Philadelphia Zoo Philadelphia Zoo Review: 1/8/23

[DartFrog]

Today, I had the privilege to visit the Philadelphia Zoo, which was very exciting for me as I have not visited the zoo for more than a year. I wanted to squeeze a visit before the zoo closed for a few weeks so I was going to originally plan to go during a visit to an Eagles game but if you’ve ever attended a football game, you know you have to arrive fairly early and unfortunately, the game was a 1:00 game. Thankfully, I could get to the zoo the weekend after. I only ended up spending an hour at the zoo but oh well, there’s always next time.

Because of the time of year, the foliage was nonexistent and a good chunk of the animal species were off-exhibit. The zoo often felt dead because of this and the very low crowd level. I did not get to experience the Small Mammal House, a majority of the McNeil Avian Center, or the indoor portion of the kid’s zoo. The closure of the McNeil Avian Center was especially saddening for me because that’s my personal favorite exhibit. On paper, it doesn’t look like I had the best experience but this is farther from the truth. So anyways, without further ado, here’s my review of the Philadelphia Zoo:

As you enter the zoo, you really have to observe the ancient architecture scattered everywhere. It’s essentially eye candy if you’re a historic buff. There’s a certain charm of the old structures found throughout the premise. The first exhibit, Monkey Junction houses Black-and-White Ruffed Lemurs which were off-exhibit. It’s a fairly average primate enclosure.

Species List:
Black-and-White Ruffed Lemur (did not see)

The next exhibit is the Rare Animal Conservation Center. This exhibit is certainly controversial amongst the community and I can personally say I’m not a big fan of it. The enclosure are not very aesthetically-pleasing and remind me of the insides of a doctor’s office, not an exhibit for mammals. Still, I would say the exhibits meet the animals needs though which is aided with the addition of the Treetop Trail, part of Zoo360. I saw no animals using the trail on my visit due to the weather but in past visits I could see the monkeys using the trail very frequently. The crown of this exhibit for me was the Red-Capped Mangabey. I feel like this fills up the blank space that was once filled by the Douc Langur. Other highlights of this exhibit included a fairly moderate Naked Mole Rat exhibit, an active family of Francois Langurs, the elephant shrews, and a collective of fruit bats. Overall, the exhibit is an eye-sore but the inhabitants really do this one for me.

Species List:
Naked Mole Rat
Hoffman’s Two Toed Sloth
Geoffroy’s Marmoset (did not see)
Prehensile-Tailed Porcupine (did not see)
Golden Lion Tamarin (did not see)
Red-Capped Mangabey
Rodrigues Island Fruit Bat
Francois Langur
Pied Tamarin
Black-and-Rufous Elephant Shrew
Bolivian Gray Titi Monkey

The next exhibit was Outback Outpost, another mixed exhibit featuring Red Kangaroo and Emus. The kangaroos were not out but I did see a few emus. The exhibit itself is mediocre at best.

Species List:
Red Kangaroo (did not see)
Emu

After that was Bear Country. Right as I peered through the window for the exhibit for the Andean Bear, it started urinating in front of me. Fun. Right after it finished using the bathroom, it crawled back into its shelter which was disappointing to say the least. I did not see the Sloth Bear unfortunately. Oh well, the exhibits are one of the better ones at the zoo. The old polar bear exhibit is now known as Penguin Point, a spacious enclosure that houses Humboldt Penguins. I observed the penguins which were clearly enjoying their pool. There used to be a pair of Flying Steamer Ducks but they are now housed in a different exhibit.

Species List:
Andean Bear
Sloth Bear (did not see)
Humboldt Penguins

Bird Valley was next which is a compilation of historic grottos that displays multiple bird species. IMO, the exhibit should be revamped, especially since there’s a lack of animals displayed anyways. The exhibit does feature a few rarities including Andean Goose and Wattled Cranes.

Species List:
Caribbean Flamingo
Domestic Goose (Sebastopol)
Swan Goose
Emperor Goose
Andean Goose
Wattled Crane
Trumpeter Swan
Black-necked Swans

Next, the African Plains. This exhibit is a hit-or-miss for me. On one hand, I enjoy the Phase, a large island that houses Red River Hogs and Watusi Cattle. But on the other hand, there’s exhibits like the giraffe and hippos that are some of the worst at the zoo. I think the deaths of the Mhorr Gazelle and the Saddle-Billed Stork really don’t do the area any favors. Probably tied for my least favorite exhibit at the zoo along with the conservation center.

