Peak Wildlife Park Peak Wildlife Park News
- Thread starter Javan Rhino
- Start date
Genuinely shocked but glad to hear about them having Polar bears... sounds like a sign of them improving the site and bringing in more species.
Wasn't there talk of Peak Wildlife Park adding Tiger or Pygmy Hippo by any chance some years ago?
Wasn't there talk of Peak Wildlife Park adding Tiger or Pygmy Hippo by any chance some years ago?
The plans are here Planning Applications - Staffordshire Moorlands District Council
Concerning the safety of polar bears in the wildlife park, I am astonished that the Council approved the permission plan. I have concerns, especially considering that the zoo is small and has few experienced staff members. While no other dangerous animals are in the park, adding polar bears introduces a significant risk. The project is a massive blunder for the zoo.
Lafone
Well-Known Member
Was mentioned today at YWP that the keepers have been visiting and training etc and one of the experienced keepers from YWP is going to be looking after the polar bears at Peak.
that's good to know I find it so sad when some have to jump in with a negative as if these factors aren't considered
The video I saw earlier it is Kim from YWP (they called her 'carnivore Kim' on the TV shows) so you don't get much more experienced than that. People were commenting about her new job.
Lafone
Well-Known Member
There’s an interview with her on BBC sounds (requires sign in) too.
Liz Ellis - Polar bears move into Peak Wildlife Park - BBC Sounds
linked from this BBC article
Polar bears relocate to Staffordshire park - BBC News
Does Kim work at peak now. My local is ywp and i loved seeing her doung polar bear talks all the time.
All I can say is people were congratulating her on her new job in the comments, of course they could have been making assumptions because of the video.
Alwaysevergreen
Well-Known Member
Had a lovey day at Peak Wildlife Park today.
Earlier in the year, I won a silent auction for a Tapir Experience for 2 people and I headed to Peak to do it today with a guest.
I have to say, I've always felt Peak has a lot of potential, a lot of area not covered and so many areas of the zoo, which feel like they could house more exhibits. Finally the potential is being realised, and the Polar Bears are just the start of new developments for the park, which quite frankly is not too soon.
The Polar Bear exhibit is vast, great viewing and two keeper talks telling everyone about the bears who arrived from a closed down Zoo. The plans we were told in the talks and during an experience were that the two younger cubs will stay at Peak and the long term would be a bachelor holding facility, as the female will move on to breed.
The main exhibit has bark piles, a 6m deep lake, a cave, and a indoor house which is off-show. At the end of the main station is a separation area, where training and weighing can take place, before a second exhibit, which is not too dissimilar to the largest of the Yorkshire paddocks and is great viewing. This second area is still being completed, but it truly is a fantastic exhibit, and is equally as good a facility as Yorkshire and Highland and it offers so much for the animals and also the visitors.
One of the cubs is incredibly playful, putting cones on his head and playing with his ball. Constantly diving into the lake and so on. The other seems to be more a mummy's boy, although she kept telling him off, but he could be seen playing in the bark later on in the day. For the fact they are 19 months old, they are already nearly the size of mum, and it's great to have Polar Bears at little over an hours drive from me, most welcoming, and I've always liked Peak, but this further cemented my thoughts, that they offer so much for their animals and it's nice to see them moving into more exciting species.
Opposite the second paddock for the Polar Bears is another exhibit being created with a pond. We were told this would be for a new species, but was not revealed what it was.
The changes to the area, mean that the Maneless Zebras's can be viewed from three sides of their exhibit now, offering much better viewing.
We were also told that the Red Squirrel walkthrough, which is great, has been shown to other zoos, as an example of how to keep them if zoos are planning to go into Red Squirrel.
Great news on that part, is they have had 4 babies this year with the Red Squirrels and whilst the three males can be seen in the walkthrough, the babies are with mums near the Lemurs and are on show, but a little elusive.
