Wild Place Project

Bristol Zoo Project, formerly known as Wild Place Project, is a wildlife conservation park in South Gloucestershire, United Kingdom. It is run by Bristol Zoological Society (BZS) and was the sister site of Bristol Zoo Gardens until closure of that site in 2022. In summer 2023, Wild Place Project rebranded as "Bristol Zoo Project" following the transition of Bristol Zoo Gardens from their Clifton site.[3]

Bristol Zoo Project
51.5305°N 2.6122°W / 51.5305; -2.6122
Date opened22 July 2013
Land area136 Acres[1]
Annual visitors192,306 (2018)[2]
OwnerBristol Zoological Society
Websitewww.wildplace.org.uk

The park has been designed to link specific ecosystems and conservation programmes around the world,[4] and was originally intended to be split into biomes, representing species found only in specific habitats.[5] Current areas include: Bear Wood, Benoué National Park and Discover Madagascar.

The species list currently includes red river hog, cheetah, zebra, common eland, meerkat, gelada baboon, Pink pigeon, Visayan tarictic hornbill, village weaver, reticulated giraffe, wolverine, eurasian lynx, grey wolf, brown bear and a brand new Ostrich.

History

Bristol Zoo Project is located on Hollywood Estate, a grade II listed estate. The estate was gifted to Bristol Zoological Society in the mid 1960s by the White family. From the 1960s to 2013 the site was used as an off show area for breeding and quarantine. The site also housed the society's nurseries and to this day grows a third of the food for the animals at Bristol Zoo Project.

In 2008 Bristol Zoological Society announced plans to submit plans to South Gloucestershire Council for the development of a new 55-hectare park.

The park officially opened on 22 July 2013.[6] The original submitted plans suggested a development cost of circa £70 million.[7]

Bear Wood, an environment designed to mimic England in 8,000 BC opened in July 2019.[8]

Plans for 2022 to 2024

Bristol Zoological Society announced on 27 November 2020 that its historic Bristol Zoo Gardens site in Clifton would close, with animals moved to the Wild Place Project site close to the M5 motorway.[9]

The new conservation breeding centre would include Annam leaf turtle, Lesser Antillean iguana, Pancake Tortoise, Radiated tortoise, Roti Island snake-necked turtle, Indochinese box turtle, Agalychnis lemur, Leptodactylus fallax, Marshall's pygmy chameleon, Lygodactylus williamsi, Varanus macraei, Uroplatus, Hogna ingens, Polynesian tree snail, Lord Howe Island stick insect, two species of Madeiran land snail (Discula lyelliana and Geomitra grabhami), Socorro dove, Visayan tarictic hornbill, Sumatran laughingthrush, Philippine cockatoo, Javan green magpie, European turtle dove, Mindanao bleeding-heart, Negros bleeding-heart pigeon, pink pigeon, Malagasy cichlids, Malagasy rainbow fish and powder blue panchax, Pupfish and goodeids and White clawed crayfish.

Finally, there was to be a new entrance with a new café, new gift shop, and new entry exhibits.

In 2021 it was announced that new features at Bristol Zoo Project resulting from the move from Clifton were to include a conservation breeding centre with climate-controlled enclosures, a learning centre and a conservation medicine centre.[10]

References
  1. "About us I Bristol Zoo Gardens".
  2. "ALVA - Association of Leading Visitor Attractions". www.alva.org.uk. Retrieved 25 August 2019.
  3. "Wild Place Project rebrands as Bristol Zoo Project". Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  4. "Wild Place Project helps conserve endangered animals". BBC News. 22 July 2013. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
  5. "Bristol Park gets jungle". Times Online. 27 July 2008. Retrieved 4 August 2008.
  6. "New Bristol attraction opens 22 July | The Wild Place Project". www.wildplace.org.uk. Archived from the original on 2 July 2013.
  7. "Zoo submits £70m park proposals". BBC News. BBC. 17 July 2008. Retrieved 4 August 2008.
  8. Murray, Robin (23 July 2019). "Bear Wood at the Wild Place Project in photos as bears bask in sun". Bristol Post. Retrieved 25 August 2019.
  9. Sophie Grubb, "Bristol Zoo closing: Mayor says relocation was 'the very best decision'", Bristol Post, 27 November 2020
  10. "Bristol Zoo's new home to include some of world's most threatened species". Blooloop. 15 December 2021. Retrieved 15 December 2021.

51.52959°N 2.61601°W / 51.52959; -2.61601

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