What do Sunderland FC and Edinburgh Zoo have in common?

Interim Chief Executive Hugh Roberts, that's what.

Edinburgh Zoo has recently been mired in controversy and now Hugh Roberts has been appointed to sort it out and bring some stability back to the zoo.

There has been no-one in the Chief Executive role since November 2010 when David Windmill retired.

Then, all within the last two months, two senior staff, Gary Wilson (Chief Operating Officer) and Iain Valentine (Director of animals, conservation and education) have been suspended while inquiries into anonymous allegations were carried out.

Gary Wilson is now due to return to work after "There was no disciplinary case to answer".

A third senior member of staff, Anthony McReavy (Director of development) was sacked and Max Gaunt (honorary treasurer) resigned.

Just last week over 500 members attended an emergency meeting and recorded a vote of no confidence in Donald Emslie, the Chairman of The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland.

However, last week he refused to step down ignoring the wishes of Zoo Members - I would have attended if I could have got back from London in time.

Mr Emslie finally caved into public pressure and resigned on Monday.

The Board has also appointed an interim Chief Executive, Hugh Roberts, who starts work tomorrow.

His previous roles include Hugh’s previous positions include Chief Executive of Sunderland Football Club PLC and Managing Director of UK brewer Adnams PLC.  He has also held the post of interim Managing Director and other senior directorial roles with the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH), Chadwick House Group Limited and Women’s Royal Voluntary Service (WRVS).

Hugh Robert’s most recent role was with the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH).

Recently the zoo has wasted valuable resources in members mailings - two for the emergency meeting, one for the AGM and then the members magazine, advertising 13 events at the zoo and wildlife park.

Unfortunately 7 had already passed by the time the magazine reached us, leaving just 6.

This isn't the first time this has happened and it needs to stop.

Surely the AGM mailing could have been included in the magazine?

Let us hope Hugh Roberts is going to bring stability and some common sense to Edinburgh Zoo, it is certainly needed after a period of arrogance and uncertainty.

The biggest story in Scotland today

I was invited to take part in the ‘Bloggers’ takeover‘ at Liberal Democrat Voice today by Paul Walter who is guest editor of Lib Dem Voice today.

Paul invited a selection of bloggers to write today including yours truly.

You can read my opinion piece on the biggest story in Scotland today.

A huge thanks to Paul for asking me to write for Lib Dem Voice.

King penguin chick born at Edinburgh Zoo

I know it doesn't sound a major announcement that a king penguin chick has been born at Edinburgh Zoo.

However, its the first one born at Edinburgh Zoo for some five years now and that's the important part.

The unnamed chick (until its sex is known) is related to Edinburgh Zoos most famous penguin Sir Nils Olav - you know, the one who was awarded a knighthood by the Norwegian King's Guard?

In 1972, the chosen king penguin was awarded the ‘rank’ of Lance Corporal and named Nils Olav (after Nils Egelien and Norway’s then King Olav). On subsequent visits to the Scottish capital Nils was promoted to Corporal in 1982, Sergeant (1987), regimental Sergeant Major (1993), Honourable Regimental Sergeant Major (2001), Honorary Colonel-in-Chief in 2005 and Sir in August 2008.

Anyway the chick is two months old now and yesterday was allowed out of its special pen, it will keep it's fluffy brown feathers until it is 10 months old when it will then grow it's black and white waterproof coat.

If a king penguin lays an egg the others can often become jealous and try and take the egg for themselves, resulting in the egg becoming damaged. So to help protect the new chick, the keepers fenced off the parents and the chick from the other king penguins.

Seriously though, this is a great achievement for the conservation team at the Zoo.

Here is an extract from the Edinburgh Zoo website, to read the full piece, click on the following link; Edinburgh Zoo is world famous for its penguins, being the first zoo ever to exhibit and breed them. This is why Edinburgh Zoo has a penguin as its logo. It was the arrival of three king penguins from a Christian Salvesen Whaling expedition in January 1914, and the subsequent first successful hatching of a king penguin chick in 1919, that made the Zoo famous all over the world, for these were the first penguins ever seen outside their South Atlantic homeland.

Lynda Burrill, Penguin Keeper, said:

“This chick was a total surprise to us. King penguins normally lay eggs in June and July but this egg arrived in late August. In October the chick started to break out of the egg and a couple of days later the new arrival emerged! It’s a feisty little character – if one of the other adults gets too close it will stand up for itself and have a peck at them. It will hopefully be fully integrated into the group in the next week or so.”

Mercedes settles into her new home

Mercedes, the UK's only polar bear last week moved from her home in Edinburgh Zoo to her new home at the Highland Wildlife Park, near Kingussie.

On Monday she was available for visitors to see her in her new 4 acre home in the Highlands.

Mercedes had been in Edinburgh for 25 years. She was rescued from her native country, Canada after she was due to be shot. Unfortunately for Mercedes she had began roaming into town in search of food as she became hungry and, as polar bears are dangerous animals, this behaviour had to be discouraged.

Mercedes was captured and the number ‘39’ was painted on her coat which then allowed her to be tracked. On her third visit into the town the decision was made to shoot her. Luckily for her and us, she was rescued and the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland offered her a home here at Edinburgh Zoo back in 1984.

The zoo announced their decision to move Mercedes from Edinburgh Zoo to the Highland Wildlife Park earlier this year and the costs of a new enclosure were estimated at £300,000. However, a team of soldiers from the British Army donated their time, skills and equipment to help build parts of the enclosure which drastically reduced the cost to just £75,000. The remaining funds required were raised following a successful public appeal.

We had seen on our visits to Edinburgh Zoo the preparation including the building of the crate eventually used to transport Mercedes, this was left near the enclosure at Edinburgh Zoo so she got used to it.

Staff at Edinburgh Zoo had been training Mercedes to walk into this transport crate for a few months. The crate was lifted onto a lorry and Mercedes travelled up the A9 which took around three hours.

Apparently when she arrived at the Highland Wildlife Park, she walked out of her crate and immediately began investigating her indoor dens and holding pen.

Mercedes now has a 4 acre home and we cannot wait to go and see her in the new enclosure, but here is a photo of Mercedes sleeping while still at Edinburgh Zoo taken by yours truly.

Day trip to Edinburgh Zoo

As this week I am on holiday - despite the amount of work that I am doing and that needs doing, which actually means I am not really on holiday, I'm just not in the office - we are going to have an odd day out.

So, today following a morning on the laptop and telephone doing some work stuff we then headed out to Edinburgh Zoo, we are both Members as we were of London Zoo.

We also saw a first today, well a first for Roger not me, was seeing a peacock butterfly, in fact on the bush we saw over 20 different butterflies of different varieties.

Edinburgh Zoo is rehousing Mercedes the polar bear, the only polar bear in a UK zoo. She is moving to her new home at the Highland Wildlife Park into a brand new enclosure. Edinburgh Zoo is not far off their £75,000 fundraising target, one simple way you can help is by a text, this text will cost £1.50 which goes towards this total, if you are happy to help text the word zoo to 82540. There are some new babies at Edinburgh Zoo, flamingos, baboons, pygmy hippo, squirrel monkeys and penguins amongst others.Here are the sea lions relaxing in the afternoon sun, one just poking his tongue out for the camera.
While we are on tongues being poked out, here is one of the Amur leopards telling me to go away.

Our day out at Edinburgh Zoo part 2

Our day out at Edinburgh Zoo

A non political day today (well, as near as I can manage). Here is a selection of our day out, we are going to become Members of the Zoo as it is a great way to keep conservation going.