The Bavarian Adventures Of A Tea-Loving Dave - April 2015

Part III: En-Route To Jungleworld

We next came to a relatively large enclosure for European Barn Owl (Tyto alba); there were several trees and bushes dotted around an open grassy floor, with a large felled tree – presumably intended as a climbing and perching point – resting against a cluster of imitation rocks towards the centre of the aviary forming a cave-like shelter. One wall of the aviary, where the indoor housing for the inhabitants was located, was rather overgrown with ivy and other vegetation. Although the aviary seemed very pleasant, and certainly provided enough space for the taxon within, the enclosure gave the distinct impression that it had been designed with a more terrestrial inhabitant in mind; this would certainly explain the relatively open nature of the aviary, and the presence of a ground-floor den in a central point. A little further along from here, we reached a rather long and spacious enclosure which was signposted for Northern Lynx (Lynx lynx lynx); this largely possessed a scrubby substrate with little grass, interspersed with boulders, fallen trees and logs, and overall seemed a little poorly-kept – certainly in worse condition than the Missouri Cougar enclosure had been. We were unable to gauge whether the enclosure was, nonetheless, still well-suited to the inhabitants, as we were unable to see any Lynx despite lingering at the enclosure for some time. The back of the enclosure, where the indoor housing was located, also gave the distinct impression of having been left to stagnate for some time.

We then reached a large and rather appealing enclosure for Snow Leopard (Panthera uncia); open grassy expanses were counterpointed with areas where there were dense clusters of rocks and boulders providing plenty of climbing opportunities for the inhabitants, with a handful of trees scattered around the more open areas. I felt that this enclosure was significantly better than many of those which we had encountered in this portion of Tierpark Hellabrunn, which I was getting the distinct impression was one of the areas which had gone longest without renovation. In many ways it reminded me of the similar area containing big cat dens at Zoo Leipzig, which we had seen a year previously on our last trip to Germany; however, the aforesaid area had lacked anything matching the quality of this Snow Leopard enclosure. The inhabitants were not terribly active in the growing heat of the morning, but it was obvious that they had plenty of space in which to move around, and plenty of places around the enclosure where they could escape the view of the public. Just opposite, we came across the viewing for the internal enclosures for the Northern Lynx and Amur Tiger; these comprised relatively small, stark rooms clad in wooden boards, with shelves along the back walls and small amounts of wood-chip and tree branches on the floor of the enclosures. Although perfectly serviceable as indoor shelters for the inhabitants, they struck me as rather unappealing in appearance and possibly a little too small – especially in the case of the enclosure for Amur Tiger.



It occurred to me that they were no different from the carnivore dens at the Alfred-Brehm Haus at Tierpark Berlin, if not slightly inferior; yet the latter enclosures are – as I have discussed at length in the past – often criticised and lambasted, whilst I had never heard anything negative about the enclosures at Tierpark Hellabrunn prior to my visit. This disparity struck me as all the more “off” when one considers that before ascending to the directorship of the two Berlin collection, Andreas Kniereim had been the director of Tierpark Hellabrunn for five years; I find it strange that he has stated his desire to comprehensively change the Alfred-Brehm enclosures, yet apparently felt these dens and surrounding enclosures at Tierpark Hellabrunn were worthy of being left alone.

A bit further along, we came across several large enclosures for European Wolverine (Gulo gulo gulo), each of which followed the same general design; numerous rock dens, piles of fallen wood and boulders were strewn around on several levels, with the substrate varying between grass, scrub and bare earth, and areas of thick vegetation and tree cover. One of the enclosures contained a large and quite deep pond, the only major variance from the aforementioned plan. Each enclosure was obviously very well-suited to its inhabitants; the wolverines were extremely active and moving from enclosure to enclosure with great alacrity, and seemed to be making full use of the space granted to them. As such, this – along with the snow leopard enclosure – struck me as one of the only exhibits in this area of the Tierpark which was not, in some way, out-of-date or lacking. Near the Snow Leopard and Wolverine enclosures, there was an extremely attractive – albeit somewhat stylised – statue of a tiger; judging by the style of the statue it probably had been designed by the same individual who produced the Ibex statues at the entrance to the zoo. As has already been noted, I quite like to see this kind of ornamentation and decoration in zoological collections; as such I took several photographs of this statue.



To the right of us, we could see a large enclosure for Humboldt Penguin (Spheniscus humboldti); a deep pool to the front of the exhibit surrounded a platform of bare rock and earth, with the rear of the enclosure comprising imitation-rock crags and cliff-faces in which several dens and nesting hollows could be seen. Approximately one-third of the way along the crags from the left, they were partially bisected by a waterfall which fed the main pool of the enclosure. A rather large group of penguins was visible; they seemed to be making good use of the exhibit, which overall was quite pleasant to the eye and seemed very much suitable for the taxon in question.



We then decided to make our way towards the “Jungle World” tropical house, visiting the Giant Tortoise House en-route. The path towards the latter area led directly away from the penguin enclosure which we had just viewed, to a point where a pair of rather spacious enclosures could be seen to either side of us. The enclosure to the right of us was signposted for Red River Hog (Potamochoerus porcus) and Southern Grey-crowned Crane (Balearica regulorum regulorum), although the latter taxon was not visible at the time of our visit, and comprised a large area of scrub and woodland, dotted with semi-flooded muddy areas merging into wide shallow pools, fed by another of the freshwater creeks flowing through the zoo. The enclosure seemed to be well-suited for the Red River Hogs, a taxon which I have seen on many occasions in the past and know to fare well in enclosures which provide plenty of semi-wetland; equally, the enclosure appeared to be holding up to the activities of the inhabitants rather well.



As the pools between the enclosure and the public viewing areas were shallow, I thought it worthwhile trying to see if I could spot any interesting fauna within the water; although I was unsuccessful, I was very pleased to note the distinctive sound of Crested Tit (Parus cristatus) from the trees overhead. A few minutes attention revealed not only a handful of individuals – a very satisfying sighting, when one considers the fact that within the United Kingdom the taxon is restricted to the Cairngorms of Scotland – but also a European Pied Flycatcher (Ficedula hypoleuca); the latter taxon winters in Africa and only returns to Europe in early-to-mid April, so the timing of my visit was very fortunate in this regard. The opposite enclosure contained Abyssinian Ground Hornbill (Bucorvus abyssinicus), Nyala (Tragelaphus angasii) and Southern Grey-crowned Crane; the latter taxon was visible in this enclosure, so it is possible that the cranes have been moved from one enclosure to the other. This enclosure, although also containing one of the creeks diverted from the Isar, was significantly drier than its neighbour; furthermore, it was approximately twice the size, more or less equal to the Przewalski’s Horse paddock in scale. However, in design it was much closer to the European Elk enclosure we had seen earlier which – as noted elsewhere – was also roughly this size; large expanses of grass were broken here and there by mature trees and vegetation, with logs laid around the enclosure here and there. The enclosure was certainly a very good one for the taxa it contained; even though all three are relatively large taxa they were dwarfed by the scale of the enclosure as a whole, and in point of fact it took us a few minutes careful observation and walking around the perimeter of the enclosure before we were able to spot the group of around seven or eight Nyala feeding at the far end.

We then made our way into the Giant Tortoise house; within, we found that the house was more or less divided into two sections, and contained lush planting throughout both. The first, and largest section comprised a massive enclosure for at least half a dozen Aldabra Giant Tortoise (Aldabrachelys gigantea) whilst the second comprised a public walkway overlooking the former enclosure, with a series of insectariums and vivariums found along the wall for the entire span of the house from the entrance to the exit.



As noted, both sections were lushly planted with a variety of tropical vegetation, and the house as a whole was extremely hot and humid. Free-flying Eastern Vasa Parrot (Coracopsis vasa vasa) had access to the entirety of the house; as this is a species of parrot which I am rather fond of, I was quite pleased to see them – although they were much too active for any effective photographs to be taken! The insectariums and vivariums which were located along the wall of the public portion of the house included the following taxa:

Bicolor Stick Insect (Periphetes forcipatus)
Six-spot Ground Beetle (Anthia sexguttata)
Giant African Land Snail (Achatina spp)
Salmon Pink Bird-eating Tarantula (Lasiodora parahybana)
Jungle Nymph (Heteropteryx dilatata)
Walking Leaf (Phyllium celebicum)
Kleinmann's Tortoise (Testudo kleinmanni)
Annam Walking Stick (Medauroidea extradentata)
Papua Snake-Lizard (Lialis jicari)
Band-legged Golden Orb-web Spider (Nephila senegalensis)
Leaf-cutter Ant (Atta sexdens)
Seychelles Giant Millipede (Seychelleptus seychellarum)
Prehensile-Tailed Skink (Corucia zebrata)

Many of these species were found in multiple tanks, with no taxon displayed without another sharing the tank with the exception of the Leaf-cutter Ant, and not all examples of the taxa were labelled. As such, the list – although in order of first appearance – does not entirely reflect the full breakdown of what taxa were located in which tanks. Frustratingly, the Papua Snake-Lizard was either a no-show or – possibly more likely – blended in sufficiently well with the vines, twigs and thick vegetation of its vivarium that I failed to spot it. As the only public collection displaying this taxon within Europe, this was rather disappointing. The quality of the tanks within this selection, and the taxa on display within them, was of a very high standard; naturally the substrate and contents of each insectariums varied by which taxa were displayed within, but each managed to achieve the balance between presenting a good display for the public and providing the right blend of vegetation, cover and habitat construction for the inhabitants. As already noted, it is in fact possible that the balance was deliberately shifted towards the inhabitants, and that where a decision had to be made between ensuring the taxa were visible, and ensuring their welfare, the latter consideration was the one which took priority. Much as I would very much have liked to have seen the Snake-Lizard, this is the way it should be.

As we left the Giant Tortoise House, we came across the temporary outside housing for the Elephant group which is held at Tierpark Hellabrunn; these comprise a mixed group of non-subspecific Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus) and pure Indian Elephant (Elephas maximus indicus). The original Elephant House was one of the first buildings to be constructed at the zoo, having been built in a Byzantine style in 1914, and as a result has long been out-of-date and no longer fit for purpose. Hence, some time before my visit a comprehensive renovation programme had been initiated; as the building is Grade II listed the exterior shell – and hence the original appearance - has been retained, but the internal structure of the building has been entirely gutted in order to permit a complete rebuild incorporating modern technology and zookeeping facilities in accordance with the latest zoological standards. In the meantime, a temporary house – not accessible to the public - has been constructed on the site of the former bull elephant enclosure, which at the time of my visit was being used to house a juvenile male, his mother and three other cow elephants; for the duration of the construction work, the breeding bull elephant was being housed at Hagenbeck Zoo in Hamburg. The outside paddock for the elephants, therefore, is the only means at present of seeing this taxon at the collection. Fortunately, the weather was warm and pleasant and as a result the entire group was active and visible. The paddock was, broadly speaking, akin to many other such enclosures, comprising as it did a spacious sandy area dotted with imitation rock work, tree trunks and boulders. Although nowhere near as good as the completed Elephant House and its complex of external paddocks will be, this enclosure struck me as a good use of the available resources and space in the meantime. The next enclosure we reached – technically speaking an outdoor portion of the Jungleworld house – comprised a display for non-subspecific Lion (Panthera leo). This exhibit was surrounded, for obvious reasons, by a very wide and deep moat; this gave the distinct impression that the enclosure itself was an island floating in the middle of a lake. The lion enclosure contained significant numbers of boulders and logs, on which we were able to observe the inhabitants basking in the morning sun, but despite looking quite visually appealing gave the distinct impression of being rather too small for the taxon in question. This struck me as a shame, as I believe this enclosure – along with the Jungleworld house itself – is one of the newest portions of Tierpark Hellabrunn, having been built in 2005. This also potentially gives a rough date to the construction of the statue work which I have been remarking on throughout these reviews, as a third statue – of a lion – in the same style was present overlooking this area.



