Cotswold Wildlife Park and Gardens Cotswold Wildlife Park News 2011

Just a few things spotted on a quick visit yesterday that had changed since my last visit in December last year.They are re-building part of the shop area by the main car park.Mara are now living in the old White-lipped Peccary enclosure(ie the one they where in when they first arrived),as they have now left for Southern Ireland.A company called Zootec have been very busy doing some very nice fake rock work on the Penguin Pool,and the Reticulated Python enclosure,and are currently working on the Morelets Crocodile enclosure,or atleast the top end of it away from the pool,while this work is going on they are also putting in a safety door for the staff at the opposite end from the pool.Also they currently have Greater Indian Hornbill hidden away in quarantine from San Diego Zoo,also spotted hidden off-show was a newly arrived Bearded Barbet,that can be seen if you peak into the inside quarters for the Sulphur-crested Cockatoo and a species of Laughing Thrush which is escaping me for the moment.

 

Think the laughing thrush is white-spotted Ianthocincla ocellata.

 

You are correct just found my notes from December and thats what I have listed for that enclosure then!

 

Any news on the anteater enclosure at all?

 

They are making the old Pudu enclosure bigger for them,by expanding on to the bit of lawn between the Pudu enclosure and the Pets Corner building,they will also have excess to the old White-lipped Peccary enclosure as well.

 

Any idea if they will be in before mid-April, when I plan to make my next visit?

 

@zoogiraffe.
Any idea what they intend to do at the Morelett's croc exhibit/pools?
Any sign the programme might extend elsewhere?

 

@ Jerseygorilla they are already on show so even if the work isn`t finished,as long as they decide to come out you should see them!!

@ Kifaru Bwana they are certainly aren`t extending it any way if anything I would say the area for the Croc,will be smaller after they have finished the work,as for what they are doing apart from adding another escape route for the staff not a clue!

 

Why did CWP move away from keeping white-lipped peccaries? They looked pretty excellent, and as a fairly fecund species they built up a good sized group. It seems a real shame that they no longer have them. And what is this place in Ireland that does have them - I presume either directly or indirectly from CWP. A Google search reveals not an enormous amount about Kilbrew Tayto Park, but it seems like some sort of farm park. Having seen the enormous teeth of a peccary, they seem a curious species for such a place to keep...

 

@sooty - you can see a map of Tayto Park here: http://www.zoochat.com/58/hunky-dory-way-56779/#post387475

It's a potato crisp/North American-themed kiddies theme park-cum-zoo/farm park. Rather an odd place!

 

@Zoogiraffe: Is there going to be any indoor viewing or just viewing from the woodland walkway?

 

I can only assume that the TAG don't support the establishment of this species in european zoos? There's no ESB or EEP for them.

The park in Ireland just sounds like an Irish Folly Farm, I'm not sure if there is an Irish version of the farm diversification scheme or if the owners of the crisp company simply wanted to drive some profit into a tourist attraction. It seems very idiosyncratic so far given the supposed North American theme, but I suppose Ocelot and Peccary do both exist wild in North America....although not the white-lipped species.

 

Doesn`t lok like there will be any indoor viewing for them!

 

The parks 2011 newsletter is now available.

http://www.cotswoldwildlifepark.co.uk/pdfs/Cotswold 2011 Newsletter.pdf

 

Thank you for the link kiang - I love the article about Oxford Zoo.

 

Yet another quick update from Cotswold!!

The Morelets Crocodile enclosure is progressing well,it looks like the enclosure is being designed so that it has a dividing wall half way doen the enclosure,so that the staff can shut the Crocs in one side and safely clean the other,Photos will be posted in due course!
The newly arrived Arabian Rock Hyrax gave birth to 3 young on the 4/3/2011.
The Great Blue Turacos are now on-show inside the Tropical Free Flight House,having moved from the old Great Indian Hornbill Aviary so they can start preparing it ready to house Great Indian Hornbills again!!

 

In this, one of their major pieces of marketing for 2011, the main article is about the death of a rhino - a year ago. Does this strike anyone else as rather naive? Perhaps rather touchingly so - I like the fact that CWP isn't such a thrusting, marketing-driven place as, say, Drusillas, or the safari parks. But even so...

 

I think the idiosyncratic development of the collection under the current owner (the first exhibit was for canadian timber wolves at a time when collections had been going out of these) suggests that the park is not so refined in terms of development strategies for income streams/marketing/gate revenue. I've no idea if this would be because the park does consistently well with loyal visitors or is in a good catchment area with low competition, or whether it is subsidised with private cash reserves by the owners. I could be wrong obviously. Its nice to have those collections that don't make their animals eat things out of pumpkins at halloween, play with footballs every world cup, and who don't make a huge deal out of the annual stocktake, although I understand why some collections need to do everything they can to survive.

 

I think you may be wrong there!!!

Halloween 2010 | Facebook

 

And aren't they lovely?

http://www.zoochat.com/197/arabian-rock-hyrax-cotswold-wp-05-a-205331/


This is quite possibly the first UK birth for the subspecies, though whether they're eligible for a UK first breeding depends where mating took place!