Future of Zoos SA zoos (Speculation)

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Abbey

Well-Known Member
5+ year member
Adelaide Zoo's Masterplan:

Adelaide Zoo has seven precincts planned as part of the redevelopment of the zoo.

The Bamboo Forest renovations have already begun with some (such as the overhead Red Panda pathways recently opening). Natures Playground has also been completed, although Aussie Icons has yet to begin construction.

There are maps of each precinct and further info in the zoo's masterplan. Link is in the original post.


Adelaide Zoo:

Natures Playground and Aussie icons:
The Aussie Icons Precinct will include displays of iconic native species such as: emu, koala, kangaroo, kookaburra, wombat, quokka and assorted parrots and an interactive native Children’s Zoo where visitors can get up close and personal. The existing Reptile House will be expanded to serve as a multi-purpose indoor centre displaying nocturnal, reptile and temperate aquatic species. A trail leading visitors across the site to visit 10 of our most ‘dangerous’ Australian animals will commence in this precinct. A new Visitor Information Hub will be developed near the front entrance in an easy to find location to ensure visitors are welcomed and helped to tailor their day onsite. A high visitor impact penguin exhibit and adjacent water play space will also be developed at the front entrance to ensure the public start their visit with a ‘splash’.

Into Africa:
The area could include new exhibits for African Lion, Meerkats, Ruffed Lemur and Aldabra Tortoise, Pygmy Hippopotamus, Colobus Monkey, Fennec Fox and Mandrill. The Ring-tailed Lemurs currently housed at Adelaide will be moved to Monarto Zoo for a new immersive exhibit. The Nocturnal House is no longer fit for purpose and does not meet our sustainability goals. We will pull it down and re-locate residents to the multi-purpose indoor centre near the front entrance or to Monarto Zoo. We will build a state of the art lion exhibit and interactive exhibit for meerkats that is bound to surprise. Aerial walkways within this precinct will provide opportunities for suitable animals to explore in tunnels winding over visitors as they gaze above their heads.The most significant new development planned for this precinct is the introduction of Western Lowland Gorillas.

The Tropical North:
This precinct will see both significant new exhibits and visitor facilities developed onsite including an aquarium with mezzanine and catering outlet that looks out over the site and east to the River Torrens, leading to an outdoor multi-purpose amphitheatre and second entrance to cater for private and out of hours events and aid visitor flow. The area could include new exhibits for Southern Cassowary, Tree Kangaroos, crocodile species and walk-through aviaries featuring spectacular forest birds such as the Palm Cockatoo, Chattering Lory, Rose-crowned Fruit Dove and Noisy Pitta and northern grassland species including Gouldian and Star Finches. The aquarium and surrounds could house aquatic curiosities such as Barramundi, Lungfish, Saratoga, Archer Fish and Freshwater Whipray.

Jungle Journey:
This precinct will see the major development of a multi-storey walkthrough aviary with a raised walkway showcasing our South American animals such as tapirs, capybaras, coati and mara at ground level, and tamarins, marmoset, conures and macaws amongst the canopy. With South American collections now declining in other Australian zoos this precinct will be another point of difference for a visit to Adelaide Zoo.

Renovations of Bamboo Forest:
Three minor developments are proposed for this precinct: to cover the entrance walkway to create an aviary for Chinese birds from our collection including Mandarin Duck and Golden Pheasant, expand the exhibit areas for Red Panda, and investigate creating an aerial walkway for Red Panda to move in and around the adjacent aviary. The aviary could be designed to be dismantled temporarily to cater for peak visitor periods through the precinct. Additional visitor facilities will be built to better cater for events and functions.

Conservation Oz:
The Conservation Oz precinct will strongly emphasise the importance of local conservation and sharing our stories. There could be new exhibits for Tasmanian Devils, wallaby species, bandicoots, Stone Bush-Curlews, Pygmy Blue-tongue Lizards, Rosenberg’s Goanna, Western Swamp Tortoise and threatened local bird species including Orange-bellied Parrot, Regent Honeyeater, Diamond Firetail and Regent Parrot. A sustainability exhibit will be colocated in this precinct. Threatened flora could be showcased in this precinct too.

