Wildlands Emmen The city counsil of Emmen has agreed with building the new zoo!

[Elly]

It's now official! The city counsil of Emmen has formally agreed with the plans to rebuild the zoo on a new site. The second site will be enlarged to 42 hectares.

It will be a complete new zoo-concept with five different “worlds”: the world of the encounter, the world of creativity (including the city theatre), the world of the humid warmth (including an elephant enclosure that triples the current one in size), the world of dry heat and the world of cold. Main theme of the park will be a sustainable balance between nature and culture.

Moving the zoo is part of a big restructuring plan of the centre of the city of Emmen which will cost about 450 million euros (funding is already there). Note that the money is for the whole plan, not just the zoo.

If everything goes according to plan, the zoo will open in five years.

 

[dragon(ele)nerd]

That is awesome news!!!
Wonder what specific species will be on display? This is soo exciting.

I'm sorry but it doesn't seem that clear to me. Are they building a new zoo e.g Berlin zoo and Berlin TP
Or are they making a completely new site beiong that the old site will be abandoned e.g Sydney Moore park and Taronga zoo.

 

[jwer]

Emmen Zoo was completely located in the city centre untill a few years ago. They started to expand the zoo on a new site, about 500 meters away from the main entrance and the park has been two locations eversince.

The city council has now agreed to abandon the one in the city centre and move it completely over to the new site which will be expanded. At the moment, there isn't much on the new site yet, just the "Playa Pinguinos", a handfull more exhibits, the playing "hall" and the large filter installation. Everything else is still in the city center...

 

[dragon(ele)nerd]

Thanks a lot Jwer! Much more clear picture.

 

[Jurek7]

Great news!

The second site will be enlarged to 42 hectares.

I would already reserve space for more... Opinions what is sufficent space for big animals are growing every year!

It will be a complete new zoo-concept with five different “worlds”: the world of the encounter, the world of creativity (including the city theatre), the world of the humid warmth (including an elephant enclosure that triples the current one in size), the world of dry heat and the world of cold.

Cautious. Such abstract concepts usually become something disappointing, like a bad version of an ordinary zoo.

Moving the zoo is part of a big restructuring plan of the centre of the city of Emmen which will cost about 450 million euros (funding is already there).

I didn't know Emmen has such a lot of money!

 

[sooty mangabey]

Great news!

Is it though? What's so wrong with the current zoo? I would say the worst bit is actually the beginning of the new zoo - the penguin enclosure, and the associated things. By moving out of the 'old' zoo, Emmen will lose a lot of its character and identity - the African enclosure, for example, is wonderful, as is the moose paddock - and other bits too. Building a whole new zoo from scratch? Hmmmm. isn't it one of those things which sounds great in theory, but in practice never quite works.

I'm a big football fan. In Britain, many teams have moved out of their antiquated, shabby, inconvenient stadia, and moved into brand new, state-of-the-art, all-singing, all-dancing places - with graet catering, parking, sight-lines and so on. And alomst without excpetion, they're awful! Soulless, identikit places with no character or history. My own team, portsmouth, have an awful old groundwhich is falling down, where you can't take a pee at half time because the toilets are so crowded, where in return for my £700 a season i get a set with a pillar in front of it - and I dread the day we leave for somewhere new. It has character, it has history, it has identity. Same with zoos. Yes, Emmen's current site is quite constricted, but make what is there even better. if that means moving out of keeping elephants, then so be it. Get rid of the museum at the entrance. The tiger enclosure is pretty uninspiring. There are planty of improvements which could be made!

I appreciate that i am, in some ways, a Luddite. But I do think this neophilia is a dangerous trend!

 

[UntBwe]

Jurek, Emmen is not 'moving out' their zoo. It's only 500 meters from the present one in the city center. They are combining the zoo with a brand new theatre, changing the infrastructure of the city, etc. The total of 450 million is not just needed for the zoo but for the total of plans.

At the present location in the center of the city of Emmen the zoo can not expand. Nor can they realize some improvements without high costs, like a new barn for the elephants.

 

[Elly]

Emmen's current site is quite constricted, but make what is there even better. if that means moving out of keeping elephants, then so be it.

That's one of their main attractions!!! They have the biggest (and most productive) herd of Europe.

But seriously, the current site is (very) restrictive for any future development of the zoo ánd of the city centre. I guess (and what's out there in the press - all in Dutch) that a lot of things to be build are what they have, but much better, bigger enclosures, newest insights in animal keeping and new ways of experiencing the zoo (also aimed at less abled people).

 

[UntBwe]

The first drawings, just to give an idea. It's not definitive yet.

Translations:
Zeeleeuwen = sea lions
Zeekoeien = manatees
Apeneilanden = apes, and monkey islands (orangutans, ruffed lemurs, mandrills, howler monkeys)
Waterbuffels = water buffalo
Olifanten = elephants
Bevers = beavers
Bruine pelikanen = brown pelicans
Pinguins = penguins
Pantserneushoorns = Indian rhinoceros
Nijlpaarden = hippos
Leeuwen = lions
Tijgers = tigers
Elanden = elks
IJsberen = polar bears
Bizons = bisons

 

[Swedish Zoo Fan]

Thank you for the picture. It looks like they will build two savannah's right?

