Underrepresented Habitats

[JVM]

Are there any unique habitats that you feel aren't represented in zoos?

This example is rather understandable due to circumstances well outside zoos' control, but the mountainous areas of northern Africa cannot be well represented in zoos -- Ethiopian species are often discussed here as impossible to obtain, and much of the megafauna native to the Atlas Mountains has either gone extinct or been reclassified as subpopulations of well extant species. Of course, with zoos dedicating so much space to the African savannah and sometimes African rainforests, it makes some sense why this habitat would be a less attractive option... but in a fantasy situation, I imagine an interesting complex could be built.

I'm sure there are other, more interesting examples some of those more knowledgeable than me can put forward!

 

[elefante]

In North America there don't seem to be any habitats representing any part of Europe. Maybe some animals aren't easy to obtain like European bison or roe deer, but others such as brown bears, wolves, wild boars, fallow deer, red deer, or moose could be utilized. I also have only ever seen one exhibit representing the Southern swamps. That could be a great exhibit. Is that very common?

 

[Bengal Tiger]

I've never seen an exhibit representing the fauna of the Sahara or Kalahari deserts very well, especially in regards to smaller animals. This is just one example of many, however. Lots of habitats are not well represented in zoos/aquariums.

 

[NATY]

In North America there don't seem to be any habitats representing any part of Europe. Maybe some animals aren't easy to obtain like European bison or roe deer, but others such as brown bears, wolves, wild boars, fallow deer, red deer, or moose could be utilized. I also have only ever seen one exhibit representing the Southern swamps. That could be a great exhibit. Is that very common?

I mean it's understandable as it's easier to acquire for American zoos to get grizzly bears, white-tailed deer, etc compared to their European counterparts.

Stuff like the cerrado and pampas are underrated, there's more to South America besides the Amazon rainforest. Papua New Guinea could also make a cool exhibit as there's a lot of cool animals, mostly birds like cassowaries, crowned pigeons, birds of paradise, etc

 

[Batto]

Most rainforests besides the Amazonian rainforests.
Most deserts
Most swamps / river deltas / wetlands except the Amazon / Pananatal
Most mountains except the Himalayas
Most boreal forests except the North American ones
Most grasslands except the African savannah

 

[Dassie rat]

There are very few zoos that exhibit deep sea animals

 

[Swampy]

Near-shore marine habitats beside tropical coral reefs.

African rainforest displays with actual African rainforest birds, rather than open-habitat species.

South American exhibits that are true to biome rather than keeping Amazon, Guyana Shield, Cerrado, and Atlantic Forest species all together.

All sorts of unique island ecologies that are completely absent from zoo exhibits worldwide.

 

[Jurek7]

Any tropical dry forests, for example thorn forests, or miombo forests of Africa. And they cover many African megafauna parks, not just savannas.

Any tropical mountain forests, for example moss forests or elfin forests. And they look very interesting and are home to e.g. spectacled bears, muntain toucans etc.

Any freshwater habitats with reed beds or lily pads. And lily pads are very beautiful. Some zoos exhibit giant water lilies Victoria on their own.

Coastal habitats like tidal flats, mudflats, saline lagoons (habitat of flamingos!) or mangroves (habitat of e.g. manatees, diverse crocodilians, sea fish and the largest remaining tiger population).

Any habitat from the Middle East - historically a rich mix of animals from Europe (eg brown bears, mesopotamian fallow deer birds), Asia (eg Asian elephants, nubian ibex) and Africa (eg lions, ostriches, antelope).

Any seagrass bed.

 

[elefante]

Any tropical dry forests, for example thorn forests, or miombo forests of Africa. And they cover many African megafauna parks, not just savannas.

Any tropical mountain forests, for example moss forests or elfin forests. And they look very interesting and are home to e.g. spectacled bears, muntain toucans etc.

Any freshwater habitats with reed beds or lily pads. And lily pads are very beautiful. Some zoos exhibit giant water lilies Victoria on their own.

Coastal habitats like tidal flats, mudflats, saline lagoons (habitat of flamingos!) or mangroves (habitat of e.g. manatees, diverse crocodilians, sea fish and the largest remaining tiger population).

Any habitat from the Middle East - historically a rich mix of animals from Europe (eg brown bears, mesopotamian fallow deer birds), Asia (eg Asian elephants, nubian ibex) and Africa (eg lions, ostriches, antelope).

Any seagrass bed.

I would love to see a Middle Eastern themed exhibit. I created a few of those when the fantasy zoo forum was up and running. It seems in general zoos (at least in the US) don't think too much out of the box with exhibits. African savannas are almost a requirement, you might get a bit of an Asian area that encompasses a wide area, a North American area encompassing a wide area and an Amazon area.

 

[Corangurilla]

I would love to see a Middle Eastern themed exhibit. I created a few of those when the fantasy zoo forum was up and running. It seems in general zoos (at least in the US) don't think too much out of the box with exhibits. African savannas are almost a requirement, you might get a bit of an Asian area that encompasses a wide area, a North American area encompassing a wide area and an Amazon area.

