Offenders convicted as they break into Bristol Zoo and film gorillas

Criminals who broke into Bristol Zoo and filmed gorillas in their enclosure have been condemned by zoo staff and bosses. A series of videos, which have been widely circulated on social media, show the criminals at the former zoo in Bristol to feed them fruit and water.

In one video, a man asked why the gorillas were still at the zoo, which has been closed to the public since September 2022. One man said “they are so unhappy” as the gorillas looked back at the camera.

The videos have attracted more than 800,000 views online, with dozens of comments claiming the gorillas are in an unsuitable environment. The incident is understood to have happened this week, with the matter now being investigated by police.

READ MORE – Bristol beauty center van dwellers stay put despite eviction notice

READ MORE – Newlyweds fly out of Bristol Airport in full wedding gear

A social media post with the footage was shared: “Bristol Zoo has been closed for God knows how long and there are still animals there and due to the condition they are in, no one has been there for a while. Why aren’t they at the Bristol Zoo project like the rest of the animals?”

Bristol Zoo Project reacted angrily to the viral videos and clarified that the gorillas are being cared for by staff until they move to their new habitat in the Central African Forest at Bristol Zoo Project next year. Brian Zimmerman, director of conservation and science, Bristol Zoological Society, said security was being reviewed to prevent further break-ins.

He said: “Our former Bristol Zoo Gardens site was targeted by criminals who managed to gain access to the public area of ​​the gorilla house. We are aware that they have filmed a series of short videos which have been circulating on social media. take this incident extremely seriously and it has been reported to the police.

“The care and welfare of our animals is and always has been our top priority. Our experienced keepers and dedicated welfare team have continued to care for the gorillas since Bristol Zoo closed, just as they did when the site opened. to the public.

“It has been well publicized that the troops are still living on the Clifton site and work is underway to create a new Central African forest habitat at the Bristol Zoo project, where they will be moving next year.

“The gorillas have access to a large outdoor area and several indoor spaces, and the temperature of their habitat is carefully managed to reflect the warm temperatures of Equatorial Guinea, where they would live in the wild.

“We are investigating this burglary and reviewing CCTV footage to determine exactly what happened. We are reviewing the security of our website to see where improvements can be made. This is now a matter for the police and we will give them any support they need as part of their investigation.”

In a further response to the viral videos, Bristol Zoo Project shared a live stream of their gorilla keepers feeding the gorillas in their outdoor enclosure. They sought to show that while the zoo is closed to the public, the animals still receive the same amount of food, attention and care as when the zoo was open.

Gorilla keeper Becky said: “Unfortunately we had a break-in recently which some of you may have seen the videos going around. This bothers us quite a bit as this is actually a big risk to the safety and welfare of our animals. .

“Even though we are closed to the public, there are still quite a few people around. We have students, researchers and various other people working on site, so the gorillas are used to seeing people.

“What they’re not used to is people staying in their space overnight. Night is their time, so having people in their area with flashing lights can actually be quite upsetting and upsetting for them.

“This is the time, like us, they would be sleeping normally. It is quite upsetting to us that people decided to disturb them at that time.”

Bristol Zoo Project has started work on its new ‘Central African Forest’ habitat at Bristol Zoo Project in South Gloucestershire. The site will become a new conservation zoo and house the zoo’s existing troop of critically endangered western lowland gorillas.

The gorillas and mangabeys will live in an area four and a half times larger than the gorilla troop’s current home at the former Bristol Zoo. The habitat will open in 2025, with endangered slender-snouted crocodiles, endangered African gray parrots and several critically endangered West African freshwater fish species to be housed.