Prairie Marmot Enclosure |
| Hob Uid: 1507946 | |
Location :
Greater London Authority
City of Westminster
Non Civil Parish
|
| Grid Ref : TQ2813383574 |
| Summary : Site of the former Coypu Pond situated to the south of the Insect House (Monument HOB UID 1169841), later used to house Prairie Marmots. The pond was built in 1912-13 with funding from Sir James K Caird and is rectangular in plan, measuring 10 metres by 4 metres and has a retaining stone and concrete wall. This was one of the first exhibits to be built without bars or fencing. The pond has rockwork at the centre which hides the sleeping quarters and was installed by James Robert Pulham (1873-1957) and possibly James Pulham III (1845-1920) James Pulham and Son in 1913. The enclosure was relandscaped for the prairie marmot in 1983 and involved the draining of the pond and the addition of enclosure fences. |
More information : Site of the former Coypu Pond situated to the south of the Insect House (Monument HOB UID 1169841), later used to house Prairie Marmots. The pond was built in 1912-13 with funding from Sir James K Caird and is rectangular in plan, measuring 10 metres by 4 metres and has a retaining stone and concrete wall. This was one of the first exhibits to be built without bars or fencing. The pond has rockwork at the centre which hides the sleeping quarters. The enclosure was relandscaped for the prairie marmot in 1983 and involved the draining of the pond and the addition of enclosure fences. (1)
The rockwork within the centre of the enclosure may have been installed by James Pulham and Son in 1913. It is known that this company had installed pulhamite features within some of the animal houses and enclosures at the Zoo during the period 1905 to 1913 but there is confusion over which exhibits they were responsible for. A Zoological Society account book of 1913 documents a payment to James Pulham and Son for rockwork in the Coypu Pond. (2)
London Zoo has been included in the national Pulham database (ID number 224) where it states that James Robert Pulham (1873-1957) and possibly James Pulham III (1845-1920) of James Pulham and Son were responsible for the work. The site has subsequently been published in the gazetteer. (3-4) |