Jewels of Asia:
Opened in 1995 and further developed in 2006, the Immersion exhibit showcases siamangs, Dusky Langurs, Malayan Tapirs and Malayan Sunbears, as well as endangered Sumatran Orangutan, Sumatran Tiger and White-cheeked Gibbons. Areas for re-development currently house big cats, Tree Kangaroos, African Wild Dogs, Mandrills, Hamadryas Baboons and the Immersion lawn. Many of these exhibits need to be upgraded; we will be looking to relocate several of these animals to other precincts at Adelaide Zoo and move Hamadryas Baboons from our city site to Monarto Zoo. Malayan Tapirs are unlikely to be replaced due to regional health concerns for this species. We plan to undertake three major developments in the Jewels of Asia precinct to introduce Komodo Dragons in the southwest corner, redevelop the big cat exhibits and lawn area to relocate otters, and introduce an exhibit for the endangered and very striking Sri Lankan Leopard. Aerial animal walkways will also be investigated for this precinct.
 
Abbey said:
Inspired by existing threads for Melbourne and Taronga Zoos (with thanks to @austrlain zoo gower, @Jambo & @Zoofan15), the purpose of this thread is to discuss the Adelaide Zoo and Monarto Safari Park masterplans and potential developments at the zoos - including what us ZooChatters might like to see!

Here is the Zoos SA masterplan for 2015-2035 as published in 2015: https://www.zoossa.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/az_masterplan_web-FINAL.pdf
Click to expand...

I see a huge amount of potential for Monarto Safari Park in the housing of ungulates not suitable for a small city zoo. They’ve recently acquired a large herd of Scimitar-horned oryx and will be one of the zoos working on the import of a 30 Southern white rhinoceros from South Africa.

Personally, I’d like to see Monarto take full advantage of the completion of the Bovid IRA by importing individuals to supplement dwindling regional populations such as the Eastern bongo. Like the oryx and the rhinos, there’s the potential to hold a large herd.

The revelation Common hippopotamus are coming to Monarto was exciting to hear as they’ll have the ability to house a large number of them and contribute to the rejuvenation of the regional population - versus Werribee which has never reached the full potential due to a lack of space.

While Monarto’s focus is on African species, long term it’d be great to see them support the Asian elephant population by holding bachelor bulls. There was talk of importing African elephants, but I think Asian is more practical and ultimately of more use to the region. African elephants are currently in the 6-20 year plan with a TBC notation.
 
Monarto Zoo Masterplan:

Four precincts are planned for Monarto.

Wild Africa is almost nearing completion. Outback Australia is planned to begin construction next, followed by the African Savannah.

African Elephants were also listed as 'to be comfirmed', and would be part of Wild Africa, although would be moved in on a later date.

There are maps of each precinct and further info in the zoo's masterplan. Link is in the original post.

African Savannah:
The Waterhole visitor stop could include new exhibits for meerkat, Fennec Fox, Colobus Monkey, ostrich, Nyala and chameleon. A mixed Cheetah and white rhino exhibit, an aviary for African birds and a Cheetah lure encounter are all proposed. The Cheetah has evolved to become an elite sprinter moving with a burst of speed unrivalled in the natural world. Cheetah lures are used by zoos worldwide to provide vital enrichment and are already used regularly by zoo keepers at Monarto. This development will create an opportunity for large groups of visitors to witness close up one or more Cheetahs running past at a dizzying speed. New exhibits are planned at the Windana Platform for meerkats and servals. A new predator encounter experience is at the heart of changes proposed for this area which will allow visitors to walk right into the ‘lion’s den’. By alternating use of the exhibit by diurnal and nocturnal carnivores this reverse zoo experience where visitors are ‘observed by lions’ could be enjoyed by both day and night visitors to Monarto.

