Birmingham Nature Centre Birmingham nature update

adrian1963

adrian1963

Well-Known Member
Visited today no news on the baby front but the small mammal house is now open again it has the following in.
Telfairs Tenrer, Richardsons Ground Squirrel, Gambian Pouched Rat, Degu, Harvest Mouse, African Spiny Mouse, Sugar Glider, Steppe Lemming, Multimammate Mouse, African Pygmy Hedgehog,African Dormouse, Roboroviski Hamster and a Kangaroo Rat.

A very nice little collection couldn't take many photographs as time was short and the children fromthe school trips were here in masses so I thought let them have the chance to see the animals as I can always come back another day.
Mind you I did enjoy watching there faces when some of the animals moved.

The Reptile house as the following in.
Prehensile Tailed Skink, Soloman Island Ground Boa, Smooth Eared Spiny Tailed Lizard, Jamaican Boa, Madagascan Boa, Amazon Tree Boa and Red Tailed Ratsnake

Only let down today was the never hardly seen Beaver (I'll get it one day)
 
Last edited:
adrian1963 said:
Telfairs Tenrer, Richardsons Ground Squirrel, Gambian Pouched Rat, Degu, Harvest Mouse, African Spiny Mouse, Sugar Glider, Steppe Lemming, Multimammate Mouse, African Pygmy Hedgehog,African Dormouse, Roboroviski Hamster and a Kangaroo Rat.
Click to expand...

That was always a nice house but that's a pretty tasty new line-up!

Will have to get down there again before too long.
 
Some news from the Facebook page:

Our friends at Bristol Zoological Gardens are bringing us a group of Mouse Lemurs and Geoffroy's Marmosets on the 8th July for our new exhibits! Come visit them soon.

Savu Island Pythons - 5 babies hatched in total. This is the second time they have been bred by zoological institutions in the UK since the species was discovered in 1993, which highlights the importance of captive conservation.

A pair of Giant African Spur Thighed Tortoises have arrived!!! They are huge and can be seen out and about next to our Ring Tailed Lemur enclosure.

Venomous Rio Fueto Beaded Lizards now on display in the Reptile House!
 
Will be visiting this week are there any questions or photographs anyone would like.

I will try and do the impossible and get a photograph of the Beaver if I can
 
Visited today 14 09 2010 had a very enjoyable day even though the weather was a little wet to say the least
Uploaded some new photographs of both enclosures and animals including a new species Mexican Beaded Lizard.
 
mhale,

Can you divulge a little on the history of the BNC?

Where did the beaded lizards originate (captive-born offspring or wild)?

K.B.
 
I'm sorry, K.B., I don't know the history of the BNC or any details about where the beaded lizards were sourced from. I merely announced the news as I had seen it on the BNC Facebook page.
 
I can give a rough history for the nature centre off memory. It used to be known as Birmingham Zoo, I've heard people say they had elephants at some point, but the site is pretty small so I think it may be local legend. There were definately larger animals though.
When I was young, 80's ish, they were focussed on British Wildlife, both current and past, so foxes, red squirrels, otters, wild cats, lynx, a lovely rodent house with harvest mice and shrews, that sort of thing. Nothing especially exciting, all a bit elusive, I remember going and spending ages staring in cages hoping to see things that never showed!
Somewhere in the middle, I'm thinking 90's, they started to have a lot of pets, they opened a childrens farm with a guinea pig community and the rodent house had hamsters and gerbils. They even sold pets at one point and I got a hamster from there.
Last 5 years or so they seem to have changed the zoo focus, starting with bringing in the red pandas, then the reptiles have become more diverse, the rodent collection has taken on a more international feel, they have sitatungas, ocelot, coati, and lemur off the top of my head, among others. It'll be interesting to see where they go next, I'm hoping they'll focus on smaller animals that are overlooked in the big zoos, mouse lemur, pudu, that sort of thing.
 
I hope this helps as this was sent to me for my project on the history of both Birmingham Nature Centre and Dudley Zoo

unfortunately, very little seems to have been recorded about the Birmingham
Zoo. I have attached a scan of a plan; the layout is very recognisable from
the Nature Centre but there is not much detail about species I'm afraid.

Colin Keeling had the following to say in "Where The Zebu Grazed" (1989):

In the 1960's the Chipperfield dynasty and Associated Pleasure Parks seemed
to be competing to see who could open the most zoological gardens, as almost
monthly first one, and then another, was launched across the length and
breadth of the land - and when word began to get around that Chipperfields
were looking at the pros and cons of starting up yet another, in Birmingham,
great was the alarm and consternation in the Dudley Zoological Garden
boardroom, as here would be competition - and stiff competition too - just a
dozen miles away. So, decidedly reluctantly, because they didn't really want
to do it, the powers-that-be decided to pre-empt matters by moving in p.d.q.
and getting the Birmingham concession for themselves - which is precisely
what they did, and the result was the birth of Dudley's baby, the Birmingham
Zoological Gardens on 1st May 1964.