Species List:
Southern White Rhinoceros
Plains Zebra
Ankole-Watusi Cattle
Red River Hog
Giraffes
Nile Hippos (did not see)


One of the weirdest exhibits is Water is Life. Most of the animals houses are surprisingly not aquatic and the entrance is lined with odd mechanical structures that appeared to be non-operational. The exhibits themselves were originally apart of the Carnivore Kingdom area and they hold up fairly well nowadays. I saw a pack of Red Panda which were munching down on stalks of bamboo. A nearby exhibit housed the birds found in the Wings of Asia aviary and the previously mentioned steamer ducks. I’m guessing this might be due to avian influenza but I’m not sure. The giant otter exhibit is the largest I’ve seen for the species. There are three separate enclosures which the otters can choose to inhabit using the Zoo360 system which the Red Pandas can also use. This exhibit could definitely see the addition of new species though as it feels there’s a lot of dead space. Overall, a solid exhibit but nowhere near my favorite in the zoo. (Question: Does anyone know where the Fossa went?)

Species List:
Red Panda
Flying Steamer Duck
Golden Pheasant
Temminck’s Tragopan
Cabot’s Tragopan
Giant Otter

Next area is rather a collage of various exhibits rather than a dedicated area. The first exhibit is a weird combo with domestic chickens and a barn-owl. Straight ahead is a surprisingly large (and new) enclosure for Bald Eagles. Two yards with cheetahs and maned wolves respectively are across the bald Eagle exhibit. I got to see the maned wolf for the first time which was just lounging around. A nearby exhibit housed birds of prey and next to that was a mediocre spider monkey enclosure. This is definitely the weirdest part of the zoo for me.

Species List:
Barn Owl (did not see)
Domestic Chicken
Bald Eagle
Cheetah
Maned Wolf
Crested Caracara
Turkey Vulture
Black-handed Spider Monkey

The next exhibit was the McNeil Avian Center,
or at least half of it. The walkthrough portions were all closed due to the outbreak but the main hall was still visible. I saw a couple of bird species but I do not have a definite list so I will not be listing them. Definitely the biggest disappointment of the trip. Fortunately, an outdoor exhibit with Southern Ground Hornbills cheered me up as I’m a big Coraciiformes fan.

Species List:
Southern Ground Hornbill

Down a block was the PECO Primate Reserve. I know this exhibit is not very well-liked but I personally found it enjoyable. For me, it’s like an upgrade of the conservation center. However, the nocturnal portion featuring an Aye-Aye was closed which was made even more devastating by the fact that they added slow loris and bushbabies that were not found on my previous visits to the zoo. I got very up-close with the great apes however which cheered me up. This exhibit also has Zoo369 access which was not in use. Overall, not as bad as the conservation center but also nowhere near the best primate exhibit I’ve seen.

Species List:
Black-and-white Colobus Monkey
Lowland Gorilla
Borneo Orangutan
Mongoose Lemur
Aye-Aye (did not see)
Slow Loris (did not see)
Madagascar Giant Jumping Rat (did not see)
Mohol Bushbabies (did not see)
Sifaka? (did not see)
White-cheeked Gibbon? (Should be mentioned the signage is outdated across the whole zoo. Many exhibits sign animals that have been long-gone from the zoo.) (did not see)

Behind the exhibit is Big Cat Falls, one of the zoo’s best exhibits. This exhibit is also connected to the Zoo360 system which the cats use all the time. I saw a snow leopard, up and above, eyeing a squirrel in the distance and a tiger as well all using the trails. The exhibits rotate frequently so often you may see a tiger in an exhibit meant for a lion or a jaguar in a exhibit meant for a snow leopard. The exhibits themselves are very well crafted, although they have shown their age. Some of the exhibits do seem like they could definitely be larger though, especially the jaguar and snow leopard enclosures. This exhibit isn’t my favorite big cat exhibit, probably not even top 5, but it is an enjoyable one.

Species List:
African Lion (did not see)
Amur Tiger
Amur Leopard
Jaguar
Snow Leopard

I skipped the kid’s zoo and went straight to the Reptile House, the final exhibit of the zoo. I don’t have much to say other than it’s an above average reptile house with a few rarities such as the Hosmer’s Skink. Most exhibits are adequate for its inhabitants and heavily planted. Like I said, not much to say so I’ll end it at that.

