Longleat: 9.4%
Chester: 6.3%
Port Lympne: 3.1%
Other: 3.1%
Hamerton: 43.8%
Wild Place: 18.8%
Whipsnade: 15.6%
Longleat: 9.4%
Chester: 6.3%
Port Lympne: 3.1%
Other: 3.1%
Andrew Swales
Well-Known Member
We might have a chance too, when you get to 'best budgie aviary'...?
Sorry for late reply! As they are not breeding etc I do like dartmoor's enclosure with the mound!
zoogiraffe
Well-Known Member
Imagine what fun it was viewing this enclosure when it housed amur tiger!
I have seen the pics of them in there, thankfully times have changed
My top 4 choices are Chester, Whipsnade, Wild Place, and Marwell.