Does Eden Project need some (more) animals?

TNT

TNT

Well-Known Member
5+ year member
Having visited Eden Project today, I couldn't help but feel it was lacking in non-plant life...

Whilst I know the project has a small number of ground dwelling birds in the tropical dome, and some smaller flying birds in the arid one, I would have loved to see more.

Without considering the logistics of it, both domes would benefit from more bird species, and they would add another great dynamic to the habitats. Furthermore, smaller invert and amphibian exhibits could easily be placed along the walking routes, highlighting the issues individuals found within such ecosystems face. The Mediterranean section of the arid biome could be used to focus on European species of reptile, a group widely ignored in UK zoos.

If the sky was the limit, which it very nearly is in the tropical dome, I would love to see some smaller primate species, or other thretaned mammals.

Now, I do appreciate that Eden Project is a plant focused attraction, which is part of the charm... However, I thought it would be interesting to share some ideas.

If you have any suggestions as to what you'd like to see at Eden Project, please share away! Or, you could suggest another attraction that you feel is lacking something for us zoo folk ;)
 
ThomasNotTom said:
Now, I do appreciate that Eden Project is a plant focused attraction, which is part of the charm... .
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The Eden Project tropical dome is perhaps the finest such facility anywhere. And the entire aim of Eden is to focus on plants. Not primates. Not herps. Plants.
The Eden Project has also been extremely successful with that focus and is expanding with "branches" in China and several proposed spots in the UK. Some of those will likely feature animals in some way.
This focus may not be for everyone (especially in this forum) but I think Tim Smit and the staff are not interested in watering down their focus to accommodate all tastes, That is the road to ruin for any strong brand.
 
Without knowing the exact reasons, I would assume the small birds that are present perform some kind of pest-control function; similarly, the Water Dragons in the Princess of Wales Conservatory at Kew are there to eat the cockroaches and other insect pests. I agree some native lizards in the Arid done would be nice, but only if allowed free run of the area (like Kew's lizards). Half the fun of Kew's lizards is not knowing when or where you might see them, if at all! They're part of the habitat, not an exhibit in and of themselves.
 
Crowthorne said:
Half the fun of Kew's lizards is not knowing when or where you might see them, if at all! They're part of the habitat, not an exhibit in and of themselves.
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This reminds me of the free ranging lizards (I think) found in the newer building at crocodiles of the world.
 
I'm pretty sure years ago they used to have lizards in the arid zone, I remember seeing signs about them.
Of course the domes would make great exhibits but I like the fact that the focus is on plants and habitats. I think making it an 'animal attraction' would take away from their mission statement.
 
Jedd Cullinan said:
Hang on a minute Thomas. Is there a reason why does Eden Project need some Animals ?
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The chief reason I can think of is in order to demonstrate various seed dispersal mechanisms. After all, a great many of the plants of all sizes at the Eden project are animal dispersed, either by fruits eating birds, fruit bats, or primates. Many day geckos are pollinators and I expect other reptiles may perform similar functions in other parts pf the world.
 
I know what you are saying with your post Thomas, but its best left as it is in my humble opinion for loads of reasons. It’s far too small an ecosystem to accommodate primates of any size, I think they would wreak havoc on many plants (esp. fruits) in days if not weeks! Also, it would not look right to see food out for animals here.

However, the main reason I love it how it is, is because the plants are the star attractions, families read about the plants and how they survive and grow, you can see latex trees, cocoa, coffee, all sorts of nuts, spices and fruits growing, its unique – unfortunately….
 
