I spent the day at Whipsnade yesterday. My primary purpose was to see the new Aquarium, but it was my first visit since April 2011 so there were a lot of other changes for see too. I chose a Monday visit as I hoped the Zoo, and the Aquarium in particular, would be less crowded than at the weekend. I don't know if this really worked, as it was a beautiful day and the Zoo was very busy.
I particularly noticed the number of families with pre-school and early years children, which rather surprised me as I had never really thought of Whipsnade as a zoo for tinies – unlike Regent's Park or Bristol. I was also surprised by the large number of children equipped with crash helmets and scooters, which probably just shows my age: of course Whipsnade's open lawns and gently sloping, traffic-free paths suit scooters well. I wonder if I should get one for my next visit
I liked the Aquarium and I will write in detail about it later this week when I have edited and processed my photos (I took a great many on three separate visits). It will improve as the planting and the fishes grow and as the filtration systems mature.
I do understand and sympathise with the disappointment that regular Whipsnade visitors have described in this thread about the way so many species have dwindled in number or left Whipsnade altogether. So many of the big paddocks looked almost empty with just a few animals lying in a shady corner. I also noticed some worrying little signs of neglect, like the ones I have seen at Regent's Park: for example the black paint on the wire of the tiger enclosure is covered with moss on the north side and flaked off on the south and the area around the old Discovery Centre looks rather scruffy. I was also displeased by the failure of all my searches to find a worthwhile sandwich - I maintain that if the label says 'chicken and sweet corn' the main contents should not be lettuce and cucumber
However there were several sights that I really enjoyed. The nilghai herd on alert after the darting of one of the animals, Emmett (the bull elephant) eating in his yard - the first time I've ever had a clear view of him, the bears and wolverines both very active in the sunshine and best of all, the herd of gaur grazing quietly together as they moved slowly down the slope of their paddock.
