Memory Lane 2016

A return visit to Paignton Zoo.

Our last visit here was 16 years earlier on honeymoon, before we had any idea about reptiles and exotic animal care. This visit would be a more educational one, for a special behind-the-scenes tour. And with a better camera.

Like most major zoos, it undertakes a great deal of conservation work, and breeding programs for endangered species; the public displays are there to fund the work and provide public education. The Reptile Tropics is listed as one of their major exhibits, where they certainly do try to make enclosures that look beautiful. But we were very happy to hear that there were plans to overhaul the various reptile sections, since some parts of them were quite dated, lacking many of the advances in reptile lighting. The conservation and breeding work is done in less impressive but more functional enclosures, with much better lighting.