Crowthorne said:
Without knowing the exact reasons, I would assume the small birds that are present perform some kind of pest-control function; similarly, the Water Dragons in the Princess of Wales Conservatory at Kew are there to eat the cockroaches and other insect pests. I agree some native lizards in the Arid done would be nice, but only if allowed free run of the area (like Kew's lizards). Half the fun of Kew's lizards is not knowing when or where you might see them, if at all! They're part of the habitat, not an exhibit in and of themselves.
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There are no small birds present, apart from those natives that have introduced themselves. The large number of a White-eye (Zosterops) species have all died out. I believe there are still Roulroul Partridges present
 
FBBird said:
There are no small birds present, apart from those natives that have introduced themselves. The large number of a White-eye (Zosterops) species have all died out. I believe there are still Roulroul Partridges present
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I saw a few Robins last time!
 
I would add that to allow free roaming primates and other foliivores and frugivores require the elimination of any number of old established, but toxic, plants. Also the structure and ETFE was not designed to enclose larger birds or primates, etc. New layers of mesh would need to be added to keep animals away from the ETFE. Eden has climbers clean all the interior ETFE surfaces annually so eliminating access would pose huge logistical issues. Either the dome can be a fine zoo exhibit or an incomparable plant exhibit.It cannot be both
 
ThomasNotTom said:
Having visited Eden Project today, I couldn't help but feel it was lacking in non-plant life...

Whilst I know the project has a small number of ground dwelling birds in the tropical dome, and some smaller flying birds in the arid one, I would have loved to see more.

Without considering the logistics of it, both domes would benefit from more bird species, and they would add another great dynamic to the habitats. Furthermore, smaller invert and amphibian exhibits could easily be placed along the walking routes, highlighting the issues individuals found within such ecosystems face. The Mediterranean section of the arid biome could be used to focus on European species of reptile, a group widely ignored in UK zoos.

If the sky was the limit, which it very nearly is in the tropical dome, I would love to see some smaller primate species, or other thretaned mammals.

Now, I do appreciate that Eden Project is a plant focused attraction, which is part of the charm... However, I thought it would be interesting to share some ideas.

If you have any suggestions as to what you'd like to see at Eden Project, please share away! Or, you could suggest another attraction that you feel is lacking something for us zoo folk ;)
Click to expand...

@ThomasNotTom thank you for raising this point. I have been too the Eden Project twice,most recently last December. I was extremely bourd. For an animal loving guy like myself, adding Animals would add another dimension that would attract me, like a magnet. I believe that Eden Project could easily build enclosures for small Mammels and Reptiles. Think of Monsoon Forest at Chester Zoo but with the Animals in their designated biome. Some animals for instance small Monkeys could easily be obtained. I want to stress that I think the Eden Project would be better remodelled so it does not go bankrupt due to customer boredom.

Note I have never stepd foot inside Monsoon Forest at Chester Zoo but I have seen many videos and photographs.
 
I'd be willing to bet that the Eden Project contains at least one snake species ;) even if it isn't meant to!
 
I think it would be good and could bring more cash for Eden conservation projects.

I agree that most animals cannot be kept free-roaming, because of risk of poisonous plants, and risk to plants from destructive animals. Maybe hornbills would work, because they are strict frugivores, so safe for/from plants, they are associated with plants as keystone seed dispersers and associated with plant conservation as flagship species of old-growth forests. And are showy and would love a huge flight space.

However, I imagine such thing would be better:
- To avoid 'watering down the character,' the addition should be strong on science and conservation, not just a set of common exotic animals.
- There would be terraria with invertebrates, amphibians, reptiles and freshwater fish, not to dominate the plant life.
- There would be focus on interactions between animals and plants like pollination, symbiosis, seed dispersal.
- There would also be a serious focus on similar conservation problems (centres of biodiversity in the tropics, forest degradation, water extraction and drying out etc.). I think neither zoos or botanical gardens present very well that one tropical area can be a region of endemism from all groups of organisms simultaneously. They always somehow come as focused foremost on single species.
-There would be many endangered species.
-There would be a collaboration with London Zoo, Bristol Zoo or another British organization specializing in rare small animals. London and Bristol, could, at least in the past, produce very good, informative conservation info on little known topics.Such organization would make sure, it is not just another collection of common exotics.
 
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