Outback Australia:
The Outback Australia Precinct will highlight our fascinating Australian species and their plight, and share with visitors Monarto Zoo’s unique land management and settler history. This is a new precinct and major development is required. The precinct could include new exhibits for animals such as Dingo, Tasmanian Devil, wallaby species, Giant Desert Skink, Pygmy Blue-tongue Lizard, Greater Bilby, echidna, and mallee bird species including Malleefowl. The Bretag Homestead will be partially restored and will host a tribute to ‘Aussie’ settler life and house a Children’s Zoo with domestic farm stock such as goats and chickens. The precinct will include a conservation exhibit, Mallee Habitat Trail with interpretation and exhibits, and an Aboriginal Knowledge Trail and bush camp with the capacity to hold presentations and events.

Back from the brink:
The precinct includes two main visitor stops; the new black rhino stop and Primate Central stop based at the current Visitor Centre. The precinct builds on previous investment at Monarto Zoo and includes the current Black Rhino, Przewalski’s Horse, bison, oryx, Addax, Barbary Sheep, state of the art chimp exhibits, the ZEN Solar Farm, and current Visitor Centre and surrounds. The precinct could include new exhibits for Lowland Gorilla, Hamadryas Baboon, small monkey species, Maned Wolf and Plains Zebra as an ambassador for Grevy’s Zebra. The existing Visitor Centre will be re-furbished to provide new indoor exhibits and a presentations area. The Animal Health Centre which sits on the edge of the precinct will provide an interactive experience offering visitors a chance to talk to vets as they undertake their work. Next to the Animal Health Centre visitors could access behind the scene tours of some of our specialist native animal breeding facilities.

Wild Africa:
There will be two individual paid encounters in the Wild Africa Precinct leaving from the new Visitor Centre; a walk-through Madagascar exhibit and a safari experience. The Madagascar exhibit will showcase some of the country’s curious plants and animals focused around a large walk-through Ring-tailed Lemur exhibit that will engage and delight. The safari experience will take small groups of visitors off-road through herds of animals that may include giraffe, eland, bongo, nyala, white rhino, oryx, addax, Barbary Sheep, zebra, ostrich and Key features: New walk-through Madagascar exhibit, herds in new open range exhibits, off road safari experience, function facilities, and independently managed accommodation options packaged with animal experiences. Wild Africa could contribute to the Australian Rhino Project if it proceeds in Australia (Appendix 3). perhaps African Elephants. Whether we house African Elephants in future will be subject to consideration of many factors including global conservation efforts, the availability of suitable animals, cost, personnel safety and import restrictions. At this stage we remain open to the possibility and this is reflected in our Master Plan.
 
The Plan

The masterplan outlines their plan is to adopt and foster a distinct theme for each site:

Adelaide and Monarto Zoos are both unique sites and offer very different experiences. We will build on their distinct strengths by fostering an overarching theme at each site; ‘a vibrant city oasis’ at Adelaide Zoo and ‘a feeling of space’ at Monarto Zoo.

It’s really great to see the zoos aiming to compliment each other in the species they hold and being realistic about what they can achieve.

Species phased out of Adelaide Zoo to be housed at Monarto Safari Park include Common hippopotamus and Common chimpanzee, with plans for Mandrill and Hamadryas baboon to join them.

Examples of cooperation include Western lowland gorilla, with a breeding troop planned for Adelaide; supported by a bachelor troop at Monarto.

Focussing on species suited to city zoos will enable Adelaide to become one of the founding members of the Sri Lankan leopard breeding programme, which will be an exciting development for the zoo.
 
Zoofan15 said:
The revelation Common hippopotamus are coming to Monarto was exciting to hear as they’ll have the ability to house a large number of them and contribute to the rejuvenation of the regional population - versus Werribee which has never reached the full potential due to a lack of space.

