Cleveland Metroparks Zoo Cleveland Metroparks Zoo News 2022

Zooplantman said:
If you have seen the links then you know every detail that has been revealed. Anything else is baseless conjecture and speculation. Time will tell (by 2032 apparently :D )
Click to expand...

I thought one of the images in the videos showed a flash of a netted outdoor habitat. But maybe I’m wrong.
 
Zooplantman said:
And a bit more info from the zoo
Future Project: Primate Forest | Cleveland Metroparks
Click to expand...

Brookfield Zoo's infamous Tropic World opened its gorilla exhibit in 1982, as part of the 'Africa' phase of the building. I cannot see Cleveland Zoo opening a brand-new gorilla exhibit in 2032, exactly a half-century years later, and not giving the apes access to an outdoor habitat. That would be an expensive train wreck.

Overall, the idea of adding onto the zoo's iconic RainForest complex (opened in 1992) is a great one and it will allow the zoo to maintain its popularity because visitors will always flock to zoos in order to see major new additions. If you zoom into the "conceptual rendering of Primate Forest" on the link above, it's easy enough to see what appears to be an outdoor exhibit adjacent to the smaller habitat on the right. It even appears that there are blurry, orange blobs in the trees, presumably orangutans. Everything is obviously still in the planning stages, but there is certainly what appears to be an outdoor exhibit there.

The much larger covered exhibit (on the left) has what is possibly an outdoor enclosure (or two!) running alongside the building. It looks very similar to gorilla exhibits at Cincinnati or San Diego Zoo Safari Park, with a long and lean shape. My guess is that there will be, going from left to right, outdoor enclosures for monkeys, then one for gorillas in the middle, and finally orangutans. I'm a fan of the RainForest complex and if there are indeed outdoor areas for the great apes, and the inside gets a nice renovation, then this is a truly exciting project for Cleveland Zoo.
 
Saw this in the press announcement:

The majority of animals currently in The RainForest will remain with enhancements to their existing habitats.

Wonder what sort of enhancements they're talking about
 
CMZman said:
Saw this in the press announcement:

The majority of animals currently in The RainForest will remain with enhancements to their existing habitats.

Wonder what sort of enhancements they're talking about
Click to expand...
More natural substrate, more heated rocks, more natural lighting, enhanced rockwork/landscaping
 
For the sake of discussion - what does this mean for the future of PC&A?

The last time I was "in the know," the goal was to gradually remove the animals from the building so it could eventually close. It would shut down an antiquated building, centralize the zoo exhibits, and cut down the cost of gasoline needed to get shuttles up the hill.

From one perspective, it appears that plan is being enacted. In the last ten years, most of the animals with "draw power" have either moved or will be moving: sharks, red pandas, snow leopards, now gorillas.

But the master plan still places a cheetah expansion here . . .

I doubt PC&A is on anyone's priority list in the future, but it has to be part of the long-term planning process. Personally, I would assume it's still on the chopping block - is anyone going to climb to hill to see cheetahs, lemurs, and fish? Finding a spot for these animals elsewhere - such as a Rainforest with enhanced exhibits - makes more sense than trying to revamp the building.

Thoughts?

Thoughts?
 
Tiramtortlephant said:
For the sake of discussion - what does this mean for the future of PC&A?

The last time I was "in the know," the goal was to gradually remove the animals from the building so it could eventually close. It would shut down an antiquated building, centralize the zoo exhibits, and cut down the cost of gasoline needed to get shuttles up the hill.

From one perspective, it appears that plan is being enacted. In the last ten years, most of the animals with "draw power" have either moved or will be moving: sharks, red pandas, snow leopards, now gorillas.

But the master plan still places a cheetah expansion here . . .

I doubt PC&A is on anyone's priority list in the future, but it has to be part of the long-term planning process. Personally, I would assume it's still on the chopping block - is anyone going to climb to hill to see cheetahs, lemurs, and fish? Finding a spot for these animals elsewhere - such as a Rainforest with enhanced exhibits - makes more sense than trying to revamp the building.

Thoughts?

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

It's a proposed cheetah expansion, not necessarily a *planned out* cheetah expansion. That said, I'm not really sure what moving the gorillas and other primates would entail, unless it meant turning the entire building into a proper aquarium.
 
Tiramtortlephant said:
For the sake of discussion - what does this mean for the future of PC&A?

The last time I was "in the know," the goal was to gradually remove the animals from the building so it could eventually close. It would shut down an antiquated building, centralize the zoo exhibits, and cut down the cost of gasoline needed to get shuttles up the hill.

From one perspective, it appears that plan is being enacted. In the last ten years, most of the animals with "draw power" have either moved or will be moving: sharks, red pandas, snow leopards, now gorillas.

But the master plan still places a cheetah expansion here . . .

I doubt PC&A is on anyone's priority list in the future, but it has to be part of the long-term planning process. Personally, I would assume it's still on the chopping block - is anyone going to climb to hill to see cheetahs, lemurs, and fish? Finding a spot for these animals elsewhere - such as a Rainforest with enhanced exhibits - makes more sense than trying to revamp the building.

Thoughts?

Thoughts?
Click to expand...
Are lemurs/fossa part of the Rainforest expansion?
 
Tiramtortlephant said:
For the sake of discussion - what does this mean for the future of PC&A?

The last time I was "in the know," the goal was to gradually remove the animals from the building so it could eventually close. It would shut down an antiquated building, centralize the zoo exhibits, and cut down the cost of gasoline needed to get shuttles up the hill.

From one perspective, it appears that plan is being enacted. In the last ten years, most of the animals with "draw power" have either moved or will be moving: sharks, red pandas, snow leopards, now gorillas.

But the master plan still places a cheetah expansion here . . .

I doubt PC&A is on anyone's priority list in the future, but it has to be part of the long-term planning process. Personally, I would assume it's still on the chopping block - is anyone going to climb to hill to see cheetahs, lemurs, and fish? Finding a spot for these animals elsewhere - such as a Rainforest with enhanced exhibits - makes more sense than trying to revamp the building.

Thoughts?

Thoughts?
Click to expand...
Personally I think the Rainforest expansion will probably lead to the end of PCA. They can probably move the fish to elsewhere (Most likely Rainforest) and the gorillas are getting their new area. If I remember correctly the lemurs moved to the lake area in the summer (Do they still do that's? Been a while since I've been to CMZ) so they could permanently go there I don't think there are any cats left except the Cheetahs (Correct me if I'm wrong) and the tortoises would probably be easy to relocate.
 
CMZman said:
Personally I think the Rainforest expansion will probably lead to the end of PCA. They can probably move the fish to elsewhere (Most likely Rainforest) and the gorillas are getting their new area. If I remember correctly the lemurs moved to the lake area in the summer (Do they still do that's? Been a while since I've been to CMZ) so they could permanently go there I don't think there are any cats left except the Cheetahs (Correct me if I'm wrong) and the tortoises would probably be easy to relocate.
Click to expand...
I mostly agree - except for the zip line.

The zip line starts at the top of the hill and, I'm sure, it's expected to be another significant source of revenue for the zoo. If they phase out PC&A, they'd be removing the primary reason for people to make the journey up the hill. I'm not sure if a zipline alone is enough to get people up there, especially if they stop tram service.
 
Going to be heading to CMZ for the first time since 2018 soon. Besides Asia and the rhino yard, is there anything I should be on the lookout for?
 
Tiramtortlephant said:
I mostly agree - except for the zip line.

The zip line starts at the top of the hill and, I'm sure, it's expected to be another significant source of revenue for the zoo. If they phase out PC&A, they'd be removing the primary reason for people to make the journey up the hill. I'm not sure if a zipline alone is enough to get people up there, especially if they stop tram service.
Click to expand...
The Zip Line is boarded at the platform next to Wade Hall. Passengers are then taken backwards over Waterfowl Lake then released back to the platform next to Wade Hall. There is no need to access the hill to the PC&A Building to ride the Zip-Line.
 
Earlier in this thread it was mentioned Bear exhibit work was being done this summer. What level work are we talking?
 
CMZman said:
Personally I think the Rainforest expansion will probably lead to the end of PCA. They can probably move the fish to elsewhere (Most likely Rainforest) and the gorillas are getting their new area. If I remember correctly the lemurs moved to the lake area in the summer (Do they still do that's? Been a while since I've been to CMZ) so they could permanently go there I don't think there are any cats left except the Cheetahs (Correct me if I'm wrong) and the tortoises would probably be easy to relocate.
Click to expand...

While I belive it'd be a shame to completely shut up that section of the zoo, I can understand the reasoning behind its potential phase-out. Hopefully instead of staying empty, they will look into renovating the PCAT Building into behind-the-scenes animal areas. Either animal ambassador housing or possibly a Behind the Scenes Avian Breeding Facility (something the AZA definitely needs more Zoos to have).
 
Just left Cleveland Zoo after my first visit in 4-ish years. Here are my thoughts after 4 years:
African Elephant Crossing: Construction equipment was inside the building. Looked like they were doing floor work.
African Savannah: First time seeing the Rhino Yard expansion. I thought it was needed, seeing as the rhinos always seemed like they were outgrowing the exhibit. I didn't even miss Monkey Island. Both the building formerly home to the Colobus and the jaguar exhibit were empty, so maybe further development?
Northern Trek: This is how I'll be breaking up the old and new parts of Wilderness Trek, the older stuff will be northern, new stuff will be Wilderness. Wolf Lodge still holds up well, which can't be said for the rest of Northern Trek. I heard the middle bear grottos will be renovated this summer, which they desperately need. I could only see the Andean bear, I'm guessing the others were inside.
Wilderness Trek: Asian Highlands was incredible, as was Tiger Passage. I'll probably talk more about them later. Desperately hoping the rest of Northern Tier receives this level of upgrades.
Australian Adventure: Most of the non-walkabout area was closed, which was odd since it was the middle of May. Closed: Homestead, Mini Barn, Yagga Tree. Dingoes were off exhibit.
PCA: Aldabra tortoises were off exhibit, as were the Colobus Monkeys. Did get to see the baby gorilla, which was nice. Since the RainForest expansion was announced, to me PCA just looked ugly and dated.
RainForest: RainForest was pretty nice today. The top aviary seemed very empty. Aside from the birds the only other things I saw were the sloth, anteaters and capybara. Did they remove animals or am I just remembering wrong? Baby Orangutan was out and about today.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top