The small open enclosure south east of the Elephant and Rhino Pavilion was built in 1922 as a racoon enclosure and used for red pandas before passing to mongooses. It consists of a grassy mound within a reinforced concrete octagonal retaining wall. This wall has an inwardly splayed upper lip to prevent escape. An ailanthus tree at the centre of the mound was uprooted in the destructive storm of October 1987.
Demolished and area used for the new Children's Zoo in 1995.
The Michael Sobell Pavilions for Apes and Monkeys replaced a Monkey House of 1926 - the successor to several earlier buildings - as well as Decimus Burton's 1820s terrace which led from the main gate. First plans were drawn up by Franz Stengelhofen in 1966, but these were abandoned as costly and unsuitable. It was built 1970-72, benefaction from Sir Michael Sobell; brief by Dr M R Brambell, Curator of Mammals; John Toovey and Jonathan Myles, architects; Anthony Hunt Associates, engineers; Trollope and Colls (City) Limited, building contractors.
It was partly demolished and reopened with Gorilla Kingdom in 2007.
Opened by comedians Noel Fielding and Julian Barratt of The Mighty Boosh in 2005, Meet the Monkeys is a walk-through enclosure that houses a troop of black-capped squirrel monkeys. The exhibit has no roof, and there are no boundaries between the monkeys and the visitors. It is the southernmost enclosure in the zoo.
The Mappin Terraces are the Zoo's largest and most prominent feature. They were built as 'an installation for the panoramic display of wild animals' in the form of artificial mountains. This 'naturalistic' approach to animal display, which derived from the work of Carl Hagenbeck in Hamburg, was intended to improve living conditions for the animals and viewing conditions for the visitors. It was built 1913-14, designed by Sir Peter Chalmers Mitchell; funded by John Newton Mappin; John James Joass, architect; Alexander Drew, engineer; D G Somerville and Company, reinforced-concrete contractors. Resurfaced and screens on steps remade 1968-72, John Toovey, architect. Vacated 1985. Grade II listed. The Mappin Terraces now house the Outback exhibit.
It closed in July 1985 when the bears left. It reopened as Bear Mountain in 1997. Reopened again as the Outback Exhibit in 2008 with Wallabies and Emus.