While Monarto’s focus is on African species, long term it’d be great to see them support the Asian elephant population by holding bachelor bulls. There was talk of importing African elephants, but I think Asian is more practical and ultimately of more use to the region. African elephants are currently in the 6-20 year plan with a TBC notation.
Click to expand...

It will be amazing to have another holder of Common Hippos within the region. Monarto would have the luxury of space in regards to breeding them. I also wonder whether they may look into holding them in a mixed species enclosure with some of the larger ungulates.

If Monarto do plan to import African elephants, which they seem very keen to do; they'd be the only holders of them within the region. Dubbo and Werribee (the other two open range zoos) have announced their focus on Asians, so it would be best if Monarto could form a bachelor herd, which, in maybe a decades time, will be needed in the region.
 
When I have enquired in recent months about Adelaide Zoo’s in-development ‘African Oasis’ precinct, they have not been able to confirm if gorillas are still on the cards. The original plan did not include a savannah habitat, which has now been added to accommodate giraffe. I suspect there won’t be space for gorillas as well, which would be a huge disappointment to me personally.
 
Jambo said:
It will be amazing to have another holder of Common Hippos within the region. Monarto would have the luxury of space in regards to breeding them. I also wonder whether they may look into holding them in a mixed species enclosure with some of the larger ungulates.

If Monarto do plan to import African elephants, which they seem very keen to do; they'd be the only holders of them within the region. Dubbo and Werribee (the other two open range zoos) have announced their focus on Asians, so it would be best if Monarto could form a bachelor herd, which, in maybe a decades time, will be needed in the region.
Click to expand...

Overseas, Common hippopotamus have been mixed with flamingos and pelicans; but given their territorial nature, any ungulates would be carnage. Even those large enough to defend themselves e.g. rhino would likely result in injury to at least one party.

I think their best bet is to focus on establishing a pod around the mother and daughter dyad they’ll soon be receiving. The space will increase the chances of forming a cohesive pod with a lack of space attributed as the cause of calf deaths at other zoos (even between mother and daughter combinations).

Monarto could well prove an asset to the Asian elephant breeding programme considering a bachelor facility could be built in the absence of cows. Dubbo have acknowledged the challenges in forming a cohesive bachelor herd with cows on site, but with both them and Werribee continuing to breed, a solution will need to be found.
 
marmolady said:
When I have enquired in recent months about Adelaide Zoo’s in-development ‘African Oasis’ precinct, they have not been able to confirm if gorillas are still on the cards. The original plan did not include a savannah habitat, which has now been added to accommodate giraffe. I suspect there won’t be space for gorillas as well, which would be a huge disappointment to me personally.
Click to expand...

That would be a great shame and could well lead to Monarto revising their plan in response. They could continue with plans to hold a bachelor troop given there’s already three facilities with breeding troops and little demand for the offspring overseas; or alternatively, they could hold a scaled back breeding troop. The other three zoos essentially hold 1.1 breeding pairs considering the supplementary females across the three troops are either post reproductive or behavioural non breeders.
 
marmolady said:
When I have enquired in recent months about Adelaide Zoo’s in-development ‘African Oasis’ precinct, they have not been able to confirm if gorillas are still on the cards. The original plan did not include a savannah habitat, which has now been added to accommodate giraffe. I suspect there won’t be space for gorillas as well, which would be a huge disappointment to me personally.
Click to expand...

That's disappointing. Considering Monarto have an abundance of space, and did have plans to hold a bachelor troop alongside Adelaide, maybe it's best for the plans for Gorilla to be transferred to Monarto where there's the space to hold both a breeding troop and bachelor troop if required. This is only if Zoos SA really want Gorillas though.
 
Zoofan15 said:
That would be a great shame and could well lead to Monarto revising their plan in response. They could continue with plans to hold a bachelor troop given there’s already three facilities with breeding troops and little demand for the offspring overseas.

