Melbourne Zoo Melbourne Zoo Review

[Jambo]

I couldn’t agree more with the Tiger synopsis. I’ve found from my experience that Tigers are probably the worst animal in the sense of flying the face of what zoos are trying to achieve from a public perspective perspective. The pacing from my experience gives rise to questions regarding animal welfare. Personally, I wouldn’t mind if they did phase out Tigers for something that is overall a more engaging display but also something from an animal welfare perspective that doesn’t just spend it’s day sitting in a corner or pacing on repeat.

Pacing is very dependent on the individual; so not all captive tigers do it. Indrah dosen't; but in turn, she's a very laidback tiger who often sits at the back of the exhibit rarely in the view of the public. So I guess displaying tigers has both its pros and cons; you can have a tiger that's often active, yet paces, or a tiger that dosen't pace yet is often out of sight. Tiger cubs are really the only ones that can make a tiger exhibit active!

 

[Zoofan15]

Yes, I think so. They could leave the exhibit in the forest as is, the vegetation suits that part of the zoo and the viewing area is smaller. This one could be pruned for better views as it has viewing from right along the front of the whole exhibit. That way people would see at least one tiger at the zoo, and from a management point of view they could house tigers according to personality if need be.

It’s worth considering that with Dreamworld switching to protected contact (and Australia Zoo potentially following suit), this will bring an end to the handraising of Sumatran tigers. These cats represent some of the most confident tigers in the region - including Bashi (Wellington Zoo), who is the most relaxed tiger I’ve seen at any zoo, routinely coming up to the glass in full view of visitors.

I’m not advocating handraising of tigers (far from it), but within the constraints of what pairings need to be made for genetic reasons, consideration should be given to what tigers are behaviourally suited to what exhibit. Bashi for example is perfectly suited to Wellington’s larger exhibit, in which a less confident tiger would never be seen.

 

[Zoofan15]

I couldn’t agree more with the Tiger synopsis. I’ve found from my experience that Tigers are probably the worst animal in the sense of flying the face of what zoos are trying to achieve from a public perspective perspective. The pacing from my experience gives rise to questions regarding animal welfare. Personally, I wouldn’t mind if they did phase out Tigers for something that is overall a more engaging display but also something from an animal welfare perspective that doesn’t just spend it’s day sitting in a corner or pacing on repeat.

Pacing is very dependent on the individual; so not all captive tigers do it. Indrah dosen't; but in turn, she's a very laidback tiger who often sits at the back of the exhibit rarely in the view of the public. So I guess displaying tigers has both its pros and cons; you can have a tiger that's often active, yet paces, or a tiger that dosen't pace yet is often out of sight. Tiger cubs are really the only ones that can make a tiger exhibit active!

The most frequent occurrence I’ve seen of pacing is in an anticipation context - either the tiger anticipating feed time (keepers try to disrupt this by interchangeable feed times); or if another tiger (of the opposite sex) is in an adjacent exhibit.

On my last visit, Wellington’s pair (in adjacent exhibits) spent considerable time pacing out of excitement of the other being in close proximity.

Neither of these examples could be remediated by adjustments to the exhibit on the individual level.

 

[Jambo]

The most frequent occurrence I’ve seen of pacing is in an anticipation context - either the tiger anticipating feed time (keepers try to disrupt this by interchangeable feed times); or if another tiger (of the opposite sex) is in an adjacent exhibit.

Interesting take on the pacing topic. I do fully agree yet in some cases (such as Hutan at Melbourne); he just always seems to be doing it. He can't always be anticipating feeding times ect. I think it just has something to do with his personality. He has a very specific route he'll follow, and rarely ventures off it. I've never seen him in the first third of the exhibit and i've been visiting Melbourne since he was born.

 

[Zoofan15]

Interesting take on the pacing topic. I do fully agree yet in some cases (such as Hutan at Melbourne); he just always seems to be doing it. He can't always be anticipating feeding times ect. I think it just has something to do with his personality. He has a very specific route he'll follow, and rarely ventures off it. I've never seen him in the first third of the exhibit and i've been visiting Melbourne since he was born.

Captive Sumatran tigers do undertake patrols of their exhibit, but that’s usually once a day (and often at a set time); not continuously as you describe.

I’m inclined to believe it’s pent up energy in that case. The distance a wild tiger would cover is kilometres and they expend energy on hunting etc. which is otherwise going to waste.

Enrichment that encourages physical activity might help, but at this point the pacing is likely pretty ingrained.

 

[austrlain zoo gower]

Hi all
I am going to the zoo in February
Im looking at doing one of the animal behind the scenes encounters, if anyone has done on please let me no if it was worth it or not

 

[Steve Robinson]

Captive Sumatran tigers do undertake patrols of their exhibit, but that’s usually once a day (and often at a set time); not continuously as you describe.