Species List:
Galapagos Tortoise
West African Dwarf Crocodile
Reticulated Python
Green Anaconda
West African Crocodile
Beaded Lizard
Desert Tortoise (did not see)
Crocodile Lizard
Chinese Three-striped Box Turtle (did not see)
Common Snapping Turtle
Dwarf Caiman
Mata Mata (did not see)
Weber’s Sailfin Lizard
Merten’s Water Monitor
Prehensile Tailed Skink
Sidewinder
Hosmer’s Skink
Shingleback Skink (did not see)
Gila Monster
Western Diamondback Rattlesnake
Banded Knob-tailed Gecko
Chuckwalla
Pancake Tortoise
Pueblan Milk Snake
Travancore Tortoise
Crested Gecko
Green-and-black Poison Frog
Golfodulcean Poison Frog
Madagascar Ground Boa
Flat-tailed Spider Tortoise
Standing’s Day Gecko
Fire-bellied Toad
Hellbender (did not see)
Two-toed Amphiuma
Emperor Spotted Newt
Fire Salamander
Northern Water Snake
Musk Turtle (did not see)
Eastern Mud Turtle (did not see)
Eastern Massasauga
Copperhead
Timber Rattlesnake
Cottonmouth
West African Gaboon Viper
Solomon Island Tree Boa
Splendid Tree Frog
Emerald Tree Boa

In conclusion, the Philadelphia Zoo is very solid. If you were to visit, I would expect you to come back favoring the collection over the exhibitory (prime example would be the closed Small Mammal House) as that’s how I strongly feel but this doesn’t mean the zoo doesn’t have any strong exhibits. Big Cat Falls, Bear Country, and the temporarily closed McNeil Avian Center are just some to come to mind. I feel the zoo has a lot of renovations and makeovers to make in order for it to be considered an “elite zoo” but I would still consider this a top 50 zoo in America.

Anyways, hope you enjoyed this review and sorry for making the thread so lengthy, I’m the type of person to describe every little detail. Thank you for reading!

 

[15399]

l always enjoy reading reviews of zoos that I have visited, in this case a zoo I visited once- in 2022. Interestingly enough, your takes on the zoo are much different than what my impression of the zoo was. The section I was personally most impressed with was the Reptile House, but besides the Reptile House, a few standalone primate exhibits (spider monkey and ruffed lemur), and two average bear exhibits, the rest of the zoo disappointed me. Unfortunately the bird exhibits were closed on my visit, so I can't comment at all on the avian center, penguins, or bird valley. I will say, however, that I was horrified by how bad the giraffe exhibit was- the worst exhibit I've ever seen for giraffes, and arguably the worst exhibit I've seen for a large mammal in an AZA zoo (along with Aquarium of Niagara's seal pool). The hippo exhibit was also not the greatest. Zoo360 seemed like a neat idea, but I also didn't see any animals using it on my visit, so to me felt more like an eyesore than anything else.

I always appreciate seeing zoos with big primate collections, and Philadelphia does have an excellent collection of primates, but many of the exhibits leave a lot to be desired, especially those in the RACC and the PECO Primate Reserve's Orangutan exhibit, which is the worst exhibit I've ever seen for great apes, with extremely limited climbing opportunities. While orangutans in zoos often stay on the ground a lot, most zoos at least put some level of effort into trying to provide arboreal opportunities for orangutans, while Philadelphia really didn't have much of anything climbable- except for a few small wooden structures. Certainly not a very good exhibit for the most arboreal of the great apes.

Big Cat Falls also failed to impress me, as I found most of the exhibits (especially the lion exhibit) to be too small for the big cats. I'm honestly surprised that the lions are allowed to be kept in that exhibit still under modern AZA Standards, as it seemed way too small and filled with unnecessary clutter. While I do like the concept of rotational exhibits, incorporating lions and tigers into a rotation with more arboreal species of cats doesn't do anyone justice, as many of the exhibits either provide too many obstacles for the ground-loving cats, or inadequate climbing opportunities for the arboreal cats. It would've been nice to see this split into two rotations, so that all the species always have an exhibit well-suited for their species. Ideally, however, I'd like to see the zoo either phase out lions or build a new exhibit as the lion exhibit was another one that surprised me due to just how small it was, and I'm not normally one to criticize exhibits as too small- Philadelphia just had a fair number that shocked me as some of the smallest I've seen for large animals, especially in the AZA. With the amount of underutilized space in the upper half of the zoo, it's really shocking to see a number of large animals in exhibits I'd consider inadequate- as space isn't really a big problem for the zoo. While I've seen many on here praise the Philadelphia Zoo and rate it highly, I would strongly disagree with that assessment, and found it to be substantially weaker of a facility than other similarly sized institutions I've visited.

 

[DartFrog]

I was horrified by how bad the giraffe exhibit was- the worst exhibit I've ever seen for giraffes, and arguably the worst exhibit I've seen for a large mammal in an AZA zoo (along with Aquarium of Niagara's seal pool).

I definitely agree with the giraffe assessment, I found the exhibit at the Lehigh Valley Zoo to be even more spacious than the one at the Philly Zoo. I do think the hippo exhibit is arguably even worse, the space given to the hippos is very limited plus they are locked up in their tiny (by the looks of it) holding area.