The final exhibit we reached before entering Jungleworld itself was a pair of enclosures for Nepalese Red Panda (Ailurus fulgens fulgens). Each of the two enclosures was – although very pleasant – more or less the standard design for exhibits of this taxon; a grassy enclosure with a tall central tree, surrounded by various branches, logs and wooden platforms increasing the level of climbing opportunity available to the inhabitants, and with interior dens for the Red Panda provided close to ground level. However, the exhibit as a whole did something which we had never before seen in a zoological collection; although each enclosure was surrounded by a shallow moat, they were separated from one another by a pond which – at an estimate – was at least ten metres long. This pond was spanned by a bridge allowing the public to cross from one side to another; however beneath the bridge, a long series of logs and branches connected to one another allowed the inhabitants of one enclosure to cross into the other, and visa versa. As such, this exhibit as a whole provided the opportunity for members of the public to potentially watch the Red Pandas within the exhibit moving underneath them as they moved from one portion of the enclosure to the other – not to mention possibly choosing to swim the gap between enclosures, or indeed falling into the water accidentally. As the inhabitants of the exhibit appeared to entirely be present in one enclosure at this point in time, we made a mental note to check the exhibit later in the day to discover if they do indeed cross from enclosure to enclosure during public opening hours. Having enjoyed seeing a familiar taxon displayed in an unfamiliar and intriguing fashion, we made our way into the Jungleworld house.

 

Glad you are enjoying it naturally I'll be interested in your continued feedback throughout this thread - I daresay you'll be a little more familiar with some of the other collections I'll be discussing. Not to get ahead of myself *too* much, but I really liked Hellabrunn and would definitely recommend you try to return sometime.

Should hopefully be getting another post up tonight

 

I'd actually assumed you *had* been to Innsbruck knew you had not visited the other two, however.

As for Wilhelma, I'd be interested to hear how it is deemed controversial I do seem to have a taste for the controversial collections, considering how much I like the two Berlin collections and the fact that I *really* liked Wilhelma.

 

Part IV: From Tropics To The Pole

The first portion of Jungleworld which we viewed was a relatively-large enclosure found on the exterior, to the right-hand side of the main entrance to the house. This comprised the external exhibit for North Chinese Leopard (Panthera pardus japonensis; as as often the case in enclosures for leopard taxa, the exhibit included a strong mesh roof to prevent the risk of the inhabitants climbing or jumping out of the enclosure. The centre of the exhibit contained a rock den for the leopards within, built beside a tree which presumably had been growing in-situ at the time the enclosure was originally constructed; where it met the roof of the exhibit the mesh surrounded it closely to avoid the creation of a weak spot within the enclosure boundaries. The remainder of the exhibit seemed to be divided into two halves, formed more or less along the midline extending out from the den; on one side, rocks and boulders were dotted around as the ground level sloped upwards towards the Jungleworld building, whilst the other half of the enclosure was flatter and grassy, with logs and branches scattered throughout.



Access into an indoor enclosure - which was not on-display to the public - was located within the wall of the main building. On the whole I rather liked the design and appearance of this exhibit, although I felt that it could have stood to have been somewhat larger considering the size and activity level of the taxon which it contained; however, without knowing the size of the indoor housing for the taxon this cannot be relied upon as an indication that the leopards were not provided with enough space overall.

Within Jungleworld itself, the majority of the building comprised a large walkthrough area, which I shall discuss anon. However, there were a number of distinct enclosures within which require discussion. Foremost among these was a pair of enclosures for Fishing Cat (Prionailurus viverrinus); one of these was more or less a jungle exhibit in design whilst the other was a dry scrub exhibit. Each contained large amounts of branches and tree trunks allowing access to various platforms and climbing areas, and access between the enclosures was possible; we only observed a single Fishing Cat within the exhibit, but it was making full use of the climbing opportunities and moving from point to point within the enclosure more or less constantly.



As such, this enclosure seemed quite well suited to the taxon. Another such exhibit comprised a relatively large "savannah" type exhibit for Argentine Black and White Tegu (Salvator merianae, with large areas of sandy, scrubby substrate broken up by dried-out logs, tufts of grass and rock platforms; this exhibit was pleasing to the eye, albeit it struck me as a little wasted on the taxon within when one considers how common it is within the pet trade, and the wide range of alternative taxa that could have been displayed. Similarly, a very good-looking enclosure for Radiated Tortoise (Astrochelys radiata) - comprising large areas of sand dotted with trees and boulders, with a higher-level area which the inhabitants could not possibly reach - seemed to be rather larger than the inhabitants would require, and seemingly designed for an entirely different taxon; presumably one with some level of climbing ability when one considers the latter detail. That said, taken on its own merits it was an entirely suitable enclosure for the taxon displayed, and as such cannot be entirely criticised.

The main body of the house, however, was as already briefly mentioned a large walk-through rainforest exhibit; the heat and humidity was significantly more noticeable than it had been within the Giant Tortoise House, something which I found a little overwhelming as I have never been particularly fond of hot climates. However, I cannot criticise the quality nor quantity of vegetation found throughout the exhibit; in some areas it was exceptionally difficult if not impossible to see through the vegetation to the path on the other side. The public path around the house took us to a raised walkway above the main body of the exhibit, before descending back down again. Dotted throughout the Jungleworld house were pools and water features, many partially obscured by the vegetation; these provided some of the optimum viewing points for many of the free-roaming animal taxa found within the rainforest exhibit.



Although very few of the taxa displayed were signposted, and as such it is probable that there are taxa which I failed to observe or indeed identify, we were able to view and identify the following species:

Indian Flying Fox (Pteropus giganteus)
Straw-colored Fruit Bat (Eidolon helvum)
Australian King Parrot (Alisterus scapularis)
Red Junglefowl (Gallus gallus)
Nicobar Pigeon (Caloenas nicobarica)
Green Anole (Anolis carolinensis)
Spotted Martinique's Anole (Anolis roquet summus)
Cuban Brown Anole (Anolis sagrei)
Swainson's Lorikeet (Trichoglossus haematodus moluccanus)
Chestnut-eared Finch (Taeniopygia guttata castanotis)
Florida Redbelly Turtle (Pseudemys nelsoni)
Neotropical Painted Wood Turtle (Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima)
Cumberland Slider (Trachemys scripta troostii)

Needless to say, the identification of the turtles and the anoles was somewhat more difficult than correctly identifying more distinctive taxa such as the Nicobar Pigeon and the Junglefowl; however I found the exercise an enjoyable and interesting one. The Jungleworld house was, on the whole, quite a pleasant one - although as noted before certain of the enclosures within struck me as a slight waste of space, despite being pleasant-enough enclosures in their own right. My opinion on this matter, of course, is somewhat influenced by the fact that I have a strong liking for walkthrough tropical enclosures where there is a high density of wild taxa to view within.

The first enclosure we reached on departing from the Jungleworld house and making our way through what I believe was the "African savannah" Geo-zone was a reasonably large and grassy exhibit for African Wild Dog (Lycaon pictus); although primarily comprising a wide expanse of open grassland, the enclosure was broken up by two or three large logs, with a handful of large stones and boulders marking a partially-underground den towards the front of the enclosure. The top of this den, being comprised of a long flat rock, was therefore also capable of being used as a place for the inhabitants of the enclosure to bask. I rather liked this enclosure on the whole; although nowhere near the largest or best exhibit for the taxon which I have seen, and containing a species which I tend to like somewhat less than do many other people - preferring as I do the Dhole - it was still a solid piece of enclosure design which struck me as well-suited to the taxon on display.



Just opposite, we came across a massive grassy paddock for Blue Crane (Anthropoides paradisea) and Mhorr Gazelle (Nanger dama mhorr); both of which are species which I rather like. The United Kingdom being somewhat starved of gazelle species in recent years, I am always pleased when I get the opportunity to see a captive gazelle taxon, even if - as in this case - it does not actually represent a lifetick for myself. The enclosure itself was extremely pleasant, effectively just being a large area of green pasture which had been divided off from surrounding enclosures, and as such was very well-suited to the taxa which were on-display within, providing more than enough space for their needs.

A little further along, we reached a large enclosure for Hamadryas Baboon (Papio hamadryas); Tierpark Hellabrunn was obviously faring rather well with the species, as the group appeared to comprise a couple of dozen individuals spanning the full range of ages. The enclosure itself was rather good, comprising a moated island covered by vast numbers of boulders and rocks, with dead-looking trees which had presumably been present when the enclosure was built providing further climbing opportunities ; despite the aforementioned large number of baboons within the breeding group on-display, they seemed to have more than enough space. As such I rather liked this enclosure, thinking it well-suited to the taxon it contained. Opposite this enclosure, we could see the final enclosure before we would reach the "Polar World" zone; a massive paddock containing a wide range of taxa native to the savannah habitats of South Africa, including Common Eland (Taurotragus oryx), Marabou Stork (Leptoptilos crumenifer), South African Ostrich (Struthio camelus australis) , Greater Kudu (Tragelaphus strepsiceros) and Hartmann's Mountain Zebra(Equus zebra hartmannae). The latter of these taxa was presumably present as a stand-in for the closely related Cape Mountain Zebra, which is not present in captivity.



This paddock was by some distance the largest enclosure which we had seen at the Tierpark thus far, comprising wide open grassland interspersed with bare earth and sandy scrub, with little tree cover or vegetation towards the northern end of the paddock giving way to more numerous mature trees being increasingly common towards the south. The creeks flowing through the collection partially surrounded and flowed through areas of the paddock, particularly the northeastern end and along the western border. The enclosure as a whole was very well-suited to the taxa on display, which had more than enough space to avoid negative interaction with one another; in point of fact the enclosure was actually large enough that in portions of the paddock spotting the inhabitants took careful attention over some time!

We then reached a viewing window into a reasonably large indoor enclosure and mixed exhibit for King Penguin (Aptenodytes patagonicus) and Subantarctic Gentoo Penguin (Pygoscelis papua papua), with Northern Rockhopper Penguin (Eudyptes moseleyi) displayed in a linked but for all intents and purposes distinct exhibit a little further along. These exhibits are some of the older ones still in use today, having been first constructed around 35 years ago, and as such still reflect the design style for such enclosures which was common at that time; a painted background is located behind imitation rockwork platforms and nesting areas, with concrete platforms in the foreground which lead into deep pools, which come up to the viewing window at approximately chest height and extend below the floor level outside.