Alternatively, Monarto could hold a scaled back breeding troop. The other three zoos essentially hold 1.1 breeding pairs considering the supplementary females across the three troops are either post reproductive or behavioural non breeders.
Click to expand...

If Adelaide plan to retain Giraffes, I don't think there's space for gorillas at all at Adelaide, even a pair of bachelor males. They would take up a lot of space within the small planned African precinct. Aside from African Lions and Mandrills, the other species planned for were all much smaller species which would make better use of the space.
 
Jambo said:
That's disappointing. Considering Monarto have an abundance of space, and did have plans to hold a bachelor troop alongside Adelaide, maybe it's best for the plans for Gorilla to be transferred to Monarto where there's the space to hold both a breeding troop and bachelor troop if required. This is only if Zoos SA really want Gorillas though.
Click to expand...
I'm hoping this might be the case! I do think gorillas would be a fantastic addition to Adelaide Zoo, so will keep my fingers crossed that it might still be a possibility-- even if it's in the expense of lions being held in the city zoo. I would not think it will be too long before more details about this precinct are shared, as funding has already been announced.
 
marmolady said:
I'm hoping this might be the case! I do think gorillas would be a fantastic addition to Adelaide Zoo, so will keep my fingers crossed that it might still be a possibility-- even if it's in the expense of lions being held in the city zoo. I would not think it will be too long before more details about this precinct are shared, as funding has already been announced.
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I have great admiration for the openness of Zoos SA in sharing plans (namely their extensive masterplan) and continuing to keep everyone informed in the developments. Much public interest has been generated, which is turn has led to support through fundraising - the hippos being a recent example.
 
marmolady said:
I'm hoping this might be the case! I do think gorillas would be a fantastic addition to Adelaide Zoo, so will keep my fingers crossed that it might still be a possibility-- even if it's in the expense of lions being held in the city zoo. I would not think it will be too long before more details about this precinct are shared, as funding has already been announced.
Click to expand...

That's right. If Adelaide does really really want gorillas another large, popular species will have to make way for them. Lions are quite a popular species, but them for Gorillas sounds like an even replacement. Monarto would still have Lions, and give them another point of difference from Adelaide.

Into Africa is meant to be designed as a 'taste' of Monarto, so I can see why they'd plan to hold Giraffes, Lions ect. all of which are at Monarto as well.
 
Jambo said:
It will be amazing to have another holder of Common Hippos within the region. Monarto would have the luxury of space in regards to breeding them. I also wonder whether they may look into holding them in a mixed species enclosure with some of the larger ungulates.

If Monarto do plan to import African elephants, which they seem very keen to do; they'd be the only holders of them within the region. Dubbo and Werribee (the other two open range zoos) have announced their focus on Asians, so it would be best if Monarto could form a bachelor herd, which, in maybe a decades time, will be needed in the region.
Click to expand...

Based on a quick search, the last mention of African Elephants at Monarto I can find online is from 2018. I feel like regional priorities in relation to elephants have shifted somewhat in the 4 years since 2018, and definitely in the 7 years since the masterplan was originally put together. Asian Elephants, whether breeding, a bachelor herd or both, fit the regional priorities much better. Monarto and Werribee have generally been more 'African safari' focused than Dubbo, as far as Australia's open range zoos go, but with Werribee receiving elephants and expanding their Asian collection, hopefully Monarto will be able to do the same, particularly if the need arises.

With Sri Lankan Leopards and Sumatran Tigers, there would be two big cat species at Adelaide, albeit two within the Asian precinct, so I see @marmolady's point about forgoing lions at Adelaide in order to accommodate a gorilla exhibit.
 
Jambo said:
That's right. If Adelaide does really really want gorillas another large, popular species will have to make way for them. Lions are quite a popular species, but them for Gorillas sounds like an even replacement. Monarto would still have Lions, and give them another point of difference from Adelaide.

Into Africa is meant to be designed as a 'taste' of Monarto, so I can see why they'd plan to hold Giraffes, Lions ect. all of which are at Monarto as well.
Click to expand...

