Can I digress back to the subject of this thread?
I visited Regent's Park today for the first time in a couple of years. I can clear up one or two points: I actually saw 3 harrier hawks in with the black kites and the 2 woolly-necked storks are in separate compartments in the same block. There is some scaffolding inside the Snowdon Aviary, as it was Sunday there was no work being done. Otherwise the whole North bank is almost empty, except for 2 indvidual tawny frogmouths in the old bird centre (another listed building by the way) and a little flock of Java sparrows huddled in the shelter of the old British owl aviary.
I must admit that I agree with the comments that the zoo is looking rather sad. It was typified for me by the way that the former hummingbird area of the Blackburn Pavilion now holds more Java sparrows, Timor zebra finches, cordon bleu and Forbes' parrot finches - all nice enough species (particularly the Fpfs), but not really what that little area was built for and I felt that they were not properly suited to that accommodation.
I spent most of my time in the Reptile House and the Aquarium, which were the main highlights for me. I wasn't surprised that there was no sign of the giant salamander or the bushmaster, but it was nice to see Telfair's skinks again so many years after I first saw them in Jersey. Many of the Aquarium displays still look good, so I took a lot of photos to record them when they are gone: I don't know how many of them will be fitted into the renovated fishy corner of B.U.G.S and the new display at Whipsnade, which still seems to be entirely hypothetical.