Such enclosures are not exactly attractive, nor ideal; however they do perform the important task of maintaining the welfare of the inhabitants rather well. Outside of collections much further north such as Edinburgh Zoo, which displays all three of these taxa in spacious outdoor exhibits, sub-Antarctic and Antarctic penguin species such as these tend not to live long when kept in exhibits which are not rigorously controlled to ensure exactly the water temperature, air humidity and various other factors. As such, even a refurbished development for these taxa would still be limited by the necessity of keeping the inhabitants within an indoor exhibit. I believe that this portion of Tierpark Hellabrunn is intended to undergo a number of redevelopments in the years to come; I certainly hope that this exhibit is one of those given particular priority but in the meantime I do feel that this enclosure *does* meet the welfare standards of the inhabitants.

 

I am sure I would have too; as already mentioned a few times in this thread, and many times in the Berlin thread, I am rather fond of caprine taxa. At present, my only other options to see the taxon would be to get to Zurich or Tallinn, neither of which is on the cards any time soon.

That said, I know there *are* plans for the species to return to Germany, so we can but hope!

 

Pity, if so. As Tallin has a large group, whilst Zurich has only two elderly individuals to the best of my knowledge, it would be a real shame for the taxon to be off-display there.

All the more reason to hope the plans for a group to go on-display in a Germany collection next year (I'm pretty sure these plans are on-record but being circumspect just in case) do indeed come to pass! Suffice to say it's a collection which I will *definitely* be visiting in the future, and one of those I have already visited in Germany.

 

Part V: Pinnipeds, Polar Bear and Petting Zoo

We then came to a pool complex for South American Sealion (Otaria byronia) and California Sealion (Zalophus californianus); each taxon was displayed within a set of very large pools, framed by concrete platforms on several levels, with a central indoor house for both. The size and apparent depth of the pools was very impressive, possibly among the largest pinniped enclosures which I had seen to this point in time; however, as one would imagine they were in no way naturalistic in design.



This did not bother us as much as a similar enclosure design would in other circumstances, however; the size and depth of the pools meant that the inhabitants had plenty of room to move around, and although not exactly appealing to the eye the land area of these exhibits was relatively extensive and, as noted, included platforms on a number of levels adding variety to the whole. The interior of the central house was not visible to the public, and as such could not be evaluated fully; however the house as a whole appeared to be a relatively decent size for two groups of large pinnipeds. There appeared to be close to a dozen individuals of each taxon present; it is perhaps an indication of the size and scale of the pools and land area of each exhibit that the enclosures seemed to provide more than enough space for groups of this size, especially when one considers that neither taxon is particularly small.



Another indication of the success of the two pinniped groups displayed at Tierpark Hellabrunn was visible just opposite the Californian Sealion pool; another rather smaller enclosure comprising a smaller pool, surrounding a land area of artificial rockwork and boulders, with the enclosure enclosed by a sheer artificial-rock cliff-face. This enclosure - as explained by the accompanying signage - comprised a "Sealion Kindergarten" for several adolescent pups born to the two groups. The signage did not give an indication of why it was deemed necessary to separate these individuals from their respective groups; at a guess, this is intended to prevent negative interaction between the pups and any younger pups born to their mothers prior to the individuals leaving for other zoological collections.

We next reached a set of very large enclosures for Polar Bear (Ursus maritimus). The first two of these comprised areas of imitation rock and concrete platforms on several levels, with deep pools at the front of each enclosure.



As such they were very much akin in overall appearance to the pinniped enclosures opposite, albeit with somewhat more dry land provided, and had obviously been built at the same time. As with these exhibits, they were not very attractive to look at but seemed to provide plenty of space for the inhabitants to move around; moreover, these two enclosures each had access to the third, which was rather different in design. The final enclosure was a much more naturalistic-looking exhibit comprising a long and relatively thickly-vegetated enclosure, with open areas of grass mixed with bushes and small trees. Again, this enclosure provided a decent amount of space for the inhabitants; when taken together with the preceding two enclosures, this meant that the Polar Bear exhibit as a whole was quite pleasing in terms of design and the size of the whole, both of which struck me as suited to the welfare of the inhabitants, even if certain features of the first two enclosures meant they were not terribly pleasing to the eye of the visitor.



We then followed the path along to a series of paddocks, barns and enclosures which comprised the Children’s Zoo; for all intents and purposes the domestic farmyard animal portion of the Tierpark Hellabrunn inventory. As I am not averse to seeing unusual and rare breeds of domestic animal, I was quite interested to discover what this area would hold.

The first paddock was relatively large and pleasant, and contained four breeds of Domestic Goat (Capra aegagrus hircus), these being the Jämtland Goat, Valais Black-necked Goat, Damara Goat and Tauernsheck. The first of these is an endangered breed from the Swedish province of Jämtland, and has changed little over the centuries. I had seen this particular breed the previous year at Zoo Magdeburg, but was nonetheless pleased to take note of its presence at the Tierpark. The second breed displayed is worthy of particular note; although native to Switzerland and northern Italy, and relatively commonplace throughout the Alps, individuals of this breed given to King Richard II of England formed the founding stock of the breed now known as the Bagot Goat – one of the most endangered domestic breeds in the United Kingdom. The third breed held within this paddock was one which seems a little more commonplace, as I have seen it in a number of collections both in Germany and the United Kingdom. Unfortunately, there is little information about this breed online, so my knowledge of it is lacking. However, the final breed displayed within this paddock – the Tauernsheck – seems to be a particularly rare and unusual breed native to Austria; moreover, it was the first “lifetick” domestic which I had seen at Tierpark Hellabrunn. As such I was particularly pleased to see the single representative of this breed displayed within the paddock.

Just along from here, we came to a pair of unusual but very interesting displays. The first of these, mounted on the exterior of one of the farm buildings dotted around this area, was a collection of bird boxes and artificial bird nests for European taxa, along with explanatory panels discussing each box and the species which it was intended to house. This was a rather unexpected sight, considering its placement within a "Children's Zoo" filled with domestic animals, but nonetheless is very much the sort of thing I would rather like to see more often in zoological collections; in my opinion, this kind of exhibit is a good example of how information about the conservation of wild native species can be conveyed to the public.



Opposite, viewable through a glass window, was another educational display. This one contained a selection of bird eggs from taxa found throughout the world, from species such as the domestic chicken and Scottish Red Grouse, through to the Ruby-topaz Hummingbird. A certain level of humour was also employed in this display, as among the various eggs on display was a highly-decorated one which was labelled as belonging to "Der Osterhase" or the Easter Bunny! I rather liked this display, as I do all displays of this kind, as they perform an important task in educating those who view them about the wide and varied range of eggs present within the diverse species of bird alive today. Although such displays are increasingly uncommon, and even frowned upon due to the perception that they condone or encourage the illicit collection of bird eggs, I feel they nonetheless perform an important role for the aforementioned reason.

We next reached comprised a pair of exhibits; the first and larger exhibit was a large enclosure for Domestic Guinea Pig (Cavia porcellus), comprising a sandy, straw-covered substrate dotted with hollow logs, areas of thicker straw and feeding points, with a central raised platform accessible from wooden ladders and fairy lights strung around the enclosure from the ceiling. There were dozens of individuals visible of many different colour-morphs and phenotypes; considering the mixed situation it is doubtful any were of pure breed status. The neighbouring enclosure was somewhat smaller and significantly more conservative in design, comprising the same sandy, straw covered substrate littered with hollow logs, but lacking the more flamboyant design choices. This enclosure contained the true wild form of the animals held in the prior enclosure, Brazilian Guinea Pig (Cavia aperea). It was, as one would imagine, quite interesting to see the two taxa side-by-side, allowing a visual comparison between the two. Educational signposting discussing the domestication of the wild-form Guinea Pig and other pertinent information was visibly displayed alongside these enclosures.

We next reached a pair of large paddocks, akin in design and scale to the one which we had seen previously holding a variety of goat taxa. The first of these held individuals labelled as "Bulgarian Goat" (Capra aegagrus hircus), along with Shetland Pony (Equus ferus caballus) and Scottish Highland Cattle (Bos primigenius taurus). The latter two taxa were very familiar to us - with the cattle being a particular favorite of mine, in point of fact - but the former taxon was a little more obscure. I was unsure as to what the precise breed was, and subsequent research has left me unable to deduce exactly what breed was displayed in this paddock; it looked quite close in general size and morphology to the original Bezoar stock, but had much longer and darker hair than a true Bezoar, and had tightly curled, corkscrew-like horns akin to that found in a Markhor. The next paddock held a pair of taxa, Girgentana Goat (Capra aegagrus hircus) and Dahomey Dwarf Cattle (Bos primigenius taurus). The first of these is a particularly endangered and attractive-looking breed from Sicily, whose origins may include some genetic input from the Markhor along with the Bezoar, if theories about stock of the former brought to Sicily by Arab invaders in the centuries following the fall of Rome are accurate. The latter breed in this paddock are one of several miniature breeds of cattle known to exist, with the origins of this particular breed deriving from Benin in West Africa.

We next reached an enclosure for the - let us be honest - rather misleadingly named Minipig (Sus scrofa domestica), one of the less interesting domestic breeds on display at Tierpark Hellabrunn in my opinion, before coming to a mid-sized exhibit containing a mix of non-breed status Domestic Chicken (Gallus gallus domestica) along with pure Appenzeller Chicken, Polish Chicken and Malay Gamefowl, along with Domestic Rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus domestica) of no particular breed. All three of the pure chicken breeds on display were quite unusual and appealing to the eye, especially the Malay Gamefowl; this particular breed holds the distinction of being the tallest variety of domestic chicken, a fact which along with the slender and muscular build found within the breed rather evokes a feel of the non-avian dinosaurs of ages past. Considering that Bavaria is the region where the first examples of early avian taxa such as Archaeopteryx were found, along with other dinosaur taxa now known to have had a pelage of feathers such as Compsognathus and Juravenator, this thought rather amused me.

We then came to a rather unexpected - but very much welcome - exhibit; although those individuals usually kept in the Bat Grotto were off-display, it appeared that this area of the Tierpark contained a second exhibit for Fat Sand Rat (Psammomys obesus obesus), a taxon with which I am rather fond. The exhibit was very much akin to the tank in the Bat Grotto which I have described previously, and which usually contains this taxon, comprising a sandy substrate interspersed with rocks and hollow logs. Next to this exhibit was a second tank, which contained a variety of chicks belonging to the Domestic Chicken breeds displayed within this area; this particular tank had plenty of informational signage discussing the life cycle and rearing of domestic chickens. A little further on, we reached another enclosure for chickens, this time containing only a single breed; the Silkie Bantam (Gallus gallus domestica). The sight of this breed was a pleasant surprise and also of some amusement to us; Helly's family keep a free-roaming and flourishing group of this breed themselves, and as a result it is a breed which I am very familiar with, and have handled on many occasions.



