It will certainly be interesting as to how substantial this work will be, and the end results (more so at London I’d imagine). Apart from the covid lockdowns, I personally don’t recall both sites being closed for a prolonged period, albeit during a “quiet” time of year
ZSL London Zoo ZSL London Zoo News 2024
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DCzootripper
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I personally think, they should re design the Petting zoo and animal adventure, because
1. The petting zoo is very old fashioned, and does not match the new look of the zoo, having a more entertainment look than education
2. Animal adventure, was better with the vicunas and anteaters, and they only have coatis there, but it still taks up lots of space
I don't know what could replace it, maybe a european area?
1. The petting zoo is very old fashioned, and does not match the new look of the zoo, having a more entertainment look than education
2. Animal adventure, was better with the vicunas and anteaters, and they only have coatis there, but it still taks up lots of space
I don't know what could replace it, maybe a european area?
Yes, that area was only redeveloped a few years ago after a fire
DCzootripper
Well-Known Member
I actually realised an even better option, that area could be a walk through of london zoo's history, seen as it already has a memorial and the original penguin pool
cornu aspersum
Well-Known Member
Won't the old reptile house if it ever becomes a museum fulfill that role?
Kalaw
Well-Known Member
I don’t believe that vicuñas and anteaters were ever kept in Animal Adventure. In recent times they have only been kept in the pair of enclosures opposite Tiny Giants, although the anteaters were temporarily moved into an enclosure behind the giraffes at one point. Before the area was redeveloped and coatis arrived, the area was home to reindeer.
I am not the biggest fan of domestic zones, but London Zoo is aimed for families, and any large family group with children will appreciate the playgrounds, walkthroughs and petting displays. Couple that with the fact that, between the initial development in the late 2000s and its redevelopment a few years ago after the fire, it is the most expensive project in the zoo’s history, and I really can’t see them being willing to demolish it any time soon.
It would make much more sense to use empty areas, such as the North Bank or the Casson, than demolishing perfectly functional existing ones.
DCzootripper
Well-Known Member
That is a good point, thanks kalaw
It’s a lovely idea, and hopefully one of the old buildings can be utilised as a museum but London really cannot afford to use space of that size for anything else but animals.
Vicuña and Giant anteater were never part of Animal Adventure, they were located behind the BUGS building and subsequently replaced with a Crazy Golf course!
Animal Adventure could be better imo, that area of the zoo seems to have always been susceptible to misfortune. However, getting rid of it would be a bad idea. And I imagine the Paul family would have something to say about that!
Animal Adventure could be better imo, that area of the zoo seems to have always been susceptible to misfortune. However, getting rid of it would be a bad idea. And I imagine the Paul family would have something to say about that!
Charles
Well-Known Member
I suspect that’s the reason they keep it, plus for families it’s probably a very popular part of the zoo for them and a lot of the time families make up the majority of visitors
How much was changed before and after the fire?
As much as I'm sure we're all rolling our eyes at Crazy Golf, at least it is the kind of visitor amenity that would be more easily turned back into an animal space in the future, as opposed to building a restaurant or gift shop... could be easily turned back into an animal enclosure someday, fingers crossed.
Kalaw
Well-Known Member
The original area of the children’s zoo around the camels and owl chicks (known as the Ambika Paul Children’s Zoo after a young girl who sadly passed away, prompting her family to donate £1 million to the zoo, one of many philanthropic acts that saved the zoo from closure in the late nineties) was undamanged and thus unchanged. However, the area around the meerkats and porcupines, as well as the playground and the water play area nearby were all destroyed and needed renovation. I don’t believe the fire affected the coati enclosure near Blackburn Pavilion, but the area around it, which didn’t feature much other than a small play area, was damaged. In terms of animal exhibitry, the only changes were the expansion of the meerkat and porcupine enclosures at the expense of the space that once held aardvarks, and the introduction of a new pathway around the goat enclosure. The most significant change was to the play areas, which were expanded quite considerably.
Regarding the golf course, it indeed has been changed to something else, namely a wildlife garden, which is a nice idea, but a little bit redundant in a zoo that is surrounded by 400 acres of parkland, especially when the zoo itself doesn’t really have enough space to be wasteful.
DCzootripper
Well-Known Member
I Realise now that the ambika paul childrens zoo is very important, also thank you to panthera 1981 for reminding me. I did go there when they were there, I was just very young, so it got confused in my memory
They do seem to have hinted at this a few times.
I have one of these, still boxed - the soap, not a bear cub!
Which is the Meet the Neighbours Aviary?
Dr. Loxodonta
Well-Known Member
Yes, this is correct
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