Bath design team behind new Bristol Zoo Central African Forest
Landscape architects Grant Associates and architects Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios have worked with conservation and education charity Bristol Zoological Society to secure planning approval for the new Central African Forest habitat at its Bristol Zoo Project site to home some of the world’s most critically endangered species.
Western lowland gorillas and cherry-crowned mangabeys are to live together for the first time in a UK zoo, as part of ambitious plans to conserve and protect some of the world’s most threatened species. Work will begin this spring and see the zoo’s existing gorilla troop joined by a new group of mangabeys, as well as critically nedangered slender-snouted crocodiles, endangered African grey parrots and several extremely threatened species of West African freshwater fish.
The development is a major step forward in the Society’s plan to create a new conservation zoo, where at least 80 per cent of species will be connected to its conservation work in the UK and around the world. To mark this milestone, new CGI film clips have been released by the Society which give visitors an exciting glimpse of how the new habitat will look when it opens next year.
The gorillas and mangabeys will be living in an area four and a half times the size of the gorilla troop’s current home at the former Bristol Zoo Gardens. Central African Forest will make the most of the wooded area of the zoo’s 136-acre site in South Gloucestershire. It has been designed to evoke a sense of the dense forest and landscape of Equatorial Guinea, where the Society runs one of its largest conservation projects focused on gorillas and other threatened forest species. Like the attraction’s award-winning Bear Wood, the new habitat will have integrated learning spaces, enabling students, visitors and schoolchildren to observe, record and appreciate animals in a natural scene, connecting people to threatened wildlife and animals in an immersive landscape.
Landscape architect Grant Associates has been responsible for leading the design of the overall habitat and siting of viewing spaces. Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios has designed the buildings to blend seamlessly into the landscape and provide rich educational spaces for visitors.
James Clarke at Grant Associates said: "Our challenge has been to create a world class conservation habitat that provides a stimulating and healthy living environment for these threatened species. Leading a great team, we have worked to carefully deliver a design that meets the needs of the gorillas and mangabeys, whilst balancing numerous technical constraints to preserve the character of this historic South Gloucestershire setting and retain as many high quality and long-established trees as possible. Careful consideration has been given to every element of the habitat's design, from the siting of the gorilla and crocodile houses, to the moat and viewing spaces whilst offering visitors a rare glimpse into the lives of these fascinating yet critically endangered creatures."
Andrew Grant, Founder, Grant Associates, added: "Creating a new home for Bristol Zoo Project's western lowland gorillas within the mature landscape of the zoo's site is another highlight in our mission to reconnect people to the natural world. Building on our work with Bristol Zoo and its conservation of blue eyed black lemurs in Madagascar, this new project adds another special and endangered species to the list of biodiversity conservation projects we are working on around the world.”
Marcus Rothnie, Partner, Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios, said: "“Bristol Zoo Project will be an immersive landscape-led conservation zoological experience for visitors. The animals will have generouslyscaled spaces that reflect their native environments, adopting worldclass animal management design standards. We have designed the buildings as a series of tidy, quiet volumes sitting within the existing woodland, framing and enabling an exciting landscape-centred visitor experience. This marks the first stage of our innovative emerging proposals for Bristol Zoological Society, designed from the ground up around educating and connecting people with global conservation work and encouraging sustainable behaviours through a great day out."
and finally, Brian Zimmerman, Director of Conservation and Science, Bristol Zoological Society, said: "All of the mammals, birds, reptiles and fish that will live in Central African Forest are classified as threatened in the wild. The creation of this habitat not only presents a unique opportunity for us to bring these wonderful creatures together and expand our conservation work, it also enables us to participate in, and lead, managed breeding programmes, which will help to protect them in the future."