 

[Elly]

[Pantserneushoorns = Indian rhinoceros

Where will these come from??? There are currently only 48 of them in Europe (according to ISIS). Has one of the institutions decided abandonning breeding them? These are very hard to get.

Another thing what kind of puzzles me. I sort of remember that Emmen zoo had a statement about "no primates" and I now see urangs getting in the picture.

 

[Yassa]

A number of zoos are breeding indian rhinos sucessfully, so it should be possible to get animals. Currently, in Berlin (East), Stuttgart, Whipsnade and Rotterdam the breeding females have calves, and the female in Nuremberg is pregnant. The 2 proven females in Basle may breed again soon, and the female in Berlin west too, while Terra Natura/Spain has 2 young females who are now reaching breeding age and last year, they got a proven male from Rotterdam. I don`t think Emmen will have problems to get 2 young males for a bachelor group as start, and 1.1 or 1.2 later.

About the apes, they`ve obviously changed their mind, which I think is a good thing. Orang utans are critically endangered and breeding works relatively well in zoos, so additional holders are needed.

 

[taun]

Chester & Edinburgh have recently recieved indian rhinos. So I don't think they will have much trouble. Rhinos need space and most zoo that have breeding animals have limited space e.g. whipsnade and will have to move atleat the male calf of in the next two years.

 

[Elly]

A male group I can see happening (coming from Whipsnade/Rotterdam?) but will they be content with a situation where it might take years before they get a female?

Three of the zoos keeping Indian rhinos already have a batchelor group and I guess that they want to move into a breeding situation as well. The only way to go from a 1.1 situation to a 1.2 situation is having a female young being born (as Rotterdam did) - these ladies are pretty precious.

 

[Yassa]

There is no big surplus of young males in the population, so I have no doubt that Emmen will get a female or two in time, especially when they`re put on the wiaiting list now - it`s 5 years! In the last 1-2 years, serveral zoos recieved a young female without waiting too long, Chester, Warszaw, Madrid and Terra Natura for example (Terra Natura even got 2!). The young females from Whipsnade or Animal Park Berlin (total 3 - 2 in Berlin, 1 in Whipsnade) would be possible candidates, although they may need placement earlier.

 

[UntBwe]

Another thing what kind of puzzles me. I sort of remember that Emmen zoo had a statement about "no primates" and I now see urangs getting in the picture.

Actually their statement is: no apes. But they already have some: gibbons. But like Yassa said it's good to start a new breeding group especially after the new that Burgers' Zoo will close their orangutan exhibit!

Amersfoort has also a couple of Indian rhinoceros, and hopefully they will get some offspring the next few years.

 

[Swedish Zoo Fan]

^Wait, did you say that Burgers will close their orangutan exhibit??

 

[Elly]

^Wait, did you say that Burgers will close their orangutan exhibit??

Yes, Burgers' Zoo states (their PR person on a Dutch site) that according to them the exhibit is no longer suitable for orangs and have asked the EEP coordinator to come up with a solution. There's no final planning at this moment on what's going to happen.

 

[UntBwe]

The new elephant exhibit of Emmen Zoo (December 2008)

Bottom left: The 'overnight' outside enclosures with the barn (grey).
In brown: the outside enclosures. It seems that they can be separated into two.

The lenght of of the 'brown enclosure' is 300 meters (2.3 times the present one), this is also almost the lenght of the 'overnight enclosure' The barn is 35 x 100 meters. That is 3.500 sq meters for the barn only, 7 times the present one! The 'overnight enclosure' is circa 17.000 sq meters.

The purpose for the overnigt enclosure: During the day the elephants stay in the outside enclosure in the park (the 'brown enclosure'). At the end of the day they will come into the barn for fresh food, and then can choose to stay inside or go outside in the 'overnight enclosure' to stay the night. The caregivers can clean up the 'brown enclosure', and in the morning the elephants will enter it. A great concept!

It's difficult to measure the 'brown' area but I was told that the total enclosure will be 4.5 hectares (45.000 sq meters: 4.7 times the present one). With the 'overnight enclosure' of 17.000, the barn of 3.500 sq meters, that makes the 'brown enclosure' 24.500 sq meters or 2.24 hectares, 2.7 times the present outside enclosure. The large enclosure of Cologne Zoo measures 1.2 hectares.

The great herd of elephants of Emmen Zoo shall get a very nice and large new exhibit. I can't wait to see it.

 

[UntBwe]

The apes and monkey islands

The public can choose to go by boat or to walk alongsides the water. Underneath the islands you can see the inside enclosures of the monkeys and apes: orangutans, gibbons, howler monkeys, colobus monkeys, spider monkeys, squirrel monkeys. It must be exciting to watch the monkeys on their island while you sit on a boat.

Left of the orange building is the enclosure where I think the indian rhinos and or the tapirs will come.

Other animals in this area: ruffed lemurs, cattas, axis deers, water buffalo, spectacled bear, coatis, flamingo, alligator, manatees, some other birds.

From left to right the area as shown here is 400 meters.