Award-winning Shropshire construction firm McPhillips has helped make history by creating the UK’s largest ever zoo habitat – a spectacular new African savannah that will transport visitors to the heart of the continent.
The breathtaking ‘Heart of Africa’ project at Chester Zoo opens its doors to the public this weekend, promising an immersive wildlife experience on an unprecedented scale.
The project replicating African habitats and home to 57 iconic native species, spans more than 17 football pitches (22.5 acres), and has been designed to recreate a variety of grassland habitats found across central Africa. It is among the most ambitious zoo expansions ever undertaken in Europe.
Taking centre stage in the new area is a vast open savannah where, for the first time at the zoo, visitors will encounter northern giraffes, Grevy’s zebras, roan antelopes and ostrich, all living together side-by-side.
A new indoor habitat, named Hidden Savannah, shines a spotlight on Africa’s desert dwellers where visitors will come face-to-face with naked mole rats burrowing through tunnels, as well as other rodent species such as short-eared sengi and pygmy mice.
Eleven ectotherm species (‘cold-blooded animals’) can be found, including the African bullfrog, the largest frog species in Africa, dung beetles, red spitting cobra, Ethiopian viper, critically endangered pancake tortoises and an immersive new habitat where visitors can climb into a Land Rover surrounded by 15,000 locusts.
Keen birders will be able to spot more than 30 species within several new habitats, including a flock of 107 iconic greater flamingos, three species of critically endangered vulture, colourful black-cheeked lovebirds – the continent’s rarest species of lovebird – and the Verreaux’s eagle owl, the largest owl found in Africa.
Heart of Africa is expected to create 30 new jobs at the zoo, while also growing the zoo’s appeal and allowing it to attract an extra 200,000 people per year to the region – delivering a significant economic boost to the wider Cheshire region through increased tourism.
Conservationists say it will stand as a “vibrant symbol” of the zoo’s long-term commitment to conservation across the continent, with every visit contributing to its scientific and conservation initiatives aimed at protecting endangered African species.
Andrew Dunham, contracts director at McPhillips, said: “We are super excited for the public to get their first real taste of the Heart of Africa: this project has been a real labour of love for us all.
“Working on a site which is home to some of the world’s rarest and most magnificent animals adds a whole new dimension to construction – and is something we have now developed a real expertise in.”
McPhillips is currently working on another project with the zoo to create 51 contemporary luxury lodges for short breaks and a two-storey welcome building featuring an onsite restaurant.
“It is particularly satisfying to have won the new contract after the success of the Heart of Africa scheme and a previous project with the zoo,” Andrew added.
“We have developed some very specialist knowledge and learned a lot from working with the zoo, and I think they have learned a lot from working with us too.”
McPhillips, which last year celebrated its 60th anniversary, is one of the region’s leading construction companies and has delivered more than 140 projects as principal contractor with a value of £300million in the last five years.
Heart of Africa will open to visitors from Saturday 5 April. Entry is free, with normal zoo admission. Zoo tickets can be booked via www.chesterzoo.org.
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