They are also building a whole new restaurant right by the Polar Bears, which has a glass side, which will offer views into the exhibit, which looks across the lake, and an area you can only see from the restaurant. It is by no means finished yet, and looks an cracking building of nice size, and not sure when it will open, but it will offer great views of the bears, if using the main paddock.
We were also told that the zoo plans to use the little island up on the other side of the park, which is surrounded by a pond for a new exhibit in the future, although didn't say what, but it's nice to know that this area will be getting a revamp and used.
Nice to see that Kirky, the Dik-Dik now has a friend having been on his own for a while, and he has been joined by another male called Rocket.
Peak gives great exhibits, lots of up close opportunities with its animals (Penguin, Lemur, Wallaby, Flemish Bunnies, African Pygmy Goats and Red Squirrel walkthrough's and you can feed the Wallabies), and some decent food offerings for a zoo.
Unsurprisingly it was absolutely rammed and they said they've had the biggest crowds there this last four days, than ever before and they even had to open up another field for cars, as the car park was overflowing by 10.30am!
Despite it being busy and a lot of people there, they've put out a lot of portaloos, whilst new toilet facilities are being created by the restaurant at the Polar Bears, and there was lots of Ice Cream and Snack Kiosks. Loads of seating areas for people, and loads of play areas away from the animals on the whole. With all this, there was no large queues, and the biggest queue was actually in the gift shop. They also had people on hand getting people in the park, with whilst having 3 entry windows open, they had a couple of people on ipads, who could see online bookings and let those people in, so the queue moved very quickly and it took no time to get in.
Everything seemingly looked well organised and they've clearly prepared for mass visitors, and even the signs within 10 miles of the Zoo, did not say Peak Wildlife Park, they said Polar Bears @ Peak Wildlife Park.
Clearly a lot of planning has gone into this, and to make sure visitors are well catered for. Despite there being over a thousand people there easily today, it did not feel jam packed and everything ran so smoothly. Even the Polar Bear talks which a couple of hundred spectators were smooth, and everyone could hear the keeper and were well entertained by the bears and the facts.
Really had a great day, and it really feels like this is the start of big things for Peak.
Earlier in the year, I won a silent auction for a Tapir Experience for 2 people and I headed to Peak to do it today with a guest.
I have to say, I've always felt Peak has a lot of potential, a lot of area not covered and so many areas of the zoo, which feel like they could house more exhibits. Finally the potential is being realised, and the Polar Bears are just the start of new developments for the park, which quite frankly is not too soon.
The Polar Bear exhibit is vast, great viewing and two keeper talks telling everyone about the bears who arrived from a closed down Zoo. The plans we were told in the talks and during an experience were that the two younger cubs will stay at Peak and the long term would be a bachelor holding facility, as the female will move on to breed.
The main exhibit has bark piles, a 6m deep lake, a cave, and a indoor house which is off-show. At the end of the main station is a separation area, where training and weighing can take place, before a second exhibit, which is not too dissimilar to the largest of the Yorkshire paddocks and is great viewing. This second area is still being completed, but it truly is a fantastic exhibit, and is equally as good a facility as Yorkshire and Highland and it offers so much for the animals and also the visitors.
One of the cubs is incredibly playful, putting cones on his head and playing with his ball. Constantly diving into the lake and so on. The other seems to be more a mummy's boy, although she kept telling him off, but he could be seen playing in the bark later on in the day. For the fact they are 19 months old, they are already nearly the size of mum, and it's great to have Polar Bears at little over an hours drive from me, most welcoming, and I've always liked Peak, but this further cemented my thoughts, that they offer so much for their animals and it's nice to see them moving into more exciting species.
Opposite the second paddock for the Polar Bears is another exhibit being created with a pond. We were told this would be for a new species, but was not revealed what it was.
The changes to the area, mean that the Maneless Zebras's can be viewed from three sides of their exhibit now, offering much better viewing.
