Banham Zoo
Encyclopedia
Banham Zoo is a privately owned 35 acres (14.2 ha) zoo
in Banham
, Norfolk
, England, UK, home to almost 1000 animals. It opened its doors to the public in 1968 and has since been often awarded the prize of Norfolk's Top Attraction, by numerous different organisations, with an annual visitor attendance of in excess of 200,000 people. The owner and Managing Director of the zoo also owns other public attractions including Africa Alive
! near Lowestoft, Suffolk, England.
s and parrot
s, and opened to the public in 1968. In 1971 it acquired a colony of woolly monkey
s and became the "Banham Zoo and Woolly Monkey Sanctuary". Today it has acquired a much larger collection of animals, but still retains one of the best collections of smaller monkeys in Europe.
Primates at the zoo include Siamang, Colombian Black Spider Monkey, Black-and-white Ruffed Lemur, Goeldi's Monkey, Geoffroy's Marmoset, Ring-tailed Lemur, Golden Lion Tamarin, Golden-headed Lion Tamarin, Sclater's Lemur, Sambirano Bamboo Lemur, Red Ruffed Lemur, Pygmy Marmoset, Kikuyu Black-and-white Colobus Monkey, Red-bellied Lemur, White-faced Saki Monkey, Cotton-topped Tamarin and Emperor Tamarin.
Other Mammals at the zoo include Red Kangaroo, Giraffe, Sri Lankan Leopard, Geoffroy's Cat, Bactrian Camel, Black-tailed Prairie Marmot, Oriental Short-clawed Otter, Red Panda, Slender-tailed Meerkat, Pygmy Donkey, Grevy's Zebra, Maned Wolf, Mongolian Sheep, Cameroon Sheep, Formosan Sika Deer, Siberian Tiger, Cheetah, Snow Leopard, South African Fur Seal, Kune Kune Pig and Llama.
Reptiles and invertebrates at the zoo include Madagascan Hissing Cockroach, Royal Python, Two-spot Assassin Bug, Giant African Land Snail, Bearded Dragon, Rainbow Boa, Mexican Red-kneed Tarantula, Leopard Gecko, Honduran Milksnake, Chilean Rose Tarantula, Curly-haired Tarantula and Tanzanian Red-legged Millipede.
The Giraffe House was built and opened as a celebration of the zoo's 40th anniversary. Since its opening in 2008, several successful Giraffe births have occurred.
The Bird Garden is a short walk on a meandering path. It features several aviaries with other enclosures opposite. These feature different birds and smaller monkeys respectively. Such species include Von der Decken's Hornbill, Swainson's Lorikeet, Bali Starling, Geoffroy's Marmoset, Cotton-topped Tamarin, and Golden-headed Lion Tamarin.
Lemur Encounters was opened in late 2011 and features two Lemur species in a well-sized enclosure. The public can walk around this exhibit where they can expect to see Red Ruffed and Ring-tailed Lemurs making use of their newly acquired large open space.
Zoo
A zoological garden, zoological park, menagerie, or zoo is a facility in which animals are confined within enclosures, displayed to the public, and in which they may also be bred....
in Banham
Banham
Banham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The village is about 7 miles north of Diss, 12 miles east of Thetford and 20 miles south west of Norwich. It is home to Banham Zoo....
, Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
, England, UK, home to almost 1000 animals. It opened its doors to the public in 1968 and has since been often awarded the prize of Norfolk's Top Attraction, by numerous different organisations, with an annual visitor attendance of in excess of 200,000 people. The owner and Managing Director of the zoo also owns other public attractions including Africa Alive
Africa Alive
Africa Alive!, formerly known as Suffolk Wildlife Park, is a zoo located in Kessingland, Suffolk, UK. It is situated off the A12 at Kessingland two miles south of Lowestoft....
! near Lowestoft, Suffolk, England.
History
The Banham zoo started as a collection of pheasantPheasant
Pheasants refer to some members of the Phasianinae subfamily of Phasianidae in the order Galliformes.Pheasants are characterised by strong sexual dimorphism, males being highly ornate with bright colours and adornments such as wattles and long tails. Males are usually larger than females and have...
s and parrot
Parrot
Parrots, also known as psittacines , are birds of the roughly 372 species in 86 genera that make up the order Psittaciformes, found in most tropical and subtropical regions. The order is subdivided into three families: the Psittacidae , the Cacatuidae and the Strigopidae...
s, and opened to the public in 1968. In 1971 it acquired a colony of woolly monkey
Woolly monkey
The woolly monkeys are the genus Lagothrix of New World monkeys, usually placed in the family Atelidae.There are four species of woolly monkey. All originate from the rainforests of South America...
s and became the "Banham Zoo and Woolly Monkey Sanctuary". Today it has acquired a much larger collection of animals, but still retains one of the best collections of smaller monkeys in Europe.
Animals
Birds at the zoo include Emu, Chilean Flamingo, Sun Conure, Black-footed Penguin, Black-necked Swan, Blue-and-yellow Macaw, Black Kite, Red-crested Turaco, Laughing Kookaburra, Von der Decken's Hornbill, Temminck's Tragopan, Snowy Owl, Spectacled Owl, Australian Wood Duck, Moluccan Cockatoo, Swainson's Lorikeet, Scarlet Ibis, African Spoonbill and Red-legged Seriema.Primates at the zoo include Siamang, Colombian Black Spider Monkey, Black-and-white Ruffed Lemur, Goeldi's Monkey, Geoffroy's Marmoset, Ring-tailed Lemur, Golden Lion Tamarin, Golden-headed Lion Tamarin, Sclater's Lemur, Sambirano Bamboo Lemur, Red Ruffed Lemur, Pygmy Marmoset, Kikuyu Black-and-white Colobus Monkey, Red-bellied Lemur, White-faced Saki Monkey, Cotton-topped Tamarin and Emperor Tamarin.
Other Mammals at the zoo include Red Kangaroo, Giraffe, Sri Lankan Leopard, Geoffroy's Cat, Bactrian Camel, Black-tailed Prairie Marmot, Oriental Short-clawed Otter, Red Panda, Slender-tailed Meerkat, Pygmy Donkey, Grevy's Zebra, Maned Wolf, Mongolian Sheep, Cameroon Sheep, Formosan Sika Deer, Siberian Tiger, Cheetah, Snow Leopard, South African Fur Seal, Kune Kune Pig and Llama.
Reptiles and invertebrates at the zoo include Madagascan Hissing Cockroach, Royal Python, Two-spot Assassin Bug, Giant African Land Snail, Bearded Dragon, Rainbow Boa, Mexican Red-kneed Tarantula, Leopard Gecko, Honduran Milksnake, Chilean Rose Tarantula, Curly-haired Tarantula and Tanzanian Red-legged Millipede.
Exhibits
The Province of the Snow Cat is an exhibit that was opened in 2009 for the zoo's breeding pair of Snow Leopards. It features rock-faces and a meandering alpine stream. Three cubs were born here in 2010.The Giraffe House was built and opened as a celebration of the zoo's 40th anniversary. Since its opening in 2008, several successful Giraffe births have occurred.
The Bird Garden is a short walk on a meandering path. It features several aviaries with other enclosures opposite. These feature different birds and smaller monkeys respectively. Such species include Von der Decken's Hornbill, Swainson's Lorikeet, Bali Starling, Geoffroy's Marmoset, Cotton-topped Tamarin, and Golden-headed Lion Tamarin.
Lemur Encounters was opened in late 2011 and features two Lemur species in a well-sized enclosure. The public can walk around this exhibit where they can expect to see Red Ruffed and Ring-tailed Lemurs making use of their newly acquired large open space.