Future projects (2009 - 2010) » Antwerp Zoo

04-09-2008

Every zoo has good and bad points of course. Antwerp Zoo is small, that's a fact but they deliver very good work and in the future they will use the space they have good, I put my trust on that . I was in Hagenbeck Zoo last week in Germany, wich is 2,5 times bigger than the Antwerp Zoo and have much less animals and species, and there the lion exhibit is smaller than the new one Antwerp will create coming year... Also the space for Coati's was not that large as in Antwerp. Even the Giraf enclousure certainly was not much larger than the one Antwerp will get after the enlargement (and they also share it with another specie in Hagenbeck). So a large zoo doesn't always mean more space for animals even if they have the possibility. And Antwerp Zoo is a protected monument so it's even more difficult to create more space for animals, but they still do it in the best way they can! But of course I realize they can't have a Elephant exhibit like in Köln...

(I liked Hagenbeck Zoo very much!)

12-09-2008

With the exception of the elephants (whom i would like to see leaving the zoo - their present enclosure is too small, and a new one would be to impressive given the rather small size of the zoo) i think Antwerp is making excellent progress.

Nocturnal and reptile house are outstanding improvements, the historical parc and collection are the real attractions of the zoo. I agree much can be better, and so the cats will have their part of the modernisation. I'm not convinced that every tropical monkey species needs an outdoor enclosure. Certainly, some things can be better (once their is a new gorilla exibit, i hope the guerzza and owl-faced guenons are kept together with the gorilla - the celebes macaques definitely need a larger space) but overall this stays a very attractive building. If i compare it with those in West-Berlin, Barcelona, Cologne, etc. the Antwerp small monkey house still looks very modern (although it's been built in 1978).

Really urgent are the big cats (lions 2010, tiger valley and others 2012?), small owls (i wander why they don't built some new aviaries in Planckendael, the zoo really got an interesting collection), gorilla enclosure, giraffes and some aviaries. Too bad the plans for babirussa and anoa are just temporary, especially because it's been built on what i excepted to be the location for the gorilla forest.

03-11-2008

The Giraff enclosure will be 900+ m² instead of 1500m²...

04-11-2008

Can you elaborate what is temporary about the anoa/babirusa enclosures?
What if these are temp ... what is will happen to the space once they - sadly - have left Zoo Antwerpen .... more okapi spaces?

The current Great Ape House has been somewhat renovated for the chimps and gorillas after the orangs left .... (but not ideal and I am sure not the final redevelopment Zoo Antwerpen was looking for). What are the eventual plans for the gorilla and chimps?

The Primate House with its collection of rare langurs, Sulawesi macaques, guerezas and guenons ... what are the plans for them? Will the South American monkeys be relocated to the South American biome in Park Planckendael (where they all would be more in tune with the other species on offer)?

The birds of prey (vultures and owls) and the Carnivore House ... what will happen there?

The Small Mammal House ... for Congo peafowl ... fascinating, but how will it look like?

Soo many questions yet unanswered!

04-11-2008

Are you talking about a house or outside pen?

06-11-2008

Outside...

@ Jelle, the final masterplan has to be still made. They are going to announce it this month, but further we don"t know anything, exept the fact that there are going to be a lot of temporay cage's the next years...

Oh, the lions will get there new exhibit a year later, they are first building the temp. exhibits for the Girafs and Okapi's...

22-02-2009

The situation on February 9, 2009: