UK Zoo Deploys Vista Surveillance System to Observe Gorilla Lifestyle

In a move to monitor one of the most popular species at London Zoo, Western Lowland Gorillas, the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) has deployed a Vista surveillance system, specified and installed by MJ Security Systems.

"We required electronic surveillance to monitor the staged introduction of a new male gorilla into the group and to oversee pregnant female gorilla Mjukuu through the later stages of her pregnancy and birth of her baby," said Emma Kenly from ZSL.

Having previously provided camera networks to oversee animals at ZSL's Whipsnade Zoo, MJ Security Systems was once again enlisted to provide a camera installation at the London Zoo site. "Our previous installations at Whipsnade included camera systems designed for the zoo's elephant, lion and rhino enclosures. Using this invaluable experience, we installed a system in the unique surroundings of London Zoo's gorilla enclosure,” said Mick James, MD of MJ Security Systems.

"After technical liaison with ZSL staff, and the client seeing for themselves the resulting image quality from an effective mix of products, we specified Vista cameras, recorders and monitors."

"When it came to monitoring Mjukuu through the critical moments of the birth, our keepers were able to ensure all went well, without any direct interference," Kenly said. "Thanks to the quality of the surveillance system, we were able to capture detailed footage of a gorilla birth - something that has rarely been seen before and that has proved vital in furthering our understanding of these complex animals."

Video footage of the birth derived from the Vista end-to-end system has been distributed across the world, to assist other zoos in successful breeding programmes. Illustrating the quality of the video images, footage from the Vista solution has also been included in a BBC documentary series.