Fanfare stage left.....
OK here's the 2013 challenge for all those lucky enough to have the time and resources and crazy/driven enough (not a judgement) to be inspired to join in.
After much thought I've decided to throw down the gauntlet as to who can see the most cat species in the UK in a year (note free ranging domestics don't count).
I thought this would be an interesting challenge as it ultimately doesn't give a geographical advantage to anyone in particular -whilst living in Kent will give some a good start it's likely they're going to have to travel quite a bit (and Kent's a long way from a lot of places) to "mop up" the non-Kent species. There's also an interesting (frustrating?) random factor in that cats can be a little elusive and a trip to a collection with a species in it doesn't always yield a viewing of that species. Finally it's also possible that someone could win, given the above factors, without necessarily seeing every cat species theoretically viewable in the UK. Hopefully all of the above will result in a challenge "with legs" that will keep people interesting for a good part of 2013.
I'm keeping the challenge to a species level as I don't want to get bogged down in the quagmire of debating validity of sub-species and/or genetic purity of specific animals (so a tiger is a tiger is a tiger for purposes of the challenge). Frankly including all sub-species of Leopard and Tiger alone would start to make things a little cumbersome (and may take some fun out of the challenge).
For clarification, rules are as follows:
1. You have to actually see the animal, even if just for a second. You don't score if you visit a collection but don't see the animal (harsh, but fair);
2. Proof via photographs is not required, your word is your bond;
3. You have to see the animal via normal public access (i.e. not including zookeeper for the day or photography days behind the scenes) during normal public opening hours (i.e. no scoring because you know the keeper and can get access before/after hours). Basically the species has to be seen as Joe Public would;
4. Any limited opening or private collections (e.g. Heythrop, RSCC, WHF, and any similar collections or refuges) don't count for this challenge. Controversial I know, but see previous point and I didn't think it fair to include a handful of days these collections might be open to the public as this might logistically disadvantage a large number of people;
5. Report/update your progress on this thread as you go along (let's say mandatory reporting from seven species and above);
6. If no-one gets to see all (currently 24 by my count) species potentially seeable by 31/12/13 the winner will be deemed to be the person(s) who's seen the most at that date;
7. My (final) decision is final but I'm open to discussion and debate on any specific points.
Right, do your Zootierliste research, get your atlases out and Satnavs set, go*!!
*from 1/1/13 obviously, no jumping the gun.
OK here's the 2013 challenge for all those lucky enough to have the time and resources and crazy/driven enough (not a judgement) to be inspired to join in.
After much thought I've decided to throw down the gauntlet as to who can see the most cat species in the UK in a year (note free ranging domestics don't count).
I thought this would be an interesting challenge as it ultimately doesn't give a geographical advantage to anyone in particular -whilst living in Kent will give some a good start it's likely they're going to have to travel quite a bit (and Kent's a long way from a lot of places) to "mop up" the non-Kent species. There's also an interesting (frustrating?) random factor in that cats can be a little elusive and a trip to a collection with a species in it doesn't always yield a viewing of that species. Finally it's also possible that someone could win, given the above factors, without necessarily seeing every cat species theoretically viewable in the UK. Hopefully all of the above will result in a challenge "with legs" that will keep people interesting for a good part of 2013.
I'm keeping the challenge to a species level as I don't want to get bogged down in the quagmire of debating validity of sub-species and/or genetic purity of specific animals (so a tiger is a tiger is a tiger for purposes of the challenge). Frankly including all sub-species of Leopard and Tiger alone would start to make things a little cumbersome (and may take some fun out of the challenge).
For clarification, rules are as follows:
1. You have to actually see the animal, even if just for a second. You don't score if you visit a collection but don't see the animal (harsh, but fair);
2. Proof via photographs is not required, your word is your bond;
3. You have to see the animal via normal public access (i.e. not including zookeeper for the day or photography days behind the scenes) during normal public opening hours (i.e. no scoring because you know the keeper and can get access before/after hours). Basically the species has to be seen as Joe Public would;
4. Any limited opening or private collections (e.g. Heythrop, RSCC, WHF, and any similar collections or refuges) don't count for this challenge. Controversial I know, but see previous point and I didn't think it fair to include a handful of days these collections might be open to the public as this might logistically disadvantage a large number of people;
5. Report/update your progress on this thread as you go along (let's say mandatory reporting from seven species and above);
6. If no-one gets to see all (currently 24 by my count) species potentially seeable by 31/12/13 the winner will be deemed to be the person(s) who's seen the most at that date;
7. My (final) decision is final but I'm open to discussion and debate on any specific points.
Right, do your Zootierliste research, get your atlases out and Satnavs set, go*!!
*from 1/1/13 obviously, no jumping the gun.
. I'm sure he'll upload a photo once he's received. Don't get too excited, you could fit it in your pocket (though it would be very uncomfortable to sit on).
).
just noting the similarity in our ideas. One other species that cannot be seen outside Kent - at least at the moment - is Rusty-spotted Cat, as the Hamerton animals haven't as yet gone onshow.
