Since we shared CGI images of the new Bristol Zoo Project almost a year ago, updates surrounding the wildlife conservation park have been few and far between. But with construction beginning in spring, phased over several years, we’re sure there’ll be lots more to talk about soon. Starting with the fact that planning permission has been granted for a new Central African habitat.
The new forest area will be home to some of the world’s most critically endangered species – including slender-snouted crocodiles, African grey parrots, and several West African freshwater fish species. The first-of-its-kind zoo in the UK will be the first to house western lowland gorillas and cherry-crowned mangabeys together. It will also provide the gorillas with a living space four-and-a-half times the size that they had at Bristol Zoo Gardens.
Transforming most of the old zoo’s 136-acre woodland, it’s been designed to replicate the dense forest and landscape of Equatorial Guinea – where the Bristol Zoological Society already runs one of its largest conservation projects for gorillas and other threatened forest species. More than this, Bristol Zoo Project will double as a cutting-edge learning centre for visitors, schoolchildren and undergraduate and postgraduate students.
These ambitious designs will not only conserve and protect some of the world’s most threatened species but also enable more managed breeding programmes. Around 80% of the species at the new Bristol Zoo Project will be linked to the Society’s conservation programmes to offer spaces more closely reflecting natural habitats. By 2035, the Society’s target is 90%.
“We are thrilled to have secured planning permission for this new habitat, which is a major step forward in our vision to create a modern conservation zoo with animals living in spaces more closely reflecting their natural habitats,” said Justin Morris, chief executive at Bristol Zoological Society. “Creating a new environment such as this helps to raise vital awareness of the risks these species are facing and the efforts we can all take to Save Wildlife Together.”
“Work on the new habitat will begin in the spring and is expected to be complete next year. In the future, we will also be building new visitor facilities and a conservation campus for students studying to become conservationists. This is a really exciting time not only for the zoo but also for our visitors, partners and supporters. Conservation zoos have a critical role to play in working with communities and connecting them with wildlife.”
Just some of the other species expected to arrive at Bristol Zoo Project will include blue-eyed black lemurs, Polynesian tree snails, Mindanao bleeding heart dove, Tarictic hornbill, turquoise gecko, lemur leaf frog, Corfu killifish, black rhinoceros and North African red-necked ostriches. The Bristol Zoo Project will remain open throughout construction, which is currently home to bears, cheetahs, giraffes, zebras, meerkats, wolves, lynx and more. Learn more here.