We were also told that the Red Squirrel walkthrough, which is great, has been shown to other zoos, as an example of how to keep them if zoos are planning to go into Red Squirrel.
Great news on that part, is they have had 4 babies this year with the Red Squirrels and whilst the three males can be seen in the walkthrough, the babies are with mums near the Lemurs and are on show, but a little elusive.
They are also building a whole new restaurant right by the Polar Bears, which has a glass side, which will offer views into the exhibit, which looks across the lake, and an area you can only see from the restaurant. It is by no means finished yet, and looks an cracking building of nice size, and not sure when it will open, but it will offer great views of the bears, if using the main paddock.
We were also told that the zoo plans to use the little island up on the other side of the park, which is surrounded by a pond for a new exhibit in the future, although didn't say what, but it's nice to know that this area will be getting a revamp and used.
Nice to see that Kirky, the Dik-Dik now has a friend having been on his own for a while, and he has been joined by another male called Rocket.
Peak gives great exhibits, lots of up close opportunities with its animals (Penguin, Lemur, Wallaby, Flemish Bunnies, African Pygmy Goats and Red Squirrel walkthrough's and you can feed the Wallabies), and some decent food offerings for a zoo.
Unsurprisingly it was absolutely rammed and they said they've had the biggest crowds there this last four days, than ever before and they even had to open up another field for cars, as the car park was overflowing by 10.30am!
Despite it being busy and a lot of people there, they've put out a lot of portaloos, whilst new toilet facilities are being created by the restaurant at the Polar Bears, and there was lots of Ice Cream and Snack Kiosks. Loads of seating areas for people, and loads of play areas away from the animals on the whole. With all this, there was no large queues, and the biggest queue was actually in the gift shop. They also had people on hand getting people in the park, with whilst having 3 entry windows open, they had a couple of people on ipads, who could see online bookings and let those people in, so the queue moved very quickly and it took no time to get in.
Everything seemingly looked well organised and they've clearly prepared for mass visitors, and even the signs within 10 miles of the Zoo, did not say Peak Wildlife Park, they said Polar Bears @ Peak Wildlife Park.
Clearly a lot of planning has gone into this, and to make sure visitors are well catered for. Despite there being over a thousand people there easily today, it did not feel jam packed and everything ran so smoothly. Even the Polar Bear talks which a couple of hundred spectators were smooth, and everyone could hear the keeper and were well entertained by the bears and the facts.
Really had a great day, and it really feels like this is the start of big things for Peak.
Visited yesterday and the three bears were a joy to watch; all very playful and clearly settled in.
Did YWP have a hand in designing the enclosure?
I feel very spoilt that both of England's polar bear collections are less than a two hour drive away.
Here's a video I took:
Did YWP have a hand in designing the enclosure?
I feel very spoilt that both of England's polar bear collections are less than a two hour drive away.
Here's a video I took:
Lafone
Well-Known Member
Had an enjoyable day at Peak yesterday. Thought I'd post a mini review to add to the thorough ones above.
It wasn't that busy though the overflow car park was in use. The early rush for the bears has subsided though obviously it is still very popular and people were heading straight to them. I arrived at opening and there were no queues to park or for admission. The weather was quite mixed with sun, clouds and heavy showers but lots of active animals anyway. It's a pretty big space and a lot of the animals have a good sized areas (with a few notable exceptions) and most of it is done well and well laid out. The animal signage across the park is good; clear and informative. Catering was pretty good with decent coffee. There are lots of play areas which obviously I wasn't interested in but they seemed popular.
I headed off to the right side of the zoo to start with. The enclosure for Asian short clawed otters is covered and has glass windows (making it look rather like a shed with a pond in it) which made it quite dark. Being next to / the pathway acting as the entrance to a play area it was also difficult to see the otters though they were active. It was not an ideal first impression though the otters looked good in themselves. Improving things quickly was the Visayan Warty pig area where there was a good size exhibit with a large pond (which also had native birds nesting in it) again all viewed through glass from several different angles. I assumed the areas next to the entrance path now given over to planting and wild spaces were aviaries, or enclosures for smaller animals at some point, but judging by the size of them I had little issue with them now being full of wild flowers and decent planting. There are some nice wild spaces around the zoo including a good sized pond.
