A few weeks back, when I first posted about visiting Barcelona, JMB expressed an interest in finding out what Barcelona Zoo was like as she had recently been visiting San Diego zoo and was keen to compare them. With this vaguely in mind, I reviewed my photos in order to choose some and then realised that rather than finding photos of a zoo, I had photos of animals instead which could have been taken pretty much anywhere.

So, what is the zoo like? It is roughly L shaped, taking up a corner of a large public park. It is an urban setting, being surrounded by apartment blocks on one side and some unusual office blocks the other. It feels much like a British zoo in that it is relatively haphazard in layout, enclosures being created wherever it suits (many against or built into the perimeter wall). There are many trees and bushes within the zoo itself but it is mostly flat walkways other than a smattering of elevated ones (and a miniature mountain reminiscent of the London Zoo Mappin terraces).

It is a fairly old zoo and has some fine turn of the century buildings, although they seem to be mostly used for administration rather than exhibition. (London Zoo is hampered somewhat by the listed status of many of its structures- they have moved some animals out to Whipsnade to give them more room as they can’t readily alter or extend them.) It has a huge diversity of animals, some in enclosures uncomfortably small for the size of beast. Some areas are full of interest for the animals, others rather barren. There is a decent level of signage, the majority of which is tri-lingual (Catalonian, Spanish and English). Some pens have several different types of animals in and the text is frequently not illustrated so it is necessary to read closely to seperate and identify some unfamiliar species.

The zoo has a strong reputation for the breeding of primates and various species were found in our wanderings. It used to be famous for having an Albino Gorilla called snowflake (the only one in captivity) although he died several years ago. (He is still widely available as a fridge magnet in Las Ramblas souvenir kiosks though.)

Our visit was midweek and it is currently the low season so much of the catering was closed, there not being the visitor numbers to warrant it. There were a lot of primary school children there though on class outings, showing various levels of enthusiasm.

Zoos mainly appeal to children of course, so they are catered for to encourage repeat visits. Imaginative play areas were found in several areas and a large petting zoo area showed the more domesticated animals. One enclosure had climb-over ladders to be able to access the goats, however they were closed off with chains at the top.

The staff get around on bicycles, their department clearly labelled in large letters on the front handlebar support. Two security men had a not particularly discreet presence loitering around the entrance complete with truncheons anjd they turned up later for a dolphin show. (You might not regard a zoo as a hotbed of crime but someone stole a penguin in England a few years ago and teenagers tend to mess about wherever they go anyway, something likely to endanger the animals or indeed themselves).

I find zoos slightly uncomfortable as a spectator because of the constraints the animals often have to live to. Indeed you often see destructive or compulsive behaviour from animals due to distress or boredom. I’m not going to go on a candle-lit vigil to get them closed down as I appreciate they have a scientific purpose as well as an entertainment value. Also, keepers I’ve met and talked to (or seen on telly) do seem to take the welfare of their charges seriously.

Probably the best zoo I’ve ever been to (and also the most unlikely one) was Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Here the imagineers had gone to great lengths to mimic the natural habitats of the animals within the constraints, of course, of a Florida Climate. They also had the world’s cleanest petting zoo, where the poo barely touches the ground before the cast member pixies magic it away. Of course, if you look too closely behind the magic mirror then you will realise that the apparently natural behaviour is tweaked and encouraged somewhat for the benefit of the guests. (An example of this is the food being put out near the Animal Kingdom hotel so that the Giraffes come close enough to the buildings to be gawped at by the punters, particularly the ones that have paid top dollar to have a savannah view).

Whilst not strictly a zoo, Florida Seaworld has always felt to me like how a zoo should be, even if it is an aquatic one. You get the feeling that the enclosures are just right for the animals, whether shrimps, rays or dolphins (and just right for the humans too). I suspect that for big old Shamu the killer whale though, nothing short of the Bay of Biscay is really big enough.