And a Walkaroo Kangabout that barely represents Australia.
Interestingly, while most zoos have lemurs, there aren’t a whole lot of dedicated Madagascar exhibits. In the states, I can only think of Bronx, Henry Doorly, San Francisco (Work in Progress), and 1/6th of Africa Rocks at San Diego. Maybe things are different in Europe?

 

[elefante]

And a Walkaroo Kangabout that barely represents Australia.
Interestingly, while most zoos have lemurs, there aren’t a whole lot of dedicated Madagascar exhibits. In the states, I can only think of Bronx, Henry Doorly, San Francisco (Work in Progress), and 1/6th of Africa Rocks at San Diego. Maybe things are different in Europe?

Yes, the kangaroo exhibit is also mandatory. That's part of what I liked about Chapultapec Zoo. It was organized by biome instead of geography.

 

[Van Beal]

In North America there don't seem to be any habitats representing any part of Europe. Maybe some animals aren't easy to obtain like European bison or roe deer, but others such as brown bears, wolves, wild boars, fallow deer, red deer, or moose could be utilized. I also have only ever seen one exhibit representing the Southern swamps. That could be a great exhibit. Is that very common?

Even Toronto (which has a section called "Eurasia Wilds") doesn't really have any animals native to Europe and it's all just west Asian animals.

 

[Jana]

In North America there don't seem to be any habitats representing any part of Europe.

Several decades ago, when both AZA and EAZA first got fully established and respected organisations, they did a meeting and agreed (nonbinding) with each other that both regions are rich and stable enough to look after its own species and thus there is no need to ever start/run a breeding program for European animals in AZA or for North American animals in EAZA.

AZA has implemented this policy by almost complete phasing out of European species from its members collections. It would discourage obtaining any new ones.

EAZA is much weaker and its members dont tow the line. At first, a lot of species like coyotes or grizzlys got successfuly phased-out. But European public still loves its Wild West theme too much and for zoos (especially those that are more entertainment parks than zoos) it proved lucrative to build North-American zones despite their zero value for species programs. Later large respected classical zoos have copied them too and now EAZA is silent about the issue.

 

[Batto]

and now EAZA is silent about the issue.

We Don't Talk about Bruno

 

[evilmonkey239]

In North America there don't seem to be any habitats representing any part of Europe. Maybe some animals aren't easy to obtain like European bison or roe deer, but others such as brown bears, wolves, wild boars, fallow deer, red deer, or moose could be utilized. I also have only ever seen one exhibit representing the Southern swamps. That could be a great exhibit. Is that very common?

As another person said, this is because Europe has little in offer, especially in terms of mammals, that North America doesn’t have an equivalent of. Some charismatic large animals like brown bears, moose, and wolves, are found on both continents, while others like bison, lynx, beavers, and medium-sized deer have their close counterparts.

 

[elefante]

Several decades ago, when both AZA and EAZA first got fully established and respected organisations, they did a meeting and agreed (nonbinding) with each other that both regions are rich and stable enough to look after its own species and thus there is no need to ever start/run a breeding program for European animals in AZA or for North American animals in EAZA.

AZA has implemented this policy by almost complete phasing out of European species from its members collections. It would discourage obtaining any new ones.

EAZA is much weaker and its members dont tow the line. At first, a lot of species like coyotes or grizzlys got successfuly phased-out. But European public still loves its Wild West theme too much and for zoos (especially those that are more entertainment parks than zoos) it proved lucrative to build North-American zones despite their zero value for species programs. Later large respected classical zoos have copied them too and now EAZA is silent about the issue.

That seems wierd to import grizzlies. They are brown bears, why not just use local species as a stand in? I can see why the AZA and EAZA have this approach though with the other species. Not really too much that is notable.

 

[Astrotom3000]

I also have only ever seen one exhibit representing the Southern swamps. That could be a great exhibit. Is that very common?

Really? I feel exhibits representing Southern US Swamps are fairly common; any Southeastern zoo/aquarium with a native wildlife exhibit would feature swamps. Not sure how common they are outside the region, but I know they are not absent (Omaha and Tennessee Aquarium are 2 examples that I have visited).

On that subject, though, I do feel that freshwater habitats in general, outside of the American Southeast and the Amazon, are quite rare in the US. This is especially the case with the rivers of Africa and Asia; the Georgia and Tennessee Aquariums are the only facilities I have been to with substantial and SIGNED displays of either.

 

[Dhole dude]

As I and others have stated elsewhere, I would really love to see and exhibit representing the breathtaking Cape Fynbos Biome in South Africa. I am not aware of any zoo exhibit that truly captures what the Fynbos truly looks like, but I would love to be proven wrong!

 

[Pleistocene891]

Arabian wildlife like aardwolfs, sand cats, and oryx.

 

[HungarianBison]

I'd say Manchuria, because the only common zoo animals from this area are Siberian tiger and Amur leopard, and I've never heard of any specifically Manchuria-themed exhibits.