Chester Zoo Islands - Opening and impressions

[Pertinax]

It would be nice to know if it is a 24hr access to the outdoor enclosure as getting them back in could be fun, which may limit the scatter feeds outside to ensure they can secure the macaques.

I also wonder if such fears will change over time for animals? Long term research would be good on this.

I imagine they might not have 24 hour access outdoors for security reasons? You have a point about the number of scatter feeds possible in that case. I don't know what % of their time the Sulawesis currently spend outdoors(I have seen them outside at Chester in the past and they are certainly a good display then) and I am only going on ChesterZooFan's observations there.

Re overcoming fear/reluctance of the open over time(referring generally here to any forest Primate species). I think in the zoo situation its more an ingrained preference for the covered situations which is very hard to alter and I think it would take very many generations to significantly change their natural behaviour patterns. But for display purposes, effective management e.g. auxilliary feeding, can certainly help.

 

[okapis]

Chester Zoo Islands

Will be coming up to Chester in a couple of weeks,is there a better time to see Islands ?,early in the morning or later in the day ?

 

[bongorob]

Will be coming up to Chester in a couple of weeks,is there a better time to see Islands ?,early in the morning or later in the day ?

If you want to do the boat ride, as early as possible. Otherwise I don't think it matters, after all at the moment there are only 5 species to see.

 

[ChesterZooFan]

Will be coming up to Chester in a couple of weeks,is there a better time to see Islands ?,early in the morning or later in the day ?

Have been a few times now and find afternoon is good time as they tend to do an outdoor feed for all the animals so they are really active. Boat ride after 4pm usually a short queue.

 

[FunkyGibbon]

I never said it was the Gibbons in the zoo!!!

Can you expand on this comment?

 

[ChesterZooFan]

Can you expand on this comment?

Sounds like ZG knows something we don't?? But I'm guessing we won't get an answer until the zoo confirms anything publicly...?

 

[bongorob]

ZG isn't the only one who knows, the exporting collection requested that the news is not made public.

 

[FunkyGibbon]

ZG isn't the only one who knows, the exporting collection requested that the news is not made public.

Fair enough. Any discreet estimates of when this information might emerge?

 

[zoogiraffe]

@ chesterzoofan I always know something that hasn't been posted on zoochat and it doesn't always have to be Chester news!

@ FunkyGibbon How long is a piece of string the move has been delayed a couple of times already that I know of!

 

[Campbell89]

@ chesterzoofan I always know something that hasn't been posted on zoochat and it doesn't always have to be Chester news!

@ FunkyGibbon How long is a piece of string the move has been delayed a couple of times already that I know of!

Can you divulge which species of gibbon they will be?

 

[gentle lemur]

ZG isn't the only one who knows, the exporting collection requested that the news is not made public.

I don't suppose they would be coming from Knowsley . . . but if they did, they would be Stanley gibbons

Alan

 

[zoogiraffe]

Can you divulge which species of gibbon they will be?

I will give you a clue the species is kept in Europe!

 

[FunkyGibbon]

I guess with the theming of Islands that suggests it must be either Siamangs, Agiles, Mueller's or Molochs. So that doesn't narrow it down too much!
Thanks for the hint though

 

[Jackwow]

Will be coming up to Chester in a couple of weeks,is there a better time to see Islands ?,early in the morning or later in the day ?

Try next year sometime.

 

[Jackwow]

People ...., mind you it is a big project .... really for any zoo! Give it some time, will you!!! Rome was never built in a day and neither has the Islands project at NZES/Chester Zoo.

In its current state of development, it will no doubt linger for another few months or so before it really will look the part. And: there will always be learning curves and stuff that comes out a way it was not planned for or it might need some remodifying. We can only learn by learning from any of our mistakes, OK!!? And I am in no way even suggesting here they made any or any big ones!

The plantings will have grown significantly, which at the moment they have not. Et cetera .... Et cetera.

Illustrative: at the new Vincennes Zoo in Paris people are still complaining about the exhibitry and plantings!!!

Are you for real?! You're in no way suggesting that Chester have made any mistakes?! They've f****d big time but you think it's OK?! They've implied to everyone it's open, which means exhibits with animals, but there are next to no animals in any of the exhibits and what few there are are hardly very stimulating (anoas, warty pigs, etc). People don't go to zoos to see plantings, et cetera....et cetera! Geez, some people?!

 

[Jackwow]

Does anyone know what new species are going to be in the Islands or in the enclosures vacated by the species moving to the islands?

 

[kiang]

Does anyone know what new species are going to be in the Islands or in the enclosures vacated by the species moving to the islands?

More than likely, yes.

 

[SMR]

New underwater fencing has been erected in the warty pig and anoa exhibits. I was told the old fencing wasn't suitable (don't know why) and was therefore replaced

You should be able to figure that out.

 

[ChesterZooFan]

You should be able to figure that out.

So is it true one or more escaped? I was told by several staff this absolutely did not happen but there have been rumours?

 

[Waddi]

Was told by a boat guide that a warty pigs escaped and swam the lazy river.