African lions are better suited to Monarto Safari Park being the only truly social big cat. Monarto can (and does) hold a large pride within a phenomenal spacious exhibit; while Adelaide would only aspire to holding a non breeding pride (possibly bachelor brothers) into the future.

It would be preferable to see Adelaide focus on solitary big cats - Sumatran tigers and Sri Lankan leopards.
 
Abbey said:
Based on a quick search, the last mention of African Elephants at Monarto I can find online is from 2018. I feel like regional priorities in relation to elephants have shifted somewhat in the 4 years since 2018, and definitely in the 7 years since the masterplan was originally put together. Asian Elephants, whether breeding, a bachelor herd or both, fit the regional priorities much better. Monarto and Werribee have generally been more 'African safari' focused than Dubbo, as far as Australia's open range zoos go, but with Werribee receiving elephants and expanding their Asian collection, hopefully Monarto will be able to do the same, particularly if the need arises.
Click to expand...

I believe they placed them in the up to 20 year continuum on their masterplan to assess their resources as well as the regional situation. As it stands, there’s a strong possibility the region will be able to supply them with more Asian elephant bulls than they can shake a stick at and in turn, Monarto could provide a valuable service to the region.

African elephants (especially a breeding herd) would have been phenomenal, but probably not practical long term when you consider new imports would be needed at each generation given no other regional holders exist.
 
Zoofan15 said:
I believe they placed them in the up to 20 year continuum on their masterplan to assess their resources as well as the regional situation. As it stands, there’s a strong possibility the region will be able to supply them with more Asian elephant bulls than they can shake a stick at and in turn, Monarto could provide a valuable service to the region.

African elephants (especially a breeding herd) would have been phenomenal, but probably not practical long term when you consider new imports would be needed at each generation given no other regional holders exist.
Click to expand...

Asian Elephants would be a much more effective use of Monarto's space. Long term, the region does need a designated bachelor facility for Asian elephants, and there's no reason why Monarto can't fulfil this.

Keep in mind, Monarto made this decision back in 2015, when Dubbo wasn't fully indulged in Asian Elephants yet, and Werribee had no plans for elephants in general.

Monarto may have thought they might've had support from Dubbo (who had already tried breeding them in the past), and even in the future, Werribee, which would fit nicely into their African Savannah. The fact that they've hold off making a firm decision about importing African elephants has payed off as now, Monarto are aware they'll be the only holder of this species in the region if they do decide to import them.
 
marmolady said:
I'm hoping this might be the case! I do think gorillas would be a fantastic addition to Adelaide Zoo, so will keep my fingers crossed that it might still be a possibility-- even if it's in the expense of lions being held in the city zoo. I would not think it will be too long before more details about this precinct are shared, as funding has already been announced.
Click to expand...
Do you reckon gorillas could go into the giant panda exhibit after wang wang and funi have returned to China in 2024? thats the only other space that I can see as suitable for gorillas with a bit of renovation of course
 
Patrick Keegan said:
Do you reckon gorillas could go into the giant panda exhibit after wang wang and funi have returned to China in 2024? thats the only other space that I can see as suitable for gorillas with a bit of renovation of course
Click to expand...

Good point. I’d forgotten Adelaide have the Giant panda exhibit to work with. Though the masterplan states the Bamboo Forest precinct will undergo only minor modifications, there’s little justification to extending the pandas stay beyond the agreed 2024.

Although size wise, it could accomodate gorillas (ideally not a bachelor troop who may find it a little claustrophobic), they’d be a geographical outlier considering the precinct contains Nepalese pandas and no African exhibits to link to.

I’m wondering if Snow leopard could be a suitable species. The space to work with is similar to Wellington’s exhibit and contoured hills at the rear of the exhibit could add to the floor space. Although they’d be a little similar to the Sri Lankan leopards, they’d a high profile species that would surely bring in the crowds and become the cornerstone of a Himalayas precinct.
 
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