TV farmer Jimmy Doherty has opened a new £275,000 extension at Colchester Zoo.

The three new enclosures form part of the Wilds of Asia section and house red pandas, gibbons and hornbills.

Anthony Tropeano, zoological director, said the extension’s opening came at a crucial time for the zoo after a tough period.

He said: “We had a very difficult year last year in terms of visitor numbers and this year we’ve had a steady, but unspectacular start. We have to tread carefully. We are just coming into a real crunch period – Easter is a make or break time for us.

“If the weather is really poor, that puts us on the back foot, but if we have good weather then it gives us a terrific boost and sets us up for the summer.”

The Wilds of Asia extension is part of a larger redevelopment of the zoo. A new otter enclosure is due to be finished in July and a permanent home will be built for the two sun bears, Srey-Ya and Jo-Jo, rescued by poaching patrols in Cambodia.

Mr Tropeano added: “We will never stop redeveloping to improve things for the animals and the visitors who come to see them. The area where the new extension is used to have an enclosure for our binturong Asian Bear cats and not much else. It was in complete need of a refurbishment.

“What we’ve created is new, naturalistic and large enclosures for animals from that particular part of the world with larger viewing areas.” Mr Doherty, who became famous through the BBC series Jimmy’s Farm, helped with feeding time for the red pandas Lushan and An An, laying bamboo shoots and fresh fruit around their new home.

He said: “As someone who comes from Essex, I’m a great supporter of Colchester Zoo and I’ve been coming here ever since I was eight.”

“I’ve been to many zoos and wildlife parks all over the world and Colchester really is up there with the best of them. It’s something we should be proud of and it needs everyone’s support.”

Mr Doherty, who has a zoology degree, breeds Essex pigs at his farm in Wherstead, near Ipswich.