Annual Review 2017 Contents Chair of Trustees’ Giraffe House Build P.3 Welcome Winter P.6
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Bristol Zoological Society Annual Review 2017 Contents Chair of Trustees’ Giraffe house build p.3 welcome Winter p.6 Spring p.8 Summer p.12 Autumn p.16 Field conservation and science p.17 What a year 2017 was for Bristol At Bristol Zoo Gardens, we Zoological Society, with exciting celebrated 25 years of our The year in figures p.21 conservation developments, volunteering scheme. We have events, births, sponsor support more than 240 volunteers who and the great work of our staff and help in many different ways and volunteers. Operating the biggest we are incredibly thankful for paid-for tourist attraction in Bristol, everything they do. and with many new developments at Wild Place Project, we have so Our vital conservation projects much to be proud of. across the globe have also continued apace, which would not Trustees We welcomed our first guests to be possible without the ongoing as at 31 December 2017 Camp Baboon this year, offering support of our members, sponsors, a unique overnight experience partners, donors, staff and Charlotte Moar – Chair of Trustees among the animals at the heart of volunteers. We are so very grateful Wild Place Project. Guests sleep for this. Victoria Ash in luxurious cabins just a stone’s Chris Booy OBE throw from our new giraffe house Finally, I would like to extend my which opened this year following a thanks to Richard Clarke who Malcolm Broad MBE huge fundraising effort. stepped down as Chairman of Ben Cosh Trustees this year but who, I am Our conservation project for delighted to say, will remain with David Esam Kordofan giraffes in Cameroon the Society in the position of Paul Kearney continues to go from strength-to- official ambassador. I would also strength. This year we delivered like to thank Dr Bryan Carroll for Claire Ladkin training on animal surveying to his tireless commitment to the teams from four national parks in Society, as he retires after 22 Mathew Laws Cameroon and conducted large years, and wish him all the very Professor Steve Neill mammal surveys in Bénoué best for the future. National Park. We look forward to Professor Rich Pancost developing this project over the Charlotte Moar Professor Jo Price coming years. Chair of Trustees Chief Executive Officer’s welcome Welcome to our 2017 annual the birth of a female western and I am excited to know that it review, packed full of news, animal lowland gorilla, the hatching of a will continue to develop over the arrivals and exciting developments Critically Endangered Philippine coming years. across Bristol Zoological Society. cockatoo and successful hatching of five keeled box turtles after 12 With nearly a quarter of all One of the biggest highlights of years of trying. mammal species and a third the year was the opening of our of amphibians threatened with spectacular new giraffe house at Our efforts were recognised by extinction, there is an urgent need Wild Place Project. The new exhibit the British zoo community as we to safeguard our wildlife. It is the has been a huge success and we won a number of awards from Society’s mission to protect the were thrilled to have welcomed the British and Irish Association planet’s most vulnerable animals, record visitor numbers of more of Zoos and Aquariums. We communities and habitats and I will than 210,000 at Wild Place Project were awarded gold for a study to always be extremely proud to have this year. enhance the profile of threatened been part of that. primates, bronze for a study into The arrival of twin white-belted Sanje mangabeys in Tanzania, The continued support of the black and white ruffed lemurs at and another bronze for a breeding local community has helped Wild Place Project was another programme for medicinal leeches. immeasurably in enabling us cause for celebration. The species to achieve our mission and we is under grave threat in the wild This will be my last annual review continue to be grateful for this. I and not commonly kept in captivity, as CEO as, after more than 22 years would personally also like to thank so each birth is of huge importance working for the Society, I will be all the staff and volunteers who to its survival. retiring next year. I’ve seen many dedicate so much to the Society, and changes during those years and the board of trustees who give so At Bristol Zoo Gardens, our the Society has developed a great much of their time and experience to numerous breeding programmes deal. Not only have we expanded help make the Society the best it can continue to flourish. This year we our conservation, education and possibly be. I wish my successor all made huge progress in our new scientific research, we have also