Walking around the side of the park there was a large and enjoyable enclosure for a herd of Sika deer and they were making the most of it all day. A nice set of pathways and nature walk around that area also offered some quieter spaces. Getting back around there were decent sized enclosures for meerkats and sulcata tortoises.
I liked the connecting walkthrough enclosures for penguins (and mara), then lemurs and sheep then goats and sheep and then the wallabies. The control gates didn't cause any queues and overall it felt like a space you could navigate as you liked vs being forced down a path.The Humboldt penguins had viewing from a raised walkway and then as a walkthrough on two different sides of their pool, as well as under water. A couple of mara were lurking about in the same area. I haven't seen mara in a penguin enclosure before (except for the free roaming Whipsnade ones sneaking in) so that made for some nice variety.
The enclosure for lemurs and cameroon sheep is really large and all four lemur sub species (black, red bellied, black and white ruffled, ring tail) were super active. There was an experience going on but the enclosure was big enough for that to be happening without it being a waste of time for anyone else to be there. I haven't seen black lemurs in a walkthrough - lovely to see them without glass and wire and up close and quite a treat. I also haven't seen sheep in a lemur enclosure before but the animals interacted together nicely. I liked the signage in the enclosure showing all the different lemur locations on a large map of Madagascar.
The wallaby enclosure had a lot of Bennett's wallabies and there was feeding / touching. While I am not into that, it looked popular and the wallabies had space to choose to engage or not. Near the lemur area was the breeding space for the red squirrels and there I had great views of the juveniles; a first for me.
Heading up towards the Polar Bears was a grass paddock for maneless zebra. I haven't seen them much (Colchester being the only other place) and it was easy to get good views.
The new Polar Bear area is very well done indeed and as mentioned by other people looks and feels a lot like YWP. Put a couple of panoramic photos in the gallery to show the whole space and add to Alwaysevergreen's excellent pics above.
All in all it's a high standard enclosure and space. Well constructed elevated walkways offer excellent views of the bears. Most of the views have no wire in the way. The view from the new restaurant will be interesting too. All three bears were active all day (I went back quite a few times) playing and diving in the water with their toys, play fighting and in the case of the adult female, keeping an eye on the construction work and growling at the workers between playing about. It's obviously a deep pond. The house looks a good size with a secure outside area. The talk on the bears was interesting and the signage clear, attractive and educational. The talk also mentioned that the right side enclosure should be open very shortly with just the grass needing to settle in now and then the bears will use both spaces. Really impressive development overall and I enjoyed it a lot. It's as good as the YWP space for the equivalent number of bears. There was a drone flying over, I assume it was official and taking pictures of the enclosure from above but the bears were unconcerned. Impressive area and worth the visit alone, though I enjoyed the rest of the zoo too.
Heading back to the other side of the zoo I visited the Red Squirrel walkthrough which was delightful. A large space with lots of planting, trees, rope connectors, feeding areas and a stream running through as well as their house. Spending time (I went back several times and spent much of my visit in it) paid off with some active squirrels and great photo moments. While Polar bears were the wow moment, the red squirrels were wonderful too.
The dik dik enclosure next to the squirrels is a decent sized space with good planting and viewing through glass windows. You could also see through the wire of the squirrel enclosure to view the rear of the enclosure. The Lowland Tapir enclosure is large, though mostly set to grass but a large pond and reed area made for some variety.
Heading back down there was a shed like enclosure for squirrel monkeys with a glass front (a bit old fashioned and small) with chickens next door and giant rabbits nearby which appeared popular with visitors. The squirrel monkeys and otters were the two spaces I thought could do with an update in comparison with the other animal areas.