Before leaving the Children's Zoo, we came to a final and rather large paddock - probably the largest paddock in the entire area - which contained both Llama (Lama glama) and Alpaca (Vicugna pacos). I rather like both species, although they are by no means unusual in captivity, and as such it is always pleasant to see these taxa on display in a collection.

 

Part VI: Asian Hoofstock, Giraffe House and the Heck Legacy

The next enclosure we encountered on leaving the Children's Zoo was a large and sandy paddock containing a group of Eastern Kiang (Equus kiang holdereri), which appeared to be a non-breeding group solely comprising mares. This taxon is one with which I am rather fond, being rather akin in general morphology to the Onager and Kulan, albeit slightly larger and more richly coloured than either. The paddock itself was rather large and interspersed with the occasional mature tree; as has been previously noted, these are likely to have been present prior to the collection having originally opened. Otherwise, the substrate of the enclosure was primarily a sandy scrub, gently transitioning into areas of patchy grass; roughly equivalent to the steppes and alpine meadows of the Tibetan Plateau from which this taxon originates. Directly opposite the Kiang paddock, there was an extremely large and substantially wooded enclosure for Mishmi Takin (Budorcas taxicolor); this is a taxon which I am quite fond of, being one of the more unusual caprine species in captivity along with the other members of its genus, and moreover was broadly speaking appropriate for display in close proximity to the Kiang opposite.



This enclosure was roughly-speaking about twice the size of the Kiang paddock, with rather more vegetation and a more substantially grassy substrate, interspersed with boulders, piles of fallen trees and logs, and mature trees. The internal housing and shelter for the inhabitants of the enclosure was located roughly in the rear-centre of the paddock; I was extremely pleased to note that there appeared to be a very young calf among the visible inhabitants of the paddock, a reasonably good sign that the enclosure was well-suited for the welfare of the takin present within.

The next enclosure we reached, located next to the Kiang paddock and seperated from the former by a rearwards extension of the moat located between these paddocks and the public path, was a large paddock extending quite far back containing domesticated Yak (Bos grunniens). In general design and substrate, this enclosure was akin to the Takin enclosure we had just viewed, although slightly smaller and with significantly fewer boulders and logs dispersed around the ground. The inhabitants seemed to have plenty of space within the enclosure, although the heat of the day was rendering them somewhat inactive, the entire group sheltering in the immediate vicinity of their shady indoor quarters. A little further along, we reached a small paddock containing a large number of mature trees; although the inhabitants were not visible to us at this time, the enclosure was signposted for Reeves's Muntjac (Muntiacus reevesi). The general choice of species within this area gave the distinct impression that a south Asian geographic theme was being aimed towards, with a definite bias towards Chinese, Indian and Nepalese taxa. This was, by no means, a bad thing; the enclosures were pleasant to look at and seemed to give plenty of space to the inhabitants. The general trend continued with the next enclosure; a very large and sandy paddock interspersed with areas of scrubby grass, boulders and logs contained large numbers of three taxa native to this geographic area; Axis Deer (Axis axis), Blackbuck (Antilope cervicapra) and Nilgai (Boselaphus tragocamelus). The inhabitants of the enclosure seemed to coexist very well; the deer and Blackbuck in particular appeared to interact freely, with large numbers of both being found in close proximity. The Nilgai, although also coming into close contact with the other two taxa present, seemed to generally restrict themselves more to the periphery of the enclosure.

We next reached the Rhino House, which we had already briefly seen from another angle on our way to the Bat Grotto; as noted before, the general design of the house made it look very much akin to the back of a whale rising out from the ocean, being a low round dome surrounded by paddocks. The first paddock we reached contained Indian Rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis); in general design and appearance this was very much like the neighbouring enclosure for the same taxon which I have already discussed, albeit somewhat smaller and with the balance between grass and sand substrate being much more heavily tilted towards the latter. As with the previously-discussed enclosure, the front of the paddock contained a deep, dry moat descending in a series of steps which gave a similar impression to that of a haha. In this particular enclosure, however, the Rhinoceros within had chosen to sleep within the moat, very close to the barrier on the public side; this allowed us to obtain a very close view of this particular individual. The next paddock along was very similar, containing even less grass than the previous enclosure had, and was perhaps half the size - although still a rather large paddock overall. Again, the inhabitants - a pair of Bornean Bearded Pig (Sus barbatus barbatus) - were sleeping in the midday sun, permitting a very close view.



This particular enclosure held a rather bittersweet prospect for Helly and myself; having now seen the pair of Bearded Pigs at Tierpark Hellabrunn we had seen every single individual of this taxon still living within Europe. As the population is non-breeding and geriatric, it is perhaps only a few short years before this species disappears from European collections altogether.

We then entered the Rhino House, in order to view the internal enclosures for the species held within this area; it was immediately apparent that the vast majority of the interior was occupied by public space, with the interior enclosures for the Indian Rhinoceros, Bearded Pigs and Malayan Tapir all comprising tiny, stark little islands surrounded by a wide moat, with only a little straw interspersed here and there over the otherwise bare concrete. When compared with the wide and airy public area of the house, which contained lush vegetation and a large central tree which - through the addition of various wooden poles and ropes - contained the rather out-of-place Linnaeus' Two-toed Sloth (Choloepus didactylus), the animal portion of the house was very much insufficient for the purpose it was intended for. I suspect, in point of fact, that these enclosures were significantly smaller than the similar enclosures within the Elephant House at Tierpark Berlin which have fallen under so much criticism over the years; a pity, as the external enclosures surrounding the Rhino House were - as already noted - rather well-designed, a decent size and appeared to be well-suited for the inhabitants. Considering this portion of the collection was, as already noted, very much aimed towards a South Asian theme, the addition of Two-toed Sloth within this house was slightly confusing, especially when the collection already contained a rather pleasant tropical house which could have housed this taxon!

Exiting the Rhino House, we came to a large and pleasant enclosure for Malayan Tapir (Tapirus indicus); although the portion closest to the Rhino House comprised a similar sort of sandy scrub to the other paddocks in this area, the substrate of the majority of this enclosure comprised lush grass covered in vast numbers of snowdrops and other wild flowers, interspersed with trees and shrubs. As this taxon is probably my favourite member of the tapir family, I was pleased to see it housed within this collection, and moreover pleased that this enclosure was well-designed and suited to the needs of the inhabitants considering my newly-discovered displeasure at the quality of the internal enclosures for this species, along with those other taxa housed within the Rhino House.



Opposite this enclosure, we were able to once again view the large grassy enclosure for Blue Crane and Mhorr Gazelle with which I had been rather pleased earlier in the day, this time from the rear. This allowed us to more clearly see that the rear of the paddock was bordered by another of the fast-flowing natural creeks which made their way through so much of Tierpark Hellabrunn; despite the fairly rapid pace of the water, one of the cranes within the enclosure was stood in the centre of the creek, possibly doing so in an attempt to stay cool in what was rapidly becoming a very bright and hot afternoon. A little further along from here, we reached a sizeable if somewhat bare enclosure for a large breeding herd of Javan Banteng (Bos javanicus javanicus), one of my favourite bovine taxa and as such a species I am always very pleased to see. The paddock was, as already noted, a little bare - sandy scrub was broken up only by patches of mature trees, under one of which the entire herd was sheltering in the shade. Although an Indonesian taxon, this species was presumably housed within this area as part of the overall Asian theme of this portion of Tierpark Hellabrunn, which we were now coming to the edges of. Overall, the exterior paddocks and enclosures of this portion of the Tierpark were very good, albeit all more or less matching the same general design style, with the only real note of criticism being that this corner of the zoo seemed - much like portions of the Eurasian area - to have been somewhat forgotten and left to stagnate. However, the same cannot be said for the interior housing within the Rhino House; considering how "new" and airy the public portion of this house felt, the enclosures within were sub-standard and entirely insufficient for the purpose at hand.

We now started wandering through portions of the collection which we had already viewed, this being the quickest route to reach the next area which we needed to view. However, this did give us the opportunity to view certain taxa and enclosures again, with the passage of time and the warmer weather having improved the visibility and activity levels of a number of species. The elderly Brown Bear was now awake and active, allowing us to get a much better view of her; as previously noted, this individual is of non-subspecific status and I have already speculated to some extent about her lineage. Although my lack of experience viewing subspecies of Brown Bear means that no real conclusion could be arrived at, it was at least apparent that this individual was more robust and somewhat darker in appearance than those European Brown Bear I had seen in the past. It was also very satisfying to get further views of the Apennine Chamois and Alpine Marmot close to the entrance of the Tierpark; the latter were particularly active in the sun, and as both had been lifetick taxa for myself I fully intended to make the most of the excellent view of these species!

The next "new" enclosure we came to was a wide network of shallow pools and islands fed by one of the various creeks flowing through the Tierpark, which contained a collection of wild and captive waterfowl; the enclosure was signposted for Eurasian Great Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo sinensis), but it was apparent from the fact that some of these were flying in and out of the enclosure that at least some of the members of this taxon within the enclosure were in fact wild individuals which were merely choosing to take advantage of a large body of water containing their captive cousins! However, as far as I was concerned the main allure of this enclosure was the fact that, visible in the sunlight shining through the water, the pool was teeming with amphibians. Some were very obviously the Common Frog (Rana temporaria) with which I am very familiar, but in a particularly shallow area near the public path there were several clusters of what were quite obviously Yellow-bellied Toad (Bombina variegata) - a wild lifetick for both Helly and myself. Just along from this complex of pools, we reached the Giraffe House and the surrounding exterior paddocks, all of which I am given to understand had recently undergone refurbishment. The particular taxon held at Tierpark Hellabrunn was Reticulated Giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis reticulata), with the collection holding a total of four individuals at the time of my visit. The exterior paddock for the taxon comprised a very large, sandy-scrub paddock very much akin to many of the other hoofstock enclosures at Hellabrunn, interspersed with natural mature woodland, boulders and logs and with the perimeter of the paddock surrounded by a border of boulders and rocks approximately three or four metres wide.



This border was interrupted at one point, where a mock-rock wall curved round in an arc around the back of a small glass-fronted enclosure. Within this enclosure were a handful of boulders and logs, artificial termite mounds and a thick sandy substrate, forming an enclosure for the display of Meerkat (Suricata suricatta). Although I am not the greatest fan of this taxon by any means, the enclosure looked good and suited the welfare of the species very well; as did the larger enclosure for Reticulated Giraffe which it was part of. Overall, I rather liked the exterior enclosure for the giraffes - it allowed the inhabitants plenty of space and will permit the herd to hopefully breed and expand over time, and looked good. The interior of the house was airy and pleasant in appearance, with a glass-fronted enclosure visible from the public portion of the house; this enclosure was very much akin in design to most other giraffe houses I had seen, with the obvious exception of the glass viewing panels, and seemed to grant the occupants more than enough space for their welfare needs. The signage within the house was also worthy of particular note, being appealingly designed and laid-out in a way that conveyed information well.