the very best in taking the Society project for Desertas wolf spiders opened Wild Place Project – one of forward into the future. when more than 1,000 spiderlings the biggest developments in the hatched in a world first. Other Society’s 181 year history. What we Dr Bryan Carroll highlights, among many, include have achieved there is incredible CEO Giraffe House build The world’s tallest animals made to hand-feed the giraffes, meet a three zebras, two red river hogs South Gloucestershire their home keeper, help prepare the giraffes’ and two eland. The impressive, this year as Wild Place Project food and find out all about these two-story giraffe house features welcomed three new giraffes. long-legged creatures and what is a high-level viewing platform, Tom, Dayo and Gerry arrived from involved in their care. offering a new perspective of Holland and Germany in early the majestic animals, as well as summer, to live in a purpose- It took more than a year to develop indoor and outdoor ground-level built, £1.1 million giraffe house the 1.8 acre attraction, which is viewing areas and a one-of-a-kind and paddock in the new Bénoué also home to Wild Place Project’s conference room available for hire. National Park exhibit. The trio were brought to the attraction in special six-wheeled trailers with elevating roofs to give the giraffes plenty of head room. The new residents were carefully unloaded and guided into their striking new home before undergoing thorough health checks by our vets and given time to settle in before meeting the public for the first time. A spectacular new guest experience also launched this year, allowing visitors the chance to enjoy a behind-the-scenes up- close and personal encounter with the giraffes, creating memories that last a lifetime. The package includes the unique opportunity 3 Children from St. Anne’s Our gardeners have expanded CE School in Oldland their fodder production this year, Common visited Wild concentrating on crops such as Place Project to find out tree lucerne for the Lord Howe about the construction of Island stick insects and establishing the new giraffe house and evergreen fodder for large to bury a time capsule. herbivores such as giraffes. In the wild, giraffe numbers have donated or got involved in fallen from 140,000 to less than fundraising events. 80,000 in just 15 years. There are now fewer giraffes left in the wild The arrival of giraffes at Wild Place than African elephants. We have Project is not only an exciting begun a field conservation project development for the attraction, to save one of the few populations but is also crucially important in of Kordofan giraffe left in the wild, supporting the survival of these in northern Cameroon. The species graceful animals in Cameroon. is under serious threat from habitat loss due to huge herds of cattle present in the area and poaching for bushmeat. As a result, these iconic animals are disappearing quickly and quietly towards The outdoor paddock features a extinction. If nothing is done to waterhole and hard standing area protect them, there is a real chance for the animals and themed West they will be lost forever. African dwellings and terraced seating for guests. Fundraising activities throughout the year helped fund this important The new abode was built by new conservation project. Almost Keynsham-based construction and 300 people took part in our annual interior fit-out company, Dribuild, Wild Run event at Wild Place who are also the headline sponsor Project, raising more than £4,000 for the exhibit. Support such as this for the Giraffe House Appeal. is vital to help fund our important conservation work around the We are extremely grateful for the world, and has enabled us to begin enormous support this project a new field conservation project for has received and would like to giraffes in Cameroon, West Africa. thank everyone who supported, 4 A team from the BBC spent a day filming with our vet department and various animals including the giant tortoises, for a new CBeebies series called Fearne and Rory’s vet tales. Winter in the ‘Best Artistic; Cultural & offering guests a fun and January Learning Experience’ category. immersive dining experience, taking inspiration from nature and We started the year with a gold various animal habitats. tourism excellence award for our luxury on-site accommodation, February The Lodge, at Bristol Zoo Gardens. The former keepers’ Work got underway on a new, March lodge was awarded gold at the 300-seater restaurant at Bristol South West Tourism Awards Zoo Gardens, called The Hide, After a two-year break, we re-started our African penguin breeding effort, with seven chicks hatching and being successfully raised throughout the year. A kea chick was successfully hatched and parent-reared in February.