Overall a good visit and I would definitely go back again. A good sized zoo which obviously has some investment going on and quite a few imaginative and interactive spaces.
It wasn't that busy though the overflow car park was in use. The early rush for the bears has subsided though obviously it is still very popular and people were heading straight to them. I arrived at opening and there were no queues to park or for admission. The weather was quite mixed with sun, clouds and heavy showers but lots of active animals anyway. It's a pretty big space and a lot of the animals have a good sized areas (with a few notable exceptions) and most of it is done well and well laid out. The animal signage across the park is good; clear and informative. Catering was pretty good with decent coffee. There are lots of play areas which obviously I wasn't interested in but they seemed popular.
I headed off to the right side of the zoo to start with. The enclosure for Asian short clawed otters is covered and has glass windows (making it look rather like a shed with a pond in it) which made it quite dark. Being next to / the pathway acting as the entrance to a play area it was also difficult to see the otters though they were active. It was not an ideal first impression though the otters looked good in themselves. Improving things quickly was the Visayan Warty pig area where there was a good size exhibit with a large pond (which also had native birds nesting in it) again all viewed through glass from several different angles. I assumed the areas next to the entrance path now given over to planting and wild spaces were aviaries, or enclosures for smaller animals at some point, but judging by the size of them I had little issue with them now being full of wild flowers and decent planting. There are some nice wild spaces around the zoo including a good sized pond.
Walking around the side of the park there was a large and enjoyable enclosure for a herd of Sika deer and they were making the most of it all day. A nice set of pathways and nature walk around that area also offered some quieter spaces. Getting back around there were decent sized enclosures for meerkats and sulcata tortoises.
I liked the connecting walkthrough enclosures for penguins (and mara), then lemurs and sheep then goats and sheep and then the wallabies. The control gates didn't cause any queues and overall it felt like a space you could navigate as you liked vs being forced down a path.The Humboldt penguins had viewing from a raised walkway and then as a walkthrough on two different sides of their pool, as well as under water. A couple of mara were lurking about in the same area. I haven't seen mara in a penguin enclosure before (except for the free roaming Whipsnade ones sneaking in) so that made for some nice variety.
The enclosure for lemurs and cameroon sheep is really large and all four lemur sub species (black, red bellied, black and white ruffled, ring tail) were super active. There was an experience going on but the enclosure was big enough for that to be happening without it being a waste of time for anyone else to be there. I haven't seen black lemurs in a walkthrough - lovely to see them without glass and wire and up close and quite a treat. I also haven't seen sheep in a lemur enclosure before but the animals interacted together nicely. I liked the signage in the enclosure showing all the different lemur locations on a large map of Madagascar.
The wallaby enclosure had a lot of Bennett's wallabies and there was feeding / touching. While I am not into that, it looked popular and the wallabies had space to choose to engage or not. Near the lemur area was the breeding space for the red squirrels and there I had great views of the juveniles; a first for me.
Heading up towards the Polar Bears was a grass paddock for maneless zebra. I haven't seen them much (Colchester being the only other place) and it was easy to get good views.
The new Polar Bear area is very well done indeed and as mentioned by other people looks and feels a lot like YWP. Put a couple of panoramic photos in the gallery to show the whole space and add to Alwaysevergreen's excellent pics above.
All in all it's a high standard enclosure and space. Well constructed elevated walkways offer excellent views of the bears. Most of the views have no wire in the way. The view from the new restaurant will be interesting too. All three bears were active all day (I went back quite a few times) playing and diving in the water with their toys, play fighting and in the case of the adult female, keeping an eye on the construction work and growling at the workers between playing about. It's obviously a deep pond. The house looks a good size with a secure outside area. The talk on the bears was interesting and the signage clear, attractive and educational. The talk also mentioned that the right side enclosure should be open very shortly with just the grass needing to settle in now and then the bears will use both spaces. Really impressive development overall and I enjoyed it a lot. It's as good as the YWP space for the equivalent number of bears. There was a drone flying over, I assume it was official and taking pictures of the enclosure from above but the bears were unconcerned. Impressive area and worth the visit alone, though I enjoyed the rest of the zoo too.