The next paddock we reached was a particularly noteworthy and significant one in terms of zoo history, and more specifically the history of Tierpark Hellabrunn, containing as it did groups of both Heck Cattle (Bos primigenius taurus) and Heck Horse (Equus ferus caballus).



These two strains of domestic livestock were developed in the 1920's and 1930's by the zoologist brothers Heinz and Lutz Heck, with the hope of "breeding-back" two of the extinct wild species once native to Western Europe; the Heck Horse aimed to recreate the Tarpan or European Wild Horse, the last of which had died some decades prior, whilst the Heck Cattle was intended to recreate the Aurochs, the original wild cattle which had been lost in the 17th Century. These attempts were based on approximating the morphology of the lost species using extant domestic breeds, and as such produced vague approximations at best. However, they are nonetheless significant in terms of the history of this collection; at the time of these endeavours, Heinz Heck was the director of Tierpark Hellabrunn and the first herds of each of these domestic breeds were housed at the collection. His brother Lutz was the director of Zoo Berlin at the time, and was responsible for the production of a second strain of "Heck Cattle" at said collection. However, the Second World War led to the extinction of this strain, with the result that all Heck Cattle now extant derive from the Munich breeding attempts. The paddock for these two domestic taxa was a relatively large but stark paddock, containing little but the occasional log dotted around the dry sandy ground. However, the enclosure opposite was much more appealing to the eye; housing Eurasian Wolf (Canis lupus lupus), this enclosure comprised a very large woodland area, with dense vegetation and tree cover providing a rather good approximation of the natural habitat of this taxon in Central Europe prior to the range of the species having been severely reduced by the influence of man. The inhabitants seemed, therefore, to have their requirements well-catered for; however, due to the heat of the sun they were, perhaps unsurprisingly, all asleep at the time we passed the enclosure.

Although his attempts at breeding-back the Tarpan and Aurochs were misguided and inherently flawed, Heinz Heck was also largely responsible for the contemporary attempts to create a studbook and breeding programme to prevent the extinction of the European Wisent - an undertaking which *has* been successful, and which stands as one of the primary achievements in the captive breeding and conservation of a critically threatened species. For many years, this taxon was held at Tierpark Hellabrunn; however the last individual departed a handful of years ago. A close cousin - the American Wood Bison (Bison bison athabascae) - is still housed at the collection, and by chance happened to be located in the next enclosure we came to; this may well be the enclosure which once held Wisent, in point of fact. The paddock was very much akin to the neighbouring enclosure for the Heck domestics in both size and design; as such it was not terribly inspiring to look at, although it certainly gave the inhabitants sufficient space. It is possible that although the Wood Bison is the rarer of the two subspecies of Bison bison, this enclosure would be a better fit for the Plains Bison. As such, it would perhaps be appropriate for the collection to look into obtaining this taxon rather than the currently-present subspecies, if they have not done so already. One point which would tend to suggest these Bison are intended to represent their more common cousin was the presence - I was informed, as we failed to spot any individuals of the taxon - of free-roaming Black-tailed Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) within this enclosure.

Opposite here, we could see a sizeable mixed enclosure for a number of South American taxa; Vicuna (Vicugna vicugna), Giant Anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla), Patagonian Mara (Dolichotis patagonum) and Greater Rhea (Rhea americana). The enclosure in question was extremely large and well-vegetated with both shrubs and mature trees, providing a rather good approximation of the pampas grasslands of South America; due to the large moat at the front of the enclosure, it also contained a variety of the native European waterfowl present throughout the collection - including a large number of Greylag Geese.



Overall, I was quite pleased with this enclosure, which both looked good and was well-suited to the taxa within - both captive and wild! We next made our way across to the complex of buildings which comprised the ape and monkey houses, and the zoo aquarium.

 

Interesting

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Part VII: Aquarium, Ape House and World of Monkeys

The aquarium at Tierpark Hellabrunn was located in a small and relatively pleasant-looking annexe which connected two larger animal houses to either side; the "Jungle Pavilion" - for all intents and purposes the Ape House - and the "Welt der Affen" or World of Monkeys. However, as will be discussed anon the distinction between these two houses was nowhere near as cut-and-dried as it would first sound.

The bulk of the aquarium was, in point of fact, located in the basement of the structure which we had just entered; the ground floor comprised a number of glass-fronted enclosures for a variety of snake species, and as such the building as a whole would be more accurately termed an aquarium-ophidiarium. I was quite pleased with the range of taxa on display within this area of the building, which comprised the following:

Baron's Green Racer (Philodryas baroni)
West African Gaboon Viper (Bitis rhinoceros)
Eastern Green Mamba (Dendroaspis angusticeps)
Cascabel Rattlesnake (Crotalus durissus)
Southern Copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix contortrix)
Uracoan Rattlesnake (Crotalus vegrandis)
Forest Cobra (Naja melanoleuca)

As the Baron's Green Racer - along with the other members of its genus - is mildly venomous, this meant that the ophidiarium portion of the building contained solely venomous taxa; something which is increasingly unusual in a mainstream zoological collection these days, certainly in my experience. As the Racer represented a lifetick for myself, and the Mamba represented a photographic lifetick - my previous sightings of the species having been met with extremely poor results in this regard - I was particularly pleased with this area of the collection. All the enclosures were relatively large and well-vegetated, giving the species within plenty of scope to hide from view; in point of fact, it took quite some time for us to manage to spot the Racer, along with the Southern Copperhead. The public portion of this area was appealingly laid-out and designed, giving a bright and airy impression, and with a pair of steps descending into the basement. Taking these steps into the basement, and the Aquarium itself, it took a moment or two for our eyes to adjust to the dim light within. The aquarium extended along a rough loop, covering rather more area than the footplan of the building itself and therefore presumably extending below the neighbouring structures. The overall standard of exhibit design in the basement was excellent - the vast majority of exhibits contained a variety of live coral species, alongside the various fish and invertebrates which were also displayed within.



Although no real oddities were displayed within this area, as far as I could tell, the range of species was still pretty good - particular note should be given to the largest tank in the Aquarium, which comprised a large exhibit for the near-ubiquitous Blacktip Reef Shark (Carcharhinus melanopterus) alongside a pretty comprehensive set of smaller reef fish, corals and crustaceans.

Ascending the steps once more, we turned left and headed towards the "Jungle Pavilion", which as noted earlier I will refer to as the Ape House from now on. Broadly speaking, on one side of the public pathway through the house, there were a series of large enclosures and exhibits for the mammalian inhabitants of the building, whilst on the other side of the pathway were a series of smaller tanks, enclosures and vivariums. As we had entered through a door roughly half-way along the span of the house, we thought it best to walk in a roughly clock-wise route in order to view each exhibit properly, before leaving the building the way we entered. As such, the first enclosure we reached within was a large and rather long exhibit which, supplementary signposting informed us, was in the process of being prepared to hold an unspecified species of crocodilian - judging by the size of the enclosure and the depth of the water within, I would hazard a guess at Dwarf Crocodile being the most likely option. In the meantime, it contained a variety of turtle taxa - all unlabelled, but as far as I can tell consulting my photographs and the collection inventory, I believe the taxa displayed within comprised Florida Redbelly Turtle (Pseudemys nelsoni), Guerrero Wood Turtle (Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima pulcherrima), Red-eared Slider (Trachemys scripta elegans) and Cumberland Slider (Trachemys scripta troostii). The exhibit was more than suitable for the inhabitants, and I suspect the same will continue to be the case once the crocodilian taxa arrive; at one end of the exhibit was a sandy, pebble-strewn beach which led into a long expanse of deep water, ending with an area of thick vegetation overhanging the water and providing shade.

The next two enclosures we reached were broadly similar to one another, both being relatively tall vivariums containing lush vegetation, branches and bamboo poles connecting different levels of the exhibits, with rocks and shallow pools at the base of the enclosures. The first of these contained a slightly puzzling mixture of species; Australian Green Tree Frog (Litoria caerulea) and Green Tree Python (Morelia viridis), a combination which one would imagine brings with it the risk of the former taxon being predated-upon by the latter. However, there appeared to be large numbers of the Tree Frog within this enclosure so my fears may well be unfounded. The second of these enclosures contained Tiger Ratsnake (Spilotes pullatus), a relatively unusual species in public collections in my experience and as such one I am always rather pleased to see displayed - especially in an enclosure as attractive as this one seemed to be. We next reached an assortment of very attractive tanks for a variety of tropical fish; as with those exhibits we had just seen within the Aquarium, these contained a large number of live corals, sponges and anemones as well as fish. These enclosures stretched to one end of the Ape House. Just opposite this row of fish enclosures, we could see a very spacious and lushly-vegetated enclosure for a large group of highly-active Cape Hyrax (Procavia capensis capensis), a species which I am quite fond of having seen them exhibited at a number of different collections. As with many of the exhibits for this taxon which I have seen in the past, much of the rear portion of this enclosure comprised artificial rockwork and tree-trunks connecting platforms on several levels; however this particular enclosure also contained a lush grassy area at the front of the exhibit, with a number of palm trees dotted around this area. This set this enclosure apart from other exhibits for this taxon which I have seen in the past, although it did make me somewhat wonder whether this enclosure was originally designed for a different species entirely.

We next reached a pair of large enclosures for the non-subspecific Common Chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) and Central Common Chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes troglodytes) held at Tierpark Hellabrunn; the first and slightly smaller of these was extremely lushly-planted with vegetation, primarily shrubs and young palm-trees, and also contained logs, poles and ropes for the inhabitants to move around on. The larger of the two enclosures was somewhat less-vegetated, but still contained a reasonably large amount of greenery among the rockwork and wooden climbing frames which filled the majority of the exhibit. Both enclosures - as with all the larger exhibits within this house - felt bright and airy, thanks to the copious amount of windows allowing natural light to enter the building; something which doubtless also contributed to the large amount of natural vegetation within these enclosures. I was also struck by how good the informational signage alongside these enclosures was; with text in both Deutsch and English, this provided good-quality photographs of each individual chimpanzee within the exhibit as a whole, along with their names, ages and places of birth, and flavour-text giving a little information about the personality of each individual along with nicknames such as "Entertainer" and "Bon Vivant". Although I am the first to admit that as a species, the Chimpanzee leaves me rather cold, I nonetheless very much appreciate when a collection gives this kind of detailed information about individuals held within an exhibit. A little further along a large enclosure rather akin to the second Chimpanzee exhibit, comprising areas of rockwork and wooden climbing frames interspersed with ropes and vegetation, contained a group of Western Lowland Gorilla (Gorilla gorilla gorilla).



This enclosure also included informational signage of a similar calibre to that pertaining to the Chimpanzee exhibits, once again detailing the origin, age and names of each of the inhabitants along with other pieces of trivia and information. Strangely enough, considering my lack of interest in Chimpanzees as a taxon, I rather like watching Western Lowland Gorilla; as such, although the Chimpanzee exhibits within this house were just as good as this exhibit, I enjoyed looking at this enclosure rather more.

