Chester Zoo Chester Zoo FAQ

Javan Rhino

Javan Rhino

Well-Known Member
15+ year member
Just thought I'd start this thread and hopefully it will help the moderators and save brandwidth (but I don't know, I'm not technical :p)

Anyway, it is very common at the moment to see a single thread started for a single question, and when that question is answered the thread goes ignored. Anyway, I thought I'd start this so if you wanted a question answered it could just be popped in here and somebody will get back to it. Hopefully, some other Chester regulars can come in and help answer some questions that you may have if they can.

I have 2 questions:

1) Just stumbled upon this page of wikipedia (Blue-crowned Laughingthrush - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia) and wondered where they are at Chester (or whether it is an old photograph etc).

2) Did the maned wolves ever breed? Looking through some old photographs, I saw one of a maned wolf carrying something in its mouth and at first I thought it was food, but on looking closer it could be either food or a cub (very difficult to make out exactly).

So, hopefully this thread'll work out, if you have any questions just post :)
 
Blue-crowned laughing thrushes can be seen in the tropical realm. They might also be in the Chinese aviary (where the Cabot's tragopan is) but I can't remember off the top of my head.

Maned wolves did breed. There was a least one successful litter although they were never very easy to see.
 
Pygathrix said:
Blue-crowned laughing thrushes can be seen in the tropical realm. They might also be in the Chinese aviary (where the Cabot's tragopan is) but I can't remember off the top of my head.

Maned wolves did breed. There was a least one successful litter although they were never very easy to see.
Click to expand...

Thank you :). If I can get my scanner working, I'll attach the photo in this thread and people can judge for themselves :p.
 
2.2 maned wolves were born at Chester in 1999, and 3.1.4 in 2000 with 4 cubs not surviving beyond 30 days.

From my experience the Cabot's Tragopan was easier to see than the maned wolves.
 
bongorob said:
2.2 maned wolves were born at Chester in 1999, and 3.1.4 in 2000 with 4 cubs not surviving beyond 30 days.

From my experience the Cabot's Tragopan was easier to see than the maned wolves.
Click to expand...

Hehe, I think I only saw them a couple of times (mind, I only used to go once or twice every couple of years when I was younger). I remember one time it was very late in the day (on the way out at closing I think). Like I say, hope I can scan the pic and post it, but I doubt anybody'll be able to make anything out :p.
 
bongorob said:
From my experience the Cabot's Tragopan was easier to see than the maned wolves.
Click to expand...
I mentioned that to Tim on Saturday and he said that when surveyed, the maned wolves were actually visible most of the time, it was just that for some reason people couldn't see them. Perhaps we were unlucky, because I certainly remember looking!
 
I would say I saw the Maned Wolves a little less than half the times I went. Not too bad (not much less than the bears, for instance).
 
Strange how the same species can vary in 'viewability' from one place to another. I too have found Maned Wolves to be often invisible at some collections, but at one time I was a frequent visitor to Banham and you could always count on seeing their pair, usually pacing a figure of eight around the enclosure, or resting.
 
SMR said:
I mentioned that to Tim on Saturday and he said that when surveyed, the maned wolves were actually visible most of the time, it was just that for some reason people couldn't see them. Perhaps we were unlucky, because I certainly remember looking!
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I don't think their enclosure lent itself to seeing the wolves that well, what with being quite densely foliated and having that laurel hedge at the front. Nevertheless, I saw them, like Maguari puts it, probably on a little less than half of my visits.
 
It takes time and patience to see maned wolves in the wild.

In a zoo setting: if you do take that extra trouble of just sitting around and watching ..., they will appear and reveal themselves to you at some point.

Best times in my book are early mornings - alas you would have to be there before opening times -, at noons when everybody is busy over lunch and after 4-ish pm (best times ever ...) when they become very active indeed! :D
 
Here's a question for Chester fans: if the zoo is undoubtedly the best in England and one of the better zoos in all of Europe then why on earth is the map absolutely crap? I just received a package of maps in the mail (Auckland's is particularly excellent) and the April 2011 Chester Zoo map with a meerkat on the cover is simply awful. There are just over 20 fairly crude drawings of animals and then plenty of squiggly lines over the messy background. The writing is all in capital letters and it looks like it was done by an 8 year-old.
 
snowleopard said:
Here's a question for Chester fans: if the zoo is undoubtedly the best in England and one of the better zoos in all of Europe then why on earth is the map absolutely crap? I just received a package of maps in the mail (Auckland's is particularly excellent) and the April 2011 Chester Zoo map with a meerkat on the cover is simply awful. There are just over 20 fairly crude drawings of animals and then plenty of squiggly lines over the messy background. The writing is all in capital letters and it looks like it was done by an 8 year-old.
Click to expand...

Bob only knows. Safe to say the current map is not popular in these parts (or indeed, in any parts I've ever asked about it in!). The 2012 one is (marginally) better though - at least the paths are drawn properly and the numbered key leaves the map less cluttered.
 
snowleopard said:
Here's a question for Chester fans: if the zoo is undoubtedly the best in England and one of the better zoos in all of Europe then why on earth is the map absolutely crap? I just received a package of maps in the mail (Auckland's is particularly excellent) and the April 2011 Chester Zoo map with a meerkat on the cover is simply awful. There are just over 20 fairly crude drawings of animals and then plenty of squiggly lines over the messy background. The writing is all in capital letters and it looks like it was done by an 8 year-old.
Click to expand...

They changed their website too within the last 12 months, to this awful font and as you say it looks more like an advertisement for a kids play pen than one of Europe’s leading Zoos!. Poor show all round I say. However back to the map you have, all I can say to that is on top of what you see, is that the zoo is bigger than the map shows it to be, with many species missed off (of course they can’t list them all on a map, but they could do better). There are a few paths missing off too, which for your general day visitor is not particularly useful helpful.
Cracking Zoo, Cr*ppy Map combined with a disastrous choice of font for website and map. When you actually do start to read the website articles, many are quite interesting and very informative, if you can just get your head around that scruffy childish font used.

Q. Is it true that there is a stone wall somewhere within the zoo grounds that was once part of a lion or tiger enclosure and scratch marks are visible on the wall?

Also, has anyone else seen the large ghost carp in the chimps moat?
 
Cheers Mr T. ! :)

Yet another reason to look like a numpty, staring at a brick wall as the rest of the public look at the lions behind me!
 
It would have been Friday 5th of October, looking at my diary. A pale object floating just under the surface of the water caught my eye, as I walked up to it I saw it was a pretty large 'common' ghost carp. It must be about 2 feet long and I would guess around the 20lb mark in weight. Unusual for it to be so high up in the water now the temperature is dropping.
 
I have seen that carp (or one that matches your description) a little earlier this year, in the corner of the moat nearest the hyacinthine macaws but on the chimp side.

Alan
 
Pootle said:
Q. Is it true that there is a stone wall somewhere within the zoo grounds that was once part of a lion or tiger enclosure and scratch marks are visible on the wall?

Also, has anyone else seen the large ghost carp in the chimps moat?
Click to expand...

Yes that is true about the scratch marks in the wall, it is the wall that is to the left of the lion enclosure whilst looking at it with your back to the shop.
 
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