00:01Visitors and keepers connected to Bristol's gorillas have faced a period of significant change
00:06as a major relocation and the opening of a new habitat has been followed by the loss of one of
00:11the animals.
00:12Eight western lowland gorillas have been moved from Bristol Zoo Gardens to a new home at the Bristol Zoo Project,
00:19around five miles away as part of what the zoo describes as the largest gorilla relocation ever carried out in
00:26the United Kingdom.
00:27The transfer took place over two days and involved more than 40 specialists,
00:33including vets, animal keepers, relocation experts and an armed police escort, according to the Bristol Zoo Project.
00:41The move comes after the closure of Bristol Zoo Gardens in 2022,
00:45when the historic Clifton site stopped opening to the public
00:48and preparations continued to relocate animals to the new Central African Forest Habitat.
00:54The new habitat, set within Woodland, is designed to replicate African forest environments
01:00and is home to a range of species, including western lowland gorillas,
01:06slender snouted crocodiles and African grey parrots.
01:10However, shortly after the relocation, Bristol Zoo confirmed a silverback gorilla, Jock,
01:16the oldest male in the group, became unwell and was later sadly euthanised following a decline in his condition.
01:23A post-mortem found he'd suffered an aortic dissection, described as a tear in the artery.
01:30The zoo said the difficult decision was taken after he'd deteriorated around 10 days after arriving at the new site.
01:36The relocation and its aftermath also attracted wider attention,
01:41after a so-called urban explorer shared images and video from the now-closed Clifton site,
01:47prompting debate online about the welfare and condition of the remaining animals at the time.
01:53The zoo responded by saying the gorillas were content
01:56and that appearances can be misleading to untrained observers.
02:00Justin Morris, chief executive at Bristol Zoo Project,
02:04says that the site is not a typical zoo, but a conservation project focused on protecting threatened species
02:12and creating immersive habitats where visitors can observe natural behaviour.
02:18He added that one of the aims of the African forest habitat is to allow visitors to witness interactions
02:24between species that would normally share environments in the wild,
02:29describing it as their world on your doorstep.
02:32Western lowland gorillas are classed as critically endangered.
02:36Their biggest threats are large predators such as leopards and crocodiles,
02:41as well as human impact from poaching, disease transmission and habitat loss.
02:46Despite the challenges surrounding the relocation,
02:48the zoo says the new site represents a long-term commitment
02:52to more naturalistic conservation environments
02:55and improved welfare conditions for its animals.
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