Just opposite, there were a handful of reptile exhibits worthy of note; the first of these was a mid-size enclosure for a pair of Green Anaconda (Eunectes murinus) which comprised a variety of mock-rock platforms both above and underwater, whilst the second was a large and sprawling exhibit for Hispaniolan Rhinoceros Iguana (Cyclura cornuta cornuta). The latter of these was particularly good, providing various boulders and rocks amid a sandy-substrate and an imitation rock background, and giving the sole inhabitant a large amount of space; in point of fact, I somewhat wondered whether this enclosure had once held more than just the one individual, or indeed had been designed for an entirely different taxon altogether.

The final major exhibit within the Ape House - which held a group of Roloway Guenon (Cercopithecus roloway) - was akin to both the Cape Hyrax exhibit and the first enclosure for the Chimpanzees within the house, being a large and well-vegetated enclosure with a number of rocky platforms, tree trunks and wooden poles dotted throughout the exhibit and providing the inhabitants with plenty of opportunity to climb and explore their enclosure, with one end of the exhibit also containing a large and intricate wooden climbing frame which furthered this aim. I was very pleased to see an exhibit for this particular taxon; I had previously seen Roloway Guenon only once, at Twycross Zoo, and my photographs at said collection of the taxon had been rather poor.



Moreover, in the intervening time the species had ceased to be kept at Twycross, and as with most guenons is gradually disappearing from European collections as a whole. As such, this was an opportunity to get better record shots of a taxon which I may or may not see again; an opportunity I did not intend to waste. As such we spent some time at this enclosure, obtaining excellent shots of the inhabitants, before we left the Ape House intending to grab something to eat before heading to the nearby "Welt der Affen".

Having eaten rather well that morning, and knowing we intended to meet with Helly's parents and Claire that evening to eat out in the city centre, we thought it prudent to eat lightly; fortunately, there was a small cafe called "Cafe Panini" just behind the Ape House, beside the Flamingo Gate of the Tierpark. Here we shared a slice of cake and bought some drinks; the latter being much more necessary than the former, considering how hot and thirsty we were now feeling. Before making our way to the "Welt der Affen" we passed by a flamingo exhibit which was opposite the complex of buildings we had been spending time within of late; this comprised a large island surrounded by a de-facto moat provided by another of the freshwater creeks flowing through the Tierpark, and contained a very large mixed group of both Greater Flamingo (Phoenicopterus roseus) and Caribbean Flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber), and struck me as a pretty good enclosure for the species in question, albeit nothing which we had not seen many times before.

Much as the "Jungle Pavilion" or Ape House had also contained a monkey taxon, along with a variety of fish and reptiles, it was immediately apparent that the "Welt der Affen" or "World of Monkeys" also contained apes. In front of the main building, we could see a large island - again fed by a freshwater creek - which contained an extremely sizeable wooden climbing frame for Moloch Gibbon (Hylobates moloch). Although at this point in time none of the inhabitants were visible, nor using the climbing frame, the sheer height and scale of the structure made me certain that it would be ideal for both displaying the taxon in an appealing fashion, and for allowing the inhabitants a high level of enrichment and activity.



The "Welt der Affen", unlike the Ape House we had recently encountered, was not - in point of fact - a single house or structure. Rather, it comprised multiple buildings connected by archways, giving the impression of a larger horseshoe-shaped structure which surrounded an inner courtyard and footpath, itself almost entirely surrounding a central building and exterior enclosure, with the open end of the "horseshoe" sealed by another building which seemed to have been a later addition.

The first enclosure we encountered in the main body of the complex was an interestingly-designed exhibit for Mandrill (Mandrillus sphinx); an archway allowing access to the main courtyard of the complex passed underneath the enclosure, such that it extended to either side and over this archway. The enclosure itself comprised a relatively-bare area of concrete and imitation rock with a number of wooden platforms and climbing frames dotted throughout. Although I believe the collection holds a number of Mandrill, there appeared to be only a single male within this exhibit, with no access to an indoor enclosure apparent; this made me wonder to some extend whether the rest of the group was currently off-display, or indeed whether this male was shortly to depart the collection. To the right of us as we headed past this exhibit, we were able to view a row of indoor enclosures; the first of these was signposted for Diana Monkey but it was immediately apparent that this was an error. In point of fact, this exhibit held further individuals of Roloway Guenon - generally an understandable error to make considering the latter taxon was once deemed a subspecies of the former, but somewhat less understandable when one considers that the species was correctly labelled in a nearby exhibit. The enclosure itself was rather more basic than the other exhibit for Roloway Guenon we had seen shortly beforehand; the main feature of the enclosure was a wooden climbing frame comprised of various interconnecting tree branches and logs placed in one corner, with woodchips underneath this frame and a concrete shelf behind the frame. In front of this climbing frame there was a mock-rock pool - presumably present to act as a source of water for the inhabitants - with the rest of the exhibit comprising bare concrete. We next came to a set of similar enclosures - albeit larger and providing significantly more climbing opportunities for the inhabitants through greater use of climbing frames, ropes and bamboo platforms - which were the interior housing for the Moloch Gibbon group whose exterior enclosure I have already remarked upon. Much like the Roloway Guenons, this was a taxon which I had already seen in the United Kingdom, but which I had never felt truly satisfied about my record shots for. As such, being able to view a highly active breeding group of this species was a particular highlight of this area in my opinion; although it may sound as if I disliked the exhibit quality within this area, I felt that it was no worse than the vast majority of primate enclosures which I have seen, and possibly better than many. Moreover, in the specific case of the Moloch Gibbons they seemed to have plenty of space for activity, and appeared to have their needs well-catered for. The final enclosure within this row of exhibits followed a similar plan to those which had preceded it, possibly being more akin to the Gibbon enclosure in scale, and contained a small group of Colombian Black Spider Monkey (Ateles fusciceps rufiventris) - I believe these also had access to the Gibbon Island which has already been discussed.

 

Part VII (continued)

Before heading into the next building, which as already discussed appeared to be a later addition to the complex, we took the opportunity to view a very large outdoor exhibit for Sumatran Orangutan (Pongo abelii); this enclosure contained a vast amount of climbing material for the inhabitants, including platforms, climbing frames and poles, many ropes and netting covering the entire "roof" of the exhibit. Given the height and scale of this exhibit, I was certain that this would be a very impressive enclosure when "in-use" - unfortunately, at the time of our visit to this area of Tierpark Hellabrunn the entire group of Orangutan appeared to be indoors; as such this judgement can only be based on a general evaluation of the look of the exhibit, when compared to others which I have seen. Although not the best enclosure for Orangutan which I had seen - this being those found at Chester Zoo - it was certainly a much better external exhibit than the majority I had seen in the past.



We then entered the next building of the "Welt der Affen" complex; this comprised a large and pleasant-looking public area, with a row of exhibits along one wall of the building. The first of these was a rather insipid enclosure for Siamang (Symphalangus syndactylus), comprising a concrete floor with numerous wooden logs and poles dotted vertically throughout, akin to a partially-felled forest, with only a handful of ropes and piles of straw breaking up the general effect; although in design this exhibit was not *that* much different to those for the Moloch Gibbon, there was significantly less height given to the inhabitants of this exhibit. As such it is perhaps unsurprising that the Siamang within were merely lying on the ground dozing. We next reached an almost identical exhibit, distinguished mainly by the presence of significantly more small branches, logs and baskets, and which contained a large group of South American Squirrel Monkey (Saimiri sciureus). Due to their smaller size and greater level of activity, this taxon seemed much more well-suited to an enclosure of this general design than did the preceding taxon; this rather demonstrates how an enclosure can be perceived as variously good or bad when the only significant difference is the choice of taxon occupying it. The next enclosure in this area was a lushly planted exhibit for Cotton-top Tamarin (Saguinus oedipus) - the appearance and size of this enclosure when compared to the inhabitants, as well as the general design of the exhibit, immediately struck me as earning this particular enclosure the status of the best within this particular row of exhibits; whilst the two I had already viewed, and the pair of enclosures I could see ahead, all followed a similar general design and had presumably not been designed for any particular taxon, this one seemed to have been specifically intended to contain a callitrichid. The general feel of this enclosure was further improved by the fact that, alone of all the exhibits within this particular area, there was a large window behind the exhibit, allowing natural light to illuminate it and permitting a large degree of natural vegetation to flourish within the enclosure. The next two enclosures, as already alluded, were something of a return to the general style and appearance of the Siamang and Squirrel Monkey exhibits; however, the overall "feel" of these enclosures was closer to that of the latter than it was the former - containing as they did Red-ruffed Lemur (Varecia rubra) and Ring-tailed Lemur (Lemur catta) the size of the enclosures was more suited to species such as these than it was for something as large, and requiring space and height to move around, as a Siamang. However, the Ring-tailed Lemur exhibit did strike me as a little dirty and unkempt compared to the other enclosures within this area, which although a little stark and uninspiring were at least tidy-looking.

We next reached a viewing area into a number of indoor exhibits for the Sumatran Orangutan group held at Tierpark Hellabrunn; this area also contained a number of interesting information boards discussing various factors which have an impact on biodiversity and conservation. For instance, one such information board comprised discussion of the various invasive species which have negatively impacted on native species of a given area, whilst another discussed the impact of pollution and global warming on biodiversity. The information signposting for the Sumatran Orangutan was also located here, following a similar general design and theme to those I have already discussed for Chimpanzee and Western Gorilla; once again, I was very pleased with the quality of the information given - perhaps moreso than I had been previously, as I believe the Sumatran Orang is probably my favourite of the "great apes" and as such is a taxon I always appreciate seeing in a captive collection. The interior exhibits for the Sumatran Orangs were, sadly, not quite to the same standard as the exterior exhibit which I have already spoken glowingly about; however, they were still good enclosures and met the needs of the inhabitants reasonably well. Large logs and wooden platforms, interconnected by nets and ropes, wove their way around the exhibits, with areas of straw bedding scattered throughout the floor.

The final batch of exhibits we came to before exiting the "Welt der Affen" were a pair of mid-size internal exhibits for Drill (Mandrillus leucophaeus), a notable point for two reasons; firstly, Tierpark Hellabrunn is the EEP studbook holder for this particular taxon. Secondly, I believe that this may well be the only European collection to hold both Drill and the closely-related Mandrill; this may well suggest that my theory that the collection is planning to go out of the latter taxon may hold some truth, as I suspect it is unlikely they would wish to keep both species in close proximity for too long. However, I was very pleased to have the opportunity to see both species within the space of a half-hour or so, giving me the chance to directly compare the two.



These exhibits were quite akin to those I have already discussed for the Roloway Guenons, Moloch Gibbons and Spider Monkeys held nearby, comprising logs and branches assembled into a makeshift climbing frame, with ropes giving extra climbing opportunities for the inhabitants and the concrete floor dotted with straw bedding. I was quite pleased by these exhibits on the whole; the Drill is quite unusual in European collections and it is always good to have the chance to view them, but moreover the exhibits seemed to suit the welfare and needs of the taxon well.

