Noah's Ark Zoo Farm Noah's Ark Zoo Farm 2020

Some news about the past year and the appointment of Larry Bush (son of the zoo's founders) as Managing Director.

Noah's Ark Zoo Farm marks record-breaking 20th year

 

With the high profile of this zoo, I was genuinely surprised that there are only 200,000 visitors per year. There are elephants, rhinos, lions, tigers and bears, which would all seem like popular animals for visitors. What would be the closest major zoos to Noah's Ark Zoo Farm that could possibly be bigger draws in terms of annual attendance?

 

It’s 6.5 miles to Bristol Zoo, and less than ten to the Wild Place Project - two infinitely better places!

 

Do you have access to UK zoo attendance figures? They would make interesting reading... and it is very hard to find any details, as there is no requirement to publish them.

 

This list from late 2007 is hopelessly outdated...but still interesting.

Top 30 UK zoos

 

The species they have are maybe high profile, but the zoo itself is very empty and open and lacks in my opinion a lot of atmosphere to make it a nice place. Very cage like, expensive to visit for the very few species they have, and with playgrounds and a farm animal show is mostly adapted for families with small children (3-10 years?).

I didn't visit the wild Place Project so cannot say anything about that place, but indeed Bristol Zoo is already much nicer to visit.

 

I believe that in the past year both Noah's ark and Wild Place have had increases in attendance whilst Bristol has had a decrease.
Also in the past year Wild place has opened it's Bear Wood complex Whilst NAZF has started opening Sundays at peak times along with opening Wings of the World and it's South American area. Bristol Zoo has seen the closure of its South American area and has added very little with visitor appeal.

 

Thanks s/l - interesting, but yes very old. Given recent growth trends, a new version would be even more interesting, and not one compiled by a 'work experience student on a wet afternoon', as I think the quote went...

 

I visited Bristol Zoo a few weeks ago (I've been going there since the 1960's) and was struck at how little there is to see really at present. Apart from the major exhibits-Lion, Gorillas, Pygmy hippos, Seals/coasts, Insect, Reptile houses and Aquarium, there's not a lot else nowadays as a major draw. Brazil area was just closed off/shut down. The huge construction where the tree kangaroos are seems pointless. The nocturnal house continues to be frustrating in so much as the lighting is so poor, e.g. the AyeAye is just a dim shape in the darkness and you cannot make out any features at all. Similar for some of the other exhibits in there. Birds, yes, but the Keas were offshow. The Monkey areas were poorer also; single male Drill waiting to leave, just 3(?) obese Lion-tailed macaques now etc.

Being wintertime zoos always don't look their best but I felt the entrance price of £12(?) reflected the decrease in the range of species exhibited nowadays. Two hours was plenty of time there.

 

Bristol's Nocturnal house is excellent first thing in the morning. We visited in December and had an incredible up close view of all of the residents (including Aye Aye) while the lights transitioned from day to night. This is the case every time we visit - you just need to plan to go straight to the nocturnal house at opening (assuming you are there for opening). The keepers are usually putting food out at this time and the animals are active as they are just getting up.

 

I think tt should be possible to see the Nocturnal House inhabitants clearly throughout the day, not just during the light changeover... The AyeAyes are in fact nearly always active when I go too, its just you can't see them properly. I remember Chester's AyeAye being perfectly visible, its just a case of bad lighting at Bristol.

 

I know this is a NAZF thread but I’m still amazed at how Bristol can support three large zoos.

I agree that Bristol Zoo is looking tired now. Not wishing to take anything away from the work they do with endangered species and the type of animals that most visitors won’t look twice at, but I think it needs a lot of money spent on it... money they probably don’t have. I know my opinion isn’t popular amongst the sentimental zoo fans given the history of the site but they have 12 acres of prime real estate in the most expensive area of Bristol, I would love to know what that land could be sold for and the entire operation moved to Wild Place where there is tons more room. Just a thought and I’m sure it is one that has crossed their minds too. I don’t think sentimentality should come
Into the equation where conservation is concerned.

I like NAZF. I agree it is very open but you can’t argue with the species they have there and it is constantly, albeit slowly, improving. I think it would be good if they could get another species in with the Elephants as the enclosure is HUGE and vastly underused. I would like to see the Lion and Tiger enclosures improved, removing the cages. I don’t know if that is on their radar. Zoos never really advertise what they want to do next and I am dying to know what will be the next addition to Wild Place. They play their cards very close to their chest but they have a ready-made enclosure there where the Wolves used to be. I’d like the Asiatic Lions from Bristol Zoo to be relocated there.

 

I do agree they would be in a far stronger position with just one all-embracing zoo/wildlife park/conservation park on the Wild Place site. It has excellent access also, being so close to the M5 for visitors coming from outside Bristol yet still close enough to the city for its own population. But the old zoo site has such historic significance- will it ever happen I wonder?

The Lions would of course be better off at Wild Place too, but while the 'zoo' still exists they need them there- a sort of catch22 situation if you like.

As to Noah's Ark, it will probably always look rather like zoo animals kept on a farm, rather than a planned wildlife park, but I can see its popularity, particularly what it offers young families. I imagine it will be difficult for them to source more Elephants, perhaps not as easy as they envisaged when they built that big enclosure designed as an 'elephant rescue' project.

 

Any male African Elephant born in Europe, that is not identified as a breeder in the short term, should be a candidate for there.
I can't think of a species they could safely keep with them, but maybe it has been done. I have idea Boras may mix theirs, but they have a breeding herd, which may be safer with other species than a bull group?

 

Completely agree with everything you say about BZ, WP and NAZF Pertinax but I don’t think historical significance should have any bearing on the best environment for wildlife. I wouldn’t want to see the demise of Bristol zoo but the constraints of such an old site are now very evident

 

Yes, I'm surprised no more than 3 have been sent there so far. There must be other candidates..

 

Most attendance figures get published in the International Zoo Yearbook, the latest overview was published last month. For Noah's Ark the figure was 180.000 in 2018, compared to 562.192 for Bristol Zoo and 200.000+ for The Wild Place (the latter figure is from 2017 and comes from their own website, they are not listed in the IZY).

 

As UK zoos have very different ways of arriving at attendance figures, (depending on who this data is aimed at?), who they count and how many times, any comparisons should be made with caution. All you can assume is that collections should be pretty consistent in the way these figures are collected year on year, so they do give an idea of trends - probably...

 

Lies, damned lies and statistics.

 

Roughly what's the maximum number of elephants NAZF can hold altogether?