The news about the native species conservation on Hamerton's website have had small updates added since it was first reported here - on the 16th February the first group of Eurasian harvest mice arrived and are settling into their off-show breeding area and on 20th February the five pairs of grey partridges arrived. After the one-month isolation period to comply with BALAI regulations, one of these pairs will move on-show, probably sharing an aviary with the female British jay. The updates can be found at the bottom of this news article: Hamerton Zoo Park - Animal Park Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire
Tasmanian Golden Possums are now on show as confirmed on the zoo's Facebook page: Hamerton Zoo Holy **** this place gets some amazing animals!!!!
I was planning a trip tomorrow. Often find that when they open first thing, some of the more harder see animals are out, so sometimes worth getting there at opening time.
I usually just take in hour or so on the way home from other places, or work journeys. The very few times I have gone early have not been particularly fruitful. Besides, the enclosure I thought Rob referred to doesn't look complete to me. "the Golden possums are using the octagonal 'aviary' exhibit immediately to the right after you emerge from Outback Aviary,"
Yes the exhibit is as you walk out of the O/A on your right. There was meant to be an indoor section you could walk into with a window to view out of which would let you get a better look at the Black Pademelon as well, and also to see over to the Southern Cassowary exhibit (which was fenced off the last time I went). I think that section was going to be all there was to view the Cassowary and not a path up to the exhibit which is a shame. But they were definitely due to go into that part which is right next to the Black Pademelons.
It didn't look any different today to when I took the photo on Monday and I really could not see a hatch for the possums to move in or out, although I'm sure they must have one.
Few updates from today's visit. Javan Binturong house is currently closed. Ring Tailed Possom is no longer on show in the Marmoset house, and is now off show. Work continuing on new cafe and gift shop, but it's unlikely it will now be ready for Easter. Fish Tanks have been put into the new cafe area though (these are empty) Golden Possoms on show is kinda debatable. Part of the exhibit is on show, but their house is actually offshow, and that enters to another offshow area, so only way to see them would be if they come out their house and through one exhibit and into another to be viewed. No signage is up for them though. Johnstone's Cassowary / Black Pademelon paddocks nearly finished and fencing is being completed. The indoor viewing area next to Golden Possoms still seems to unfinished and storing a lot of rubbish. Hopefully this will all be completed in a few weeks. Only saw one Wombat today indoors, which was surprisingly awake! Couldn't see the other one, wasn't in it's bed or outside, so must have burrowed itself somewhere. Grison, Oncilla and Sumatran Civet surprisingly quite active today. A fair bit of building work seems to be going on behind the Tiger Paddock, by where the off show Cheetah's once were. No sign of Zebra's in the overflow car park section, have they been moved ? They weren't signposted either. Not much seems to be happening where the Nocturnal house is being built (no change in the last month). Swamp Wallaby Joeys all seem to have left mothers pouches. Bat exhibit says under redevelopment and nothing in there.
Is the sign down? I wondered if they were being taken out at the end of of yesterday, but didn't trouble them to ask.
Sign was still up, but they were dismantling the exhibit and removing the bed box and other things. I asked a keeper who was walking out with a few things and said that they were offshow now.
A number of animal departures have been announced on the zoo's website. This includes: - Bactrian camels and zebras moving to zoos in Italy - Rufous bettongs and collared lemurs both travelling to two zoos in the Czech Republic - Giant donkeys moving to three other UK collections - A two-toed sloth moving to Poland - A Southern pudu moving to France In April, there will also be greater grison departing for Germany as well as several new species due to arrive soon. More information is included below: Hamerton Zoo Park - Animal Park Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire
I'd have to look back at the previous threads to check, but I think they just have the two on show and I think they are siblings. Their home at the moment was always temporary, so maybe they have simply decided to move them on and concentrate on other projects.
This is purely informed supposition, but given the fact the collection has a breeding pair off-display (and, I think, off-display youngsters too) it is probably reasonable to guess it is merely the surplus stock which will be departing.
They've definitely had successful breeding of the Grison, so I would assume that it would be the offspring that are leaving and not the species entirely.
Just had an email from them, in response to a panicked enquiry, it IS just the youngsters leaving - grison will still be on show post April (and Brexit...).
The website article clearly states all of the departures are young animals born at Hamerton. This suggests all species listed are still at the zoo.