Having viewed the entirety of this portion of the collection, we then decided to make our way towards the site of the Elephant House, in order to view the ongoing building work there.

 

Part VIII - Elephant House Redevelopment, Covered Aviary and Departure

The next enclosure we reached, just along from the outdoor exhibit for the Moloch Gibbons, comprised a large and pleasant meadow with areas of sandy scrub, interspersed with piles of fallen braches and - towards the rear of the enclosure - groups of mature trees. As usual, the front of the enclosure was marked by a wide moat of flowing water, with another moat extending across much of the rear. Within the enclosure, we could see close to a dozen Agile Wallaby (Notamacropus agilis), with juveniles and subadults visible among the group.



I was particularly pleased to see this particular taxon displayed at Tierpark Hellabrunn, especially within such a large and apparently thriving group, having previously seen the species only once before; this had been a single ailing individual which had been held at South Lakes Wild Animal Park a few years prior, the last survivor of what I believe was once a somewhat larger population. Although I had been able to obtain several photographs of the individual in question, these had been relatively poor due to the quality of my camera at the time, the lighting and environment within the indoor exhibit and the near-comatose state of said individual whilst I viewed it. As such, it was extremely satisfying to be able to view and photograph multiple individuals of this taxon at Tierpark Hellabrunn, and obtain significantly better record shots of the species. From the path in front of this enclosure, we were able to see elements of the ongoing renovation work which was taking place in and around the old Elephant House, through gaps in the fencing which surrounded this area. A small aviary for domestic Budgerigar (Melopsittacus undulatus) was also located in this immediate area, just within the indoor house for the wallabies; although nothing unusual it struck me as reasonably sized and well-designed, with plenty of perching opportunities for the inhabitants. The interior enclosures for the Agile Wallabies were relatively basic affairs, containing sleeping areas, food and not much else; it was apparent from the general appearance of the exhibit that the inhabitants spent much of their time outdoors, and seldom took shelter within. Although I cannot be certain, I think it is therefore possible that the Agile Wallabies are not necessarily locked away at night. There were similar sleeping quarters on the other side of the building, which were not labelled for a specific taxon and seemed unconnected to the outdoor exhibit for the Agile Wallabies. This was a mystery which was soon resolved when we left the wallaby house and continued on our way towards the Elephant House; we soon came to an enclosure where the moat which had been located to the rear of the previous exhibit swung forwards towards the public footpath, splitting as it did so and forming a small, grassy island. This island connected to a patch of trees and vegetation via a small wooden bridge; this area allowed access to the wallaby house. The exhibit was signposted for a mixture of Swamp Wallaby (Wallabia bicolor) and Black Swan (Cygnus atratus); both taxa were readily visible within. I was quite pleased to see the Swamp Wallaby displayed at Tierpark Hellabrunn; although not as unusual in captive collections as the aforementioned Agile Wallaby, it is nonetheless a species which one does not see particularly often. Considering how often a collection chooses the now-default option of displaying Red-necked Wallaby, the chance to see some of the more unusual members of the macropod family is always welcome.

Just beyond this exhibit, we reached an informational pavilion which contained a range of noticeboards and posters discussing the ongoing work taking place on the Elephant House and surrounding paddocks, which stood directly opposite the pavilion.



These explained that the existing Grade II listed Elephant House was 100 years old, being one of the first structures constructed for the Tierpark, and as such required extensive refurbishment in order to incorporate modern technology and zookeeping facilities, and thus meet the latest zoological standards. This work would, however, retain the original exterior appearance of the house due to the listed status of the building as a whole. Diagrams of the intended floorplan for the renovated Elephant House, including public viewing areas, off-show areas and keeper working areas, were also provided, along with notes about various issues and complications which had arisen during the worth thus far.



Overall, I thought that the scope and the standard of this informational signage was excellent; it is always good to get an insight into the ongoing development and expansion of a collection, and for this information to be displayed in an appealing and accessible format.

The next enclosure we reached was a sandy, scrubby paddock containing stretches of lush grass and thicker vegetation; this contained Emu (Dromaius novaehollandiae) along with a large group of Red Kangaroo (Osphranter rufus); although one of the more well-known macropod taxa, this latter species is surprisingly less common in captive collections than one would think. When this is taken into consideration alongside the factor of how large and impressive this species can get, it is easy to understand why I always enjoy having the opportunity to view this taxon. The enclosure was, on the whole, more than large enough for the inhabitants and seemed well-suited to their needs; something which applies equally to the other enclosures within this small "Australian" zone of Tierpark Hellabrunn. With the exception of the domestic Budgerigar, all of the species displayed within this area are - in my opinion - either an unusual choice for such an exhibit or a species which provides an impressive sight. As such I was very pleased with this portion of Tierpark Hellabrunn. Just opposite here, we were able to view the temporary outdoor exhibit for the Asian Elephants held within the collection; the majority of the land-area within this enclosure comprised sandy substrate, with areas of vegetation - primarily bamboo and mature trees - found to the left of the paddock.



The front of the paddock contained a vast, deep pool; this was partially fed by an artificial waterfall constructed within a craggy area of rocks and boulders at the water's edge. The inhabitants of the exhibit seemed to be making full use of the aforementioned pool; unsurprisingly so, considering how hot and bright the day had become. Overall, I thought that this enclosure, although a little small considering it contained several fully-grown elephants, was very well-suited to the inhabitants; the size factor is understandable and fully acceptable considering the circumstances, and I suspect that when the renovation work has been completed on the Elephant House, and more of the surrounding paddock is once again accessible to the inhabitants, this exhibit may well be one of the best in Europe.

As the last major area which we were yet to visit was the covered free-flight aviary not far from the Elephant House, we decided to next make our way in that general direction. As I approached the next enclosure the scent on the wind made it instantly apparent which taxon was held within; the Maned Wolf (Chrysocyon brachyurus). As has been discussed many times previously, this species has a very distinctive aroma which rather resembles a particular illicit substance – something which not only allows an exhibit for the species to be recognised before it is within visual range, if the wind blows in the right direction, but which also has been known to cause some confusion with members of the public. In the days when Edinburgh Zoo held the taxon, I am told that keepers and members of staff would regularly be informed by members of the public that someone had been smoking cannabis near “the enclosure for the tall fox”! The Maned Wolf, being rather unusual and only distantly related to other members of the family – its closest kin being the equally bizarre Bush Dog – is possibly one of my favourite canid species. Although not uncommon within UK collections, it is not displayed as often as I should like despite being – in my opinion – a particularly good option for collections aiming to display the diversity of the canid family beyond those resembling dogs and wolves due to the unusual features of the species and its striking appearance. The enclosure itself was pretty well-suited to the species; like many of the exhibits we had seen thus far, it comprised a mid-size grassy paddock, bordered by vegetation and a freshwater creek, with mature trees and bushes dotted here and there. As this taxon tends to be a little shy, I felt that the "quiet" feel of this area of the Tierpark, and the opportunities for cover provided by the bushes and shrubs, were ideal for the welfare of the inhabitants. The next exhibit was rather unusual, and as such rather interesting; an area of scrub and sand, interspersed with flower beds, buried logs and drystone wall sections. Information signage indicated that this was an "insect garden", designed to attract a variety of different butterflies, bees and other invertebrate taxa, with further information provided on some of the main species attracted to such habitats. The final enclosures we reached before entering the walkthrough aviary were interior exhibits for Capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris), which appeared to usually have access to the Pampas exhibit which I have already discussed; however, the group was being kept inside due to the recent birth of young Capybara. These inner enclosures were rather akin to those I have already discussed for the wallaby taxa held nearby, being pretty basic affairs containing places to feed and sleep without a great deal of ornament nor decoration. As such, they were perfectly well-suited to their inhabitants but not particularly noteworthy to the eye of the visitor.

We then made our way into the covered aviary; this comprised a very large walkthrough area containing a wide variety of wetland birds, primarily from Palearctic habitats but with taxa from other biogeographic ecozones included.



The path wound its way through a variety of different "habitats", including ponds and creeks, areas of pasture and grassland, scrubby vegetation and wooden platforms at the top of tall wooden poles and mature trees, with the entire aviary netted over with a fine mesh, supported by a series of tall metal posts. Dozens of species were contained within, with many labelled on informational signposts but further taxa remaining unlabelled. Those taxa I spotted include:

Scarlet Ibis (Eudocimus ruber)
Glossy Ibis (Plegadis falcinellus)
Straw-necked Ibis (Threskiornis spinicollis)
Northern Bald Ibis (Geronticus eremita)
Black Stork (Ciconia nigra)
Red-breasted Goose (Branta ruficollis)
Hooded Merganser (Lophodytes cucullatus)
Smew (Mergellus albellus)
Red-shouldered Teal (Callonetta leucophrys)
White-faced Whistling Duck (Dendrocygna viduata)
Northern Pintail (Anas acuta)
Red-crested Pochard (Netta rufina)
Mandarin Duck (Aix galericulata)
Carolina Wood Duck (Aix sponsa)
Bahama Pintail (Anas bahamensis)
Northern Shoveler (Spatula clypeata)
Ruddy Duck (Oxyura jamaicensis)
Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula clangula)
Common Shelduck (Tadorna tadorna)

As one can imagine, the various species within calling to one another, defending their territories from interlopers and generally interacting amongst themselves meant that the aviary was a hub of activity, with the inhabitants constantly audible. I always enjoy watching exotic waterfowl, and having seen a handful of these species in the wild it was interesting to watch them interacting with one another; the sight of a large group of Glossy Ibis demonstrating amongst themselves was particularly enjoyable, with the late afternoon sunlight bringing out the subtle colours in their plumage. The light conditions and the warm weather also meant that I was able to take numerous high-quality photographs of the inhabitants of this walk-through aviary; something which is always particularly satisfying. Exiting the aviary, we were able to get a better look at the Pampas exhibit which we had viewed from afar earlier in the afternoon; we were quite pleased to note that the Giant Anteater - a taxon which can be somewhat hit-or-miss when it comes to how showy and visible it is in a given collection - was very active, wandering around the enclosure close to the entrance to it's interior housing. Moreover, we were now able to see that one of the Rhea within this enclosure was leucistic; a common mutation in this species in my experience. Overall, on closer inspection I believed that my previous impression of the enclosure as a good one for the taxa within, meeting their needs very well, had been an entirely accurate one.