Covering just over four acres in Cannon Hill Park it was home to a good, if
somewhat Noah's Arkish, collection which, not surprisingly, was drawn mainly
from its big parent; the houses and shelters were well constructed in red
cedar, and there were beautiful flowerbeds everywhere. There was no doubt an
interesting few hours could have been spent there, but unfortunately fate
decreed it was to be one of those places which, for no obvious reason, never
quite "make it" - in fact it had a certain air of lack of purpose about
it - again, as though somehow nobody really loved it.

Things were not helped when its German curator, who I knew slightly,
Gerhardt Zellmer, committed suicide (a ghastly event which the gossipmongers
who thrive in zoological gardens still knowingly nod to each other about)
and then Dudley unfortunately began a decline for financial reasons destined
to last for years (fortunately it managed to emerge victorious in the end),
so after a decade or so the Birmingham Zoological Garden as such ceased to
exist and its collection was disposed of far and wide. It wasn't quite the
end, though, as the remains of its aviaries and enclosures formed the
nucleus of the Birmingham Nature Centre which, specialising in native fauna
still carries on the good work of introducing people to species other than
their own.

And that is pretty much all I know about the place. I believe there was a
young Asian Elephant on show for a while but this is hardly surprising
considering the era in which the zoo was operating.

Hope this is of interest.
 
Thought I'd reignite this thread rather than start a new one. Rodent collection now has both greater and lesser tenrec, no lemmings, no ground squirrel. Beaver was out for once, only the second time I've seen it in my life, so pretty surprised, so surprised I held my camera like an idiot and didn't actually take any photos.
The new marmoset house is great, with ropes stretching between trees and an almost free range feel, but the marmosets themselves are still in their old indoor enclosure that has signs all over depicting them as golden tamarins! Any idea if the tamarins are actually coming? The signs have been there for months!
Ocelot is active but still in the singular, a pair would be lovely to see. The mara would be nicer with a buddy too, he's been moved from the guinea pig enclosure to the rabbits, no idea if there was problems, but he's 3 years old now, so I assume sexually mature?
Finally, the aviary by the cafeteria has acquired a lovely African Grey Parrot who had a range of phrases, noises and sound effects to greet us, so I'd guess he's an ex pet.
 
Devi said:
Thought I'd reignite this thread rather than start a new one. Rodent collection now has both greater and lesser tenrec, no lemmings, no ground squirrel. Beaver was out for once, only the second time I've seen it in my life, so pretty surprised, so surprised I held my camera like an idiot and didn't actually take any photos.
The new marmoset house is great, with ropes stretching between trees and an almost free range feel, but the marmosets themselves are still in their old indoor enclosure that has signs all over depicting them as golden tamarins! Any idea if the tamarins are actually coming? The signs have been there for months!
Ocelot is active but still in the singular, a pair would be lovely to see. The mara would be nicer with a buddy too, he's been moved from the guinea pig enclosure to the rabbits, no idea if there was problems, but he's 3 years old now, so I assume sexually mature?
Finally, the aviary by the cafeteria has acquired a lovely African Grey Parrot who had a range of phrases, noises and sound effects to greet us, so I'd guess he's an ex pet.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the update! :) (Although, Tenrecs arent rodents, but I guess Im just being picky)
 
Rodent collection is their term not mine, it also includes sugar gliders, which are not rodents either. Not sure if they know this or not?
 
Devi said:
Rodent collection is their term not mine, it also includes sugar gliders, which are not rodents either. Not sure if they know this or not?
Click to expand...
I was told that the Steppe Lemmings and Richardson`s Ground Squirrels had been moved off show,last i heard they where planning a new outdoor enclosure for the Ground Squirrels and they were going to keep alarger group of them not sure what the plan for the Lemmings is though!
 
I have heard that they were supposed to be talking to Dudley Zoo about a partner for the Mara and I thought they had 2 Ocelots and the last time I went they had renamed the Rodent House to Small Mammal House did they still have the Rhea in the old style Barn
 
adrian1963 said:
I have heard that they were supposed to be talking to Dudley Zoo about a partner for the Mara and I thought they had 2 Ocelots and the last time I went they had renamed the Rodent House to Small Mammal House did they still have the Rhea in the old style Barn
Click to expand...

The direction sign said rodents but I must admit I didn't look at the front of the building so it may have been changed. Happy about the Mara, poor lad is not a bunny! I have only ever seen a single ocelot in there, unless one always hides? I've had a look about for clarification but didn't find any. The rhea are in the guinea pig shed, with the guinea pigs shifted outside. I doubt they can stay there for much longer though because they can already see over the barrier when standing and I can see trouble looming with small unsupervised children and sharp beaks at eye level!
 
adrian1963 said:
I have heard that they were supposed to be talking to Dudley Zoo about a partner for the Mara and I thought they had 2 Ocelots and the last time I went they had renamed the Rodent House to Small Mammal House did they still have the Rhea in the old style Barn
Click to expand...

I also remember seeing the building as "The Small Mammal House." Non-rodent wise I seem to remember seing African Pygmy Hedgehog aswell as the species already named... (Sugar Glider, Tenrecs)
 
Announcement on their facebook page.

Birmingham Nature Centre is now a member of the European Association of Zoos and Aquariums (EAZA). This is great news for us as we now have the ability to work with species in European breeding programs and introduce more rare and endangered species to the centre.
January 11 at 4:15am · Like · Comment
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top