Chester Zoo Chester Zoo Timeline

C

CZJimmy

Well-Known Member
Whilst I was bored today, I was thinking how much Chester has developed in recent years. So I quickly knocked up a timeline which shows the animal-related developments (not including species simply swapping enclosures e.g lechwe) as far back as I can remember.

Note: Some dates may be wrong and I may have left some stuff out, so please fill in the gaps! ;)

2008:
- Butterfly House
- Cheetah Enclosure
- Bridge (Anoa viewing)
- African Aviary and Ground Hornbill aviary
- Philippine Crocodile pool

2007:
- Realm of the Red Ape
- Indian Rhinos (redevelopment of Asian Plains)
- Flamingo House
- Renovation of Owl aviaries

2006:
- Elephants of the Asian Forest (development of elephant quarters)
- Secret World of the Okapi (renovation of camel house)
- Asian Steppe (Onager and Camel)
- Warthog/Mongoose enclosure
- Tiger Viewing window

2005:
- Rare Parrot Breeding Centre
- Improvement of Bush Dog enclosure
- Improvement of tanks and aviaries in Tropical Realm

2004:
- Miniature Monkeys
- Spectacled Bear enclosure (development of cloud forest area)
- Mythical Macaws (and surrounding aviaries)

2003:
- Tsavo (Black Rhino redevelopment, including meerkats)
- Dragons in Danger (indoor and outdoor extension to Islands in Danger for Komodo Dragons)

2002:
- Red Panda enclosure
- Marmot Mania
- Red River Hog enclosure #1 (sandy area in current asian steppe, essentially a temporary enclosure)
- Red River Hog enclosure #2 (current location, hogs moved here later the same year)
- Buffy Headed Capuchin Island
- Tapir and Capybara enclosure

2001:
- Spirit of the Jaguar
- Hyacinth Macaw aviary
- Sealion Beach (renovation of sealion pool)

2000:
- Islands in Danger
- Chimpanzee Forest (improvements to the island)

1999:
- Asian Elephant Bull Quarters
- Elephant herd paddock extension

1998:
- Twilight zone
- Renovated Penguin Pool

1997:
- Monkey Islands

1996:
- Sand Lizard vivarium
 
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Good work, one thing though, I think the Red River Hogs moved to their current enclosure later than 2002. I first visited the zoo in 2003 and the hogs were still near the onagers (and the cheetah area held lechwe).
 
^Chris^ said:
Good work, one thing though, I think the Red River Hogs moved to their current enclosure later than 2002. I first visited the zoo in 2003 and the hogs were still near the onagers (and the cheetah area held lechwe).
Click to expand...

hmm, I must've got the hogs one wrong then. I could've sworn they moved soon after the capuchin island was created.

and yes, the lechwe were on the current cheetah site, but I was leaving out the enclosure swaps and focussing on new constructions or renovations.
 
The hogs bred in 2003 in the original enclosure, I would guess the new enclosure was completed in 2004 and they moved in 2005. I'll try to find out.

It was left un-occupied for a long time so that the concrete and plaster in the shelter could dry out properly.
 
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The hog enclosure was constructed in 2003 and the pigs were moved to it in the Spring of 2004.
 
Makes sense. I never realised the capuchin Island was as new as that. I've never visited and it not been there. What previously occupied the site?

Also, what lived where the Red River Hogs do now, immediately before they did?
 
^Chris^ said:
Makes sense. I never realised the capuchin Island was as new as that. I've never visited and it not been there. What previously occupied the site?

Also, what lived where the Red River Hogs do now, immediately before they did?
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I think the capuchin island site was just the canal (that's why there's not much land mass on the island).

Before the river hogs, the capuchins lived in that enclosure (it was a pair of little islands rather than a low walled enclosure though). Black and White Ruffed Lemurs also lived on that area in the recent past and gorillas did until the early nineties.
 
^Chris^ said:
Makes sense. I never realised the capuchin Island was as new as that. I've never visited and it not been there. What previously occupied the site?
Click to expand...

Before the capuchins it held Aldabran tortoises and chickens. I have also heard it contained pygmy hippos, but I'm not sure how accurate that is.
 
Pt123 said:
Before the capuchins it held Aldabran tortoises and chickens. I have also heard it contained pygmy hippos, but I'm not sure how accurate that is.
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Pygmy hippos were in that location (Bongorob has a good photo in the gallery showing this) but I assumed that the tortoise/pygmy hippo area was where the capuchin indoor quarters are now and the island was built into the canal.
 
The indoor Capuchin area is where the indoor picnic area was. Perhaps the area housing the tortoises came onto part of what is now the path, but I am sure I have photos of them basking along the side of the picnic area wall. I have a feeling that the part of moat by the path between the macaws and island is a new(ish) dug out section to form the island, but of course I could be wrong.
 
Ah yeah, I had forgotten about the picnic area being there. You're probably right then about a moat being dug-out.
 
Very interesting photo, thanks for the link, Rob.

Where was the nocturnal house in the tropical realm? I have read about the nocturnal section, but always wondered exactly where it was.
 
The Nocturnal House was above the area where the capuchins are. Until the re-development of the crocodile pool, the ramp leading up to this part of the house could still be seen. This ramp was on the reptiles side of the house and led visitors to the nocturnal section. I remember seeing rock hyrax, Siberian chipmunks, tree shrews, gerbils and spiny mice there, but lots of species were housed in this area at various times. The exit was by the upper aviaries, where the Timor Zebra Finch aviary is.
 
I can add a little here, but my memory is rather different from Rob's. He's right about the ramp, because you could look down on the indoor enclosures for the pygmy hippos, but the old nocturnal section was over them, more or less where the night cages for the hyacinthine macaws are now. You can see it at the right hand end of the chimp house in the old photo below (which Chris posted earlier this year). There were glass windows, but they were painted over with dark blue paint and I recall half a dozen glass-fronted cages.

[photo=1414;557;chimp1.jpg]Chester's Chimp House, 1957[/photo]
This was built before the Tropical Realm, although I guess that it was one phase of the 1950s masterplan (if that doesn't sound too grand).
I can't remember many of the animals - I guess they didn't show themselves much. But I do remember a bird-eating spider and perhaps flying phalangers and bushbabies.
After this section was closed, half of the interior of the Small Mammal House was converted into a Nocturnal Section.
I do feel that the Tropical Realm still lacks something, if they got rid of the little aviary for the Timor zebra finches, they could reopen the old door and build a ramp down the side of the hyacinthine macaws, which would give nice views of those spectacular birds (which are hardly visible at the moment).

Alan
 
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I'll go with what you say Alan.

Like you I can only remember about 6 exhibits, but I can't rmember what was kept there.

The hyacinth macaws are not visible, one pair is rearing a youngster at the moment. Could this be why?
 
What is that construction with a curved roof on the Chimp Island in the photo. Some sort of day shelter?

It had gone by the first time I visited...

In the bottom right corner of the photo it looks as if there is a dog/person/chimp swimming in the moat!!
 
The object in the moat is a rock I think. The curved roof building is a shelter. I don't remember it.
 
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