Heading back to the other side of the zoo I visited the Red Squirrel walkthrough which was delightful. A large space with lots of planting, trees, rope connectors, feeding areas and a stream running through as well as their house. Spending time (I went back several times and spent much of my visit in it) paid off with some active squirrels and great photo moments. While Polar bears were the wow moment, the red squirrels were wonderful too.
The dik dik enclosure next to the squirrels is a decent sized space with good planting and viewing through glass windows. You could also see through the wire of the squirrel enclosure to view the rear of the enclosure. The Lowland Tapir enclosure is large, though mostly set to grass but a large pond and reed area made for some variety.
Heading back down there was a shed like enclosure for squirrel monkeys with a glass front (a bit old fashioned and small) with chickens next door and giant rabbits nearby which appeared popular with visitors. The squirrel monkeys and otters were the two spaces I thought could do with an update in comparison with the other animal areas.
Overall a good visit and I would definitely go back again. A good sized zoo which obviously has some investment going on and quite a few imaginative and interactive spaces.
Peak Wildlife Park, since the acquisition of Polar Bears, is certainly on the radar of zoo nerds around the world. Thanks to @Alwaysevergreen and @Lafone for their recent mini-reviews. It would be interesting to find out what the attendance numbers were last year and then compare them to this year's total because the Polar Bears have obviously boosted the numbers tremendously. Also, where is the funding coming from? The owners, who purchased the property in 2015, have suddenly begun to plunge a lot of money into upgrades, which is wonderful to see, but why wasn't there any major investment years ago? If anyone knows, I'd be curious to find out these answers.
Moorhunhe
Well-Known Member
We went here last Sunday.
Knew it was going to be sunny, I did nothing but spray sunscreen and was burnt to a crisp (and I hate sun, yeah, I'm weird).
Anyways ... I had this one on my radar due to the Red Bellied Lemurs.
But good thing we kept putting this one off, and then the news of the Polar Bears came, and not having seen one since the mid '90s, this was an absolute must to-do, but obviously wanted to wait for the Bears to be there for a few weeks and the crowds would have went down a little.
Yorkshire had been on the list due to them for a while, but would need an overnight stay, and Peak eventually was a shorter drive.
Very nice drive through the village of Alton, reminded me of certain places where I'm from (Belgium).
We thought we'd go to the Polar Bears first, in case they were already out.
Very lucky they were in the water, and basically all day! One of them sure loves his ball and cone!
They are an absolute delight to see them play in the water and just watch them play! We got some great views of them plunging into the water (and wishing we could join them in that weather, haha), and got some great pictures of them jumping in.
Boyfriend got some Wallaby food, so headed over there next, before they all had their bellies full.
Next to it is the Lemur walkthrough, but most were hiding and could barely see any.
We then headed back to the beginning to do an actual loop of the entire place.
There's some separate enclosures with young Red Squirrels. These guys are way too fast for my camera skills, lol. But very cute.
We then went towards the Red Squirrel walkthrough, and saw a glimpse of one of the big ones.
Other then that, on that side of the park, there are some sheep, chickens, Flemish Giants, and play area for the kids.
The Visayan Warty Pigs, I actually managed to see here.
A zoo in Belgium has them, and I had a pass there from 2016-2018, visited multiple times, and also just 4 months ago, and never ever saw them.
We then got back to where the Lemurs are, and the talk had just started, and they had put food everywhere, so they all came out, which was great.
The Mainless Zebra is interesting to see, it just looks so different.
After, boyfriend wanted to go to the Polar Bear talk, and be there early for a nice spot as it was probably going to be very busy, and it did end up being very busy.