As we had more or less seen the entire collection, barring the exterior enclosures for the Jungle Pavilion - which we had been unable to work out how to access, despite having seen photographs of the enclosures previously which suggested they *were* visible to the public - we decided we would look at a small number of highlights again before making our way towards the exit. The first such highlight which I wanted to revisit was the snake collection within the Aquarium; as a number of the taxa within had been lifeticks, or species which I have seldom seen in the past, I thought it worth my while to see if any of the individuals within were better-positioned for photography. As we made our way towards the Aquarium, we once again passed the Red Panda exhibit which I have discussed previously. Although we had missed the critical moment of travel, I was amused and pleased to notice that the inhabitants of the exhibit were now in the opposite enclosure to that which they had occupied earlier in the day. As such, this allows me to conclusively state that the Red Pandas do indeed use the log bridge connecting the two enclosures during opening hours; a sight I am somewhat sorry I missed, truth be told! After taking further photographs of the various snakes within the Aquarium, we then made our way to the Arctic Fox enclosure in the hope that the inhabitants - which we had failed to spot earlier in the day - would now be visible; this was a decision which proved to have been a wise one, as a single Arctic Fox - still in the white winter coat - was sunbathing close to the fence, permitting us to take several photographs. Other areas we revisited during this time include the Bat Grotto, the Eurasian Wolf exhibit and the paddocks around the Rhinoceros House. As one would imagine, our travels to and from these points gave us various opportunities to view certain enclosures a final time, but did not lead to our viewing anything "new" per se, with a single exception; not far from the Arctic Fox enclosure, we reached a second paddock for Przewalski Horse, entirely distinct from the large sandy paddock we had viewed earlier in the day. Although not entirely hidden from view, being separated from the public footpath by thick mesh and vegetation, unlabelled but nonetheless visible, I suspect that this paddock is intended as a de-facto "off-show" holding area for surplus individuals, or possibly the breeding stallion when the females of the main group are not in-season. Between this holding paddock and the main enclosure for the Przewalski Horse, there was a dillapidated and moss-covered stone monument in memory of Heinz Heck, the former director of Tierpark Hellabrunn whom I have already discussed.



The condition and the somewhat out-of-the-way location of this monument strikes me as something of a pity; despite the more controversial aspects of the life of the Heck brothers, both were influential figures in the zoo world during the inter-war years and their heritage should not be forgotten.

After concluding our spate of repeat-visits throughout the collection, we spent a final few minutes watching the Apennine Chamois - possibly my single favourite species of the day - we headed towards the zoo shop, and thence the exit.

 

Part IX - Final Thoughts on Tierpark Hellabrunn

As we once again entered U-Thalkirchen, we took the opportunity to have a closer look at the various murals and paintings on the walls of the subway into the station, which as already discussed displayed a variety of taxa. After taking photographs of these murals and images, we took the U3 line back into the centre of Munich, in order that we would be able to meet up with the others.

Now would be an appropriate time to discuss my general thoughts on Tierpark Hellabrunn. Overall, I was rather impressed with the collection, which seemed to find a good balance between displaying a diverse range of species, and housing them in appropriately designed enclosures to meet the needs of the inhabitants. The recently-renovated giraffe house and the elephant house redevelopment which was in-progress at the time of my visit, to name but two examples, both indicate a commitment to improving exhibit quality without – as far as I could tell – reducing the diversity and quality of the collection as a whole. As already noted, Tierpark Hellabrunn was the first example worldwide of a collection based around the "Geo-zoo" concept; a concept which I am in favour of in theory, but which I have had severe reservations about in practice when encountering the concept at collections such as Zoo Leipzig. As such, I found it quite reassuring that despite the collection having been designed along these grounds, Tierpark Hellabrunn still had a distinctive "feel" of its own. I very much enjoyed the setting of the collection; with much of the Tierpark being located in thick natural woodland, intersected by creeks and streams diverted from the nearby Isar River, walking around the collection and keeping my eyes open for wildlife was a genuine pleasure, one which put me in mind of similar experiences a year prior at Tierpark Berlin and Zoo Magdeburg.

One particular highlight of the collection, in my opinion, was the “Geo-zone” themed around the display of Eurasian taxa such as the Apennine Chamois, Brown Bear, Alpine Ibex and Eurasian Elk; as may be obvious by this point, I have a particular liking for exhibits which demonstrate the diversity of wildlife found rather closer to home than the big “ABC” species found in the vast majority of collections; these provide an important educational purpose through allowing those visiting a collection to understand that the need for conservation and an understanding of how diverse and unusual the natural world is cannot, and should not, be restricted to far-flung locations such as South America, Africa and South-East Asia. Species such as the Apennine Chamois are just as precious and deserving of protection as the Asian Elephants, Amur Tigers and Western Lowland Gorillas which are found elsewhere within this collection. Another highlight was the large aviary for waterfowl and wetland birds; I have always had a soft spot for these particular groups of birds, and always enjoy having the opportunity to view them at length. The aviary contained a very good selection of both commonplace and more unusual taxa, and as far as I could tell had thriving breeding groups for the majority of these.

I was also very pleased with the overall quality of the primate collection within Tierpark Hellabrunn; although I have already noted that some of the individual exhibits within “Welt der Affen” were uninspiring and failed to meet the standard I would have hoped for, the indoor exhibits within the “Jungle Pavilion”, along with the outdoor exhibit for Sumatran Orangutan and both the indoor and outdoor exhibits for Moloch Gibbons were excellent. Unfortunately, I did not get the opportunity to view the outdoor exhibits for the Chimpanzee or Gorilla within the collection, so my opinion on this point must be regarded as somewhat incomplete.
Overall, the hoofstock enclosures at Tierpark Hellabrunn followed the same basic design throughout; this may well be a reflection of the fact that many of these exhibits seemed to be among the oldest within the collection, and as such have not been redeveloped to give them a more specific “feel” – however, in the vast majority of cases the exhibits were nonetheless very well-suited to the species contained within. Those exhibits which strayed from this general design and seemed to be more recent additions – for instance the large exhibit for gazelle, antelope and other African taxa, and the Giraffe exhibit – were excellent. Similarly, I was quite pleased with how the admittedly old-fashioned exhibits within the “Polar World” region of the collection still managed to meet the welfare requirements of their inhabitants whilst also looking pretty good considering their age – especially the complex of enclosures for Polar Bear.

However, this is not to say that the older areas of Tierpark Hellabrunn were universally good; I was not particularly impressed with the quality of the indoor housing for the Eurasian Lynx and Amur Tiger, nor some of the other exhibits in this area of the collection, which seemed to have been left to stagnate to some degree. As already noted, this area of the collection struck me as no better – and possibly slightly inferior – to many of the exhibits which have met with criticism and controversy at Tierpark Berlin; considering the fact that the current director of said collection, Andreas Kniereim, has been one of the most outspoken critics of these exhibits, I find it somewhat hypocritical that he did not see fit to raise concern about similar exhibits whilst at Tierpark Hellabrunn. However, this is only a minor issue; on the whole, the variable quality of the older portions of Hellabrunn was the only real problem which I had with the collection.

On the whole, I feel confident in saying that of the German collections I had visited up to this point in time, Tierpark Hellabrunn was – with the exception of the two Berlin collections – probably the best I had seen; although I had enjoyed Zoo Magdeburg more, I make a distinction here between liking a collection and judging the overall quality of a collection. Moreover, considering the historical status of Tierpark Hellabrunn as the first to use a “Geo-Zoo” theme in planning and designing the layout of the collection, it is a collection which I believe must be visited by any serious zoo enthusiast on the grounds of its significance in this regard.

After arriving into U-Marienplatz, we made our way back to the Hotel Blauer-Bock in order that we could leave our bags and cameras within our room; having done so we went down into the lobby of the hotel and sat reading for a time until Helly's parents, along with Claire, came downstairs and met up with us. We then started walking slowly in the general direction of Marienplatz, discussing what our options for food would be. Despite the fact that I had rather enjoyed our meal the night before, the general opinion from Helly's parents was that traditional Bavarian food was a little too heavy for their tastes, especially the prospect of eating it two nights in a row. As such, the idea of returning to the same location as the previous night was quickly scrapped. It was eventually decided that we would look for an Italian restaurant or similar location - we eventually found somewhere to eat on Burgstraße, about 200 metres from Marienplatz; however, I neglected to make a note of its name, and cannot find any information online to shed light on the matter, and as such cannot link to further information. The food was pleasant, albeit pretty much what one would expect from an Italian restaurant and no more. I once again, unusually for myself, elected to try some locally-brewed beer with my meal; something which may well surprise anyone who had met me and therefore knows that I am more or less teetotal. This said, even with my minimal tolerance for alcohol, a single glass of beer imbibed over the course of some hours was insufficient to get me drunk!

As Helly and myself had an extremely early morning ahead of ourselves - having booked an advance train fare to allow us to reach Stuttgart in a timely fashion and give us the maximum possible time to spend at Wilhelma - at the close of our meal, rather than tarrying we bid the others farewell and made our way back to our hotel; after a quick shower and packing everything we needed for the morning, we fell asleep rather rapidly.

(Attached are a selection of photographs showing some of the murals within U-Thalkirchen subway)

 

Photographic highlights from Tierpark Hellabrunn

Apennine Chamois (Rupicapra ornata) at Tierpark Hellabrunn - April 9th 2015 | ZooChat
Cuban Hutia (Capromys pilorides) at Tierpark Hellabrunn - April 9th 2015 | ZooChat
Non-subspecific Lion (Panthera leo) at Tierpark Hellabrunn - April 9th 2015 | ZooChat
Red Junglefowl (Gallus gallus) at Tierpark Hellabrunn - April 9th 2015 | ZooChat
Cuban Brown Anole (Anolis sagrei) at Tierpark Hellabrunn - April 9th 2015 | ZooChat
Greater Kudu (Tragelaphus strepsiceros) at Tierpark Hellabrunn - April 9th | ZooChat
Patagonian Sea Lion (Otaria byronia) at Tierpark Hellabrunn - April 9th 201 | ZooChat
Fat Sand Rat (Psammomys obesus obesus) at Tierpark Hellabrunn - April 9th 2 | ZooChat
Eastern Kiang (Equus kiang holdereri) at Tierpark Hellabrunn - April 9th 20 | ZooChat
Bornean Bearded Pig (Sus barbatus barbatus) at Tierpark Hellabrunn - April | ZooChat
Non-subspecific Brown Bear (Ursus arctos) at Tierpark Hellabrunn - April 9t | ZooChat
American Wood Bison (Bison bison athabascae) at Tierpark Hellabrunn - April | ZooChat
Roloway Monkey (Cercopithecus roloway) at Tierpark Hellabrunn - April 9th 2 | ZooChat
Glossy Ibis (Plegadis falcinellus) at Tierpark Hellabrunn - April 9th 2015 | ZooChat
Eastern Green Mamba (Dendroaspis angusticeps) at Tierpark Hellabrunn - Apri | ZooChat
Tajik Markhor (Capra falconeri heptneri) at Tierpark Hellabrunn - April 9th | ZooChat
Javan Banteng (Bos javanicus javanicus) at Tierpark Hellabrunn - April 9th | ZooChat
Heck Cattle (Bos primigenius taurus) at Tierpark Hellabrunn - April 9th 201 | ZooChat
Moloch Gibbon (Hylobates moloch) at Tierpark Hellabrunn - April 9th 2015 | ZooChat
Agile Wallaby (Notamacropus agilis) at Tierpark Hellabrunn - April 9th 2015 | ZooChat

Next: A visit to Wilhelma in Stuttgart!