Queues were seen ‘like never before’ outside Bristol Zoo as the 186-year-old institution opened its doors for the final time ever today.
Due to the pandemic’s effects and lockdowns, the oldest provincial zoo in the world had to close.
The Bristol Zoological Society has said that “hands were forced” in the conversion of Bristol Zoo Gardens, which has been operating for 186 years on the edge of Clifton Downs, into sustainable dwellings.
The organisation stated: “Bristol Zoo Gardens has endured several difficulties for a long time. Specifically, the decline in visitors, the financial toll the coronavirus epidemic has had, and the difficulties in keeping up with the evolving demands of the animals.
The fifth-oldest zoo in the world, which first welcomed visitors in Clifton in 1836, still has several of its original Victorian structures, including the fate house, the old giraffe house, and the monkey temple.
The famous television programme Animal Magic, which aired there from 1962 until 1983, was also based there. In his role as a zookeeper, presenter Johnny Morris would converse with animals and replicate their answers.
More than 90 million visitors have been through its doors since it was opened to the public some 200 years ago, and more than 175 species have been spared from extinction thanks to its top-notch breeding programmes.
One guy wrote: “Happy and sad to bringing the family to @BristolZooGdns for their final ever day at the clifton site.” as many raced to social media to share their memories of Bristol Zoo.
Never seen a line this long, stretching all the way to the parking lot! I’ve been coming here since I was a youngster, and I’m happy to have one final opportunity to bring my kids here.
Another guy described how his wife gave birth to their first child there over 30 years after starting his first employment at Bristol Zoo as a potwasher at the age of 16.
Now, the animals will be transferred to the sister facility of the charity in South Gloucestershire. Since the 1960s, it has held the Wild Place Project property outside of Junction 17 of the M5, but for a long time, it was only used for breeding and quarantine reasons and was closed to tourists.
In order to renovate the Clifton property and make the gardens open to the public for the first time ever for free, the organisation filed a planning application in June.
On the property, 200 dwellings would be constructed, mostly in locations where there are currently buildings. Even though a new play area will be built, the grounds will mostly stay untouched.
The zoo entry building will be transformed into a new café and exhibition area, and there will be community and educational activities hosted there.
The current Terrace Theatre building will also be set aside for community activities, and unique elements like the Monkey Temple and the old Bear Pit will also be conserved.
With the money from the sale, a new zoo will be constructed and opened in 2024, north of Bristol, off the M5.
The third nationwide lockdown put 24 zoos at danger of shutting, according to the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquarium.
However, the industry has recovered, and vistor levels have now reached their pre-pandemic levels.
The zoo is so entrenched in history that Alfred the gorilla, who was at the time the only gorilla kept in captivity in the nation, lived there from 1930 until 1948.
He is presently shown as a taxidermy statue at the Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery.
Bristol residents may also recall the famed Whiteladies Road in the 1960s, when elephants Wendy and Christina were known for being taken for walks. In 1958, Roger, a rare black rhino, became the first of his kind to be born in the UK.
Education and conservation are at the core of what zoos do, according to Jo Judge of the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
A contemporary zoo must be first and foremost a conservation organisation, she said.
“Modern zoos provide a tremendous amount of work in terms of conservation and research that cannot be done with animals in the wild,” the statement goes.