A HUGE £30 million project which will help transform Chester Zoo into a thriving world-class destination has been unveiled.
Zoo bosses yesterday announced the ambitious scheme, dubbed ‘The Islands’, which would be the largest development of its kind in Britain. The project would include a series of Jurassic Park-style islands teaming with tropical plants and dozens of species of wildlife.
The move comes after zoo bosses announced the controversial ‘The Heart of Africa’ biodome, which will cost more than £225 million to build, has been postponed due to government funding cuts.
The Islands, which are still in the design phase, are to be the first phase of the ‘Natural Vision’ development, which will help turn the 110-acre zoo into one of the top five zoos in the world.
Chester Zoo’s director general, Dr Mark Pilgrim, said: “Being isolated means that islands often contain wonderfully unique yet highly threatened wildlife. The diversity and individual character of islands makes them exciting places to explore. Islands will be a world-class development of the south west side of the zoo that will create an unparalleled visitor experience.
“This will be an all-year round adventure which will be exciting and enjoyable.
Islands will also give us a great opportunity to showcase our conservation programmes and activities in Sumatra, Madagascar, Mascarenes, Philippines and Indonesia where we have a real impact on conserving nature. This is a very exciting day for the zoo and I am delighted to unveil this major next step for us.”
Visitors to the massive new attraction would get an up-close view of some of the zoo’s key animal species, including orang-utans, tigers, sun bears, Malayan tapir, various lemurs, Sumatran and Philippine crocodiles, hornbills, visayan warty pigs, spotted deer, komodo dragons, babirusa pigs and other birds, reptiles and invertebrates.
There will also be educational exhibits, play areas, restaurants and village-style food stands. Work on the Islands, which will connect various parts of the zoo, is expected to start in 2012 and take 18 months to complete.