Everytime one of them would jump into the water or throw his ball away, everyone kept going "awwww" lol.
We then did the loop where the Vietnamese Deer are, and eventually saw it all (and multiple times) by 3.30 (were there at 10).
It was open until 6, but we both felt, we didn't really want to stay just for the sake of it.
Going back to the Polar Bears, I couldn't handle it, as the sun was getting more hot, and it is completely open, so unbearable to stand in it for me.
For me personally, it's not somewhere I'd go back more often like I'm doing with other places.
I'm definately not saying it's not worth visiting, because it is. It's a beautiful place, lots of nature around, but for us personally, there's not enough that attracks us to go more often and to justify the drive up there (mainly the Polar Bears and Lemurs).
Knew it was going to be sunny, I did nothing but spray sunscreen and was burnt to a crisp (and I hate sun, yeah, I'm weird).
Anyways ... I had this one on my radar due to the Red Bellied Lemurs.
But good thing we kept putting this one off, and then the news of the Polar Bears came, and not having seen one since the mid '90s, this was an absolute must to-do, but obviously wanted to wait for the Bears to be there for a few weeks and the crowds would have went down a little.
Yorkshire had been on the list due to them for a while, but would need an overnight stay, and Peak eventually was a shorter drive.
Very nice drive through the village of Alton, reminded me of certain places where I'm from (Belgium).
We thought we'd go to the Polar Bears first, in case they were already out.
Very lucky they were in the water, and basically all day! One of them sure loves his ball and cone!
They are an absolute delight to see them play in the water and just watch them play! We got some great views of them plunging into the water (and wishing we could join them in that weather, haha), and got some great pictures of them jumping in.
Boyfriend got some Wallaby food, so headed over there next, before they all had their bellies full.
Next to it is the Lemur walkthrough, but most were hiding and could barely see any.
We then headed back to the beginning to do an actual loop of the entire place.
There's some separate enclosures with young Red Squirrels. These guys are way too fast for my camera skills, lol. But very cute.
We then went towards the Red Squirrel walkthrough, and saw a glimpse of one of the big ones.
Other then that, on that side of the park, there are some sheep, chickens, Flemish Giants, and play area for the kids.
The Visayan Warty Pigs, I actually managed to see here.
A zoo in Belgium has them, and I had a pass there from 2016-2018, visited multiple times, and also just 4 months ago, and never ever saw them.
We then got back to where the Lemurs are, and the talk had just started, and they had put food everywhere, so they all came out, which was great.
The Mainless Zebra is interesting to see, it just looks so different.
After, boyfriend wanted to go to the Polar Bear talk, and be there early for a nice spot as it was probably going to be very busy, and it did end up being very busy.
Everytime one of them would jump into the water or throw his ball away, everyone kept going "awwww" lol.
We then did the loop where the Vietnamese Deer are, and eventually saw it all (and multiple times) by 3.30 (were there at 10).
It was open until 6, but we both felt, we didn't really want to stay just for the sake of it.
Going back to the Polar Bears, I couldn't handle it, as the sun was getting more hot, and it is completely open, so unbearable to stand in it for me.
For me personally, it's not somewhere I'd go back more often like I'm doing with other places.
I'm definately not saying it's not worth visiting, because it is. It's a beautiful place, lots of nature around, but for us personally, there's not enough that attracks us to go more often and to justify the drive up there (mainly the Polar Bears and Lemurs).
Quite surprised at this comment. I can certainly speak from experience that zoos would not go into this without knowing what they're doing. When I have brought new category 1 species into my own zoo, we have sent keepers to the zoo the species is coming from for many months in advance to work with the species and we have had keepers from that zoo come with the species to help bed keepers in. There is masses of planning and training that goes into it. The keepers that will be working with the bears will be very very good and who is to say they haven't worked with large cat 1 carnivores in other collections? Why would this be a massive blunder?!