Zoo360 seemed like a neat idea, but I also didn't see any animals using it on my visit, so to me felt more like an eyesore than anything else.

I found that the Big Cat trail is usually occupied by at least one cat during my visits, the Treetop Trail is usually more stocked with more animals when it’s warmer (the trail is also very, very long so you really have to search sometimes), and I’ve never seen any of the great apes use their respective

I always appreciate seeing zoos with big primate collections, and Philadelphia does have an excellent collection of primates, but many of the exhibits leave a lot to be desired, especially those in the RACC and the PECO Primate Reserve's Orangutan exhibit, which is the worst exhibit I've ever seen for great apes, with extremely limited climbing opportunities. While orangutans in zoos often stay on the ground a lot, most zoos at least put some level of effort into trying to provide arboreal opportunities for orangutans, while Philadelphia really didn't have much of anything climbable- except for a few small wooden structures. Certainly not a very good exhibit for the most arboreal of the great apes.

Yeah, there could be more climbing opportunities but it seems like they’re starting to add more climbing structures. I know not too long ago they added one in the outdoor gorilla exhibit so hopefully they’ll add more opportunities. Another thing I’d like to point out is it seems they rotate their orangutan and gaboon exhibits, the latter being a mostly arboreal species of primate so that’s something the zoo could definitely improve.

Big Cat Falls also failed to impress me, as I found most of the exhibits (especially the lion exhibit) to be too small for the big cats. I'm honestly surprised that the lions are allowed to be kept in that exhibit still under modern AZA Standards, as it seemed way too small and filled with unnecessary clutter. While I do like the concept of rotational exhibits, incorporating lions and tigers into a rotation with more arboreal species of cats doesn't do anyone justice, as many of the exhibits either provide too many obstacles for the ground-loving cats, or inadequate climbing opportunities for the arboreal cats. It would've been nice to see this split into two rotations, so that all the species always have an exhibit well-suited for their species. Ideally, however, I'd like to see the zoo either phase out lions or build a new exhibit as the lion exhibit was another one that surprised me due to just how small it was, and I'm not normally one to criticize exhibits as too small- Philadelphia just had a fair number that shocked me as some of the smallest I've seen for large animals, especially in the AZA.

Wait ‘till you see the old lion exhibit.

With all that said, some species do share similar-enough traits (not exact traits but close-enough) like the jaguars and the leopards. I would’ve like them to cater to each animals needs but the zoo’s budget and space most likely didn’t do them any favors.

With the amount of underutilized space in the upper half of the zoo, it's really shocking to see a number of large animals in exhibits I'd consider inadequate- as space isn't really a big problem for the zoo. While I've seen many on here praise the Philadelphia Zoo and rate it highly, I would strongly disagree with that assessment, and found it to be substantially weaker of a facility than other similarly sized institutions I've visited.

The zoo has had plans to construct exhibits in the upper half of the zoo that never came to fruition. I forget what they were exactly going to use the space for but my point is the zoo can never get past the drawing board with some of their larger plans.

I haven’t visited too many zoos to make a confidential statement but from what others have said an my personal opinion, this is around a top 50-40 zoo in America and nothing lower than that. The collection really outshines the quality of some of the exhibits.

 

[15399]

With all that said, some species do share similar-enough traits (not exact traits but close-enough) like the jaguars and the leopards. I would’ve like them to cater to each animals needs but the zoo’s budget and space most likely didn’t do them any favors.

I agree that some share enough to allow the rotation to work. Essentially I was suggesting to split it into two rotations, making three of the exhibits more geared for the species that climb (leopard, snow leopard, jaguar), with the other two geared for the species that don't (tiger, lion). As much as I was concerned with a small lion exhibit, I was also concerned with the amur leopard in an exhibit lacking much of any climbing structure. Swapping these around/not rotating them into the exhibits they were in on my day would've improved the exhibits for both species.

 

[DartFrog]

I agree that some share enough to allow the rotation to work. Essentially I was suggesting to split it into two rotations, making three of the exhibits more geared for the species that climb (leopard, snow leopard, jaguar), with the other two geared for the species that don't (tiger, lion). As much as I was concerned with a small lion exhibit, I was also concerned with the amur leopard in an exhibit lacking much of any climbing structure. Swapping these around/not rotating them into the exhibits they were in on my day would've improved the exhibits for both species.

My bad, I didn’t realize I basically restated what you said. I do want to mention that the theming of the exhibits can be way off like seeing a leopard in what’s supposed to be South America ruins or a jaguar in the taiga mountains.