Not sure where that idea came from. Certainly not the case in my experience.

Pacing seems to be more of a problem for visitors than the animals themselves.

You are right though that, once a pacing habit develops it becomes one of the animal's learned behaviours and can rarely be fully eradicated - if that is what you are trying to do.

We once received a tiger from a prominent southern zoo. She had been held in a small, off-exhibit cage all of her life - three years. For a long time after arriving here she paced the dimensions of that cage despite having a much, much larger and more interesting enclosure to explore.

 

[Zoofan15]

Not sure where that idea came from. Certainly not the case in my experience.

Heard it from the staff at several zoos like Wellington and the National Zoo (US) that the tigers undertake it as a routine to scent mark. From what I've observed, it's more common in rotational exhibits where a tiger picks up the scent of another tiger.

Additionally, a larger exhibit allows a tiger to patrol the exhibit versus a small exhibit that can be surveyed in the space of a minute or two.

 

[Grant Rhino]

Pacing is very dependent on the individual; so not all captive tigers do it. Indrah dosen't; but in turn, she's a very laidback tiger who often sits at the back of the exhibit rarely in the view of the public.

I've seen Indrah pace a lot - she does it on the left hand side of the enclosure (left hand from the point of view of the visitors, right hand from her point of view).

That said, she doesn't pace anywhere near as much as Hutan. And she certainly isn't pacing all the time. I've seen her sitting contently watching the visitors just as often as I've seen her pacing.

 

[Jambo]

I've seen Indrah pace a lot - she does it on the left hand side of the enclosure (left hand from the point of view of the visitors, right hand from her point of view).

That said, she doesn't pace anywhere near as much as Hutan. And she certainly isn't pacing all the time. I've seen her sitting contently watching the visitors just as often as I've seen her pacing.

That's interesting. It may have something to do with the time too. I generally visit in the afternoons and she's always resting then, but I always find her active when I visit in the mornings - but I wouldn't say she's pacing.

Hutan loops around in circles on the far right side of his enclosure. If you visit, you can see the dirt on the path he takes is worn away. I spoke to a keeper during my last visit about the tigers and he mentioned that the pacing was merely a behavior Hutan does in attempt to 'survey his territory'. The keeper said occasionally he will change his route and head down the back of the enclosure, but I've personally never seen him do so. I'm wondering if this is a learnt behavior. I do seem to remember his mother, Binjai, used to pace in the exact same spot of the exhibit too.

 

[steveroberts]

@akasha Absolutely incredible photos Akasha, am blown away, most especially of the Elephants (omg the babies are so beautiful, made my day seeing the photos of them..heck, made my week more like it), & your review itself is brilliant too.

Of course, and this is something that I wouldn't have dared suggest a decade ago but might be worth thinking about now... will there still be a compelling reason for Melbourne Zoo to stay open at all? It wouldn't take *that* much more development at Werribee to duplicate the remaining things that Melbourne Zoo does, and a blank slate might be the best way to undo some of the baffling choices made over the past quarter-century. The Zoo site could potentially be very, very lucrative.

Won't happen (and thank god too) MZ is about to turn 160. It's the oldest continuous zoo in Australia, not to mention one of the most visited and popular. Werribee and Melbourne compliment each other (and Healesville), to me it feels like Werribee is there to 'take the load' off Melbourne's shoulders to a certain extent and give an open range alternative to the mega fauna species who truly do needs acres of space. Melbourne will find a way to stay relevant whether that be with Indian Rhinos, Orangutan extension/upgrade towers, both, or other plans. Think from @akasha 's amazing review it seems Melbourne does jungles/rainforests incredibly well so should stick to expanding that theme with a bit of Australian outback, a Lion pride lane area and some Seal pools, little temperate areas for Red Pandas, reptile house etc.

One thing that did come to mind but borrowed from already brainstormed ideas on here is there's probably enough room at MZ to create a little South American rainforest trail to go with their tropical Africa and tropical SE Asia precincts. Our region is in want of some more South American precincts (though credit to lots of zoos like Auckland, Adelaide, Altina and DDZ zoo for example (and Melbourne itself albeit dwindling now) for still having impressive numbers of South American species).

@everyone RE: Rhinos needing space to run

Is there any portion of the area used as the Elephant yards that has a 70-80m span at some point. I once saw Memphis the White Rhino running when was about 8 or 9 in the late '90s at Perth Zoo and his exhibit was about 60m wide at its widest point. I agree @Zoofan15 that Werribee can inevitably take on a greater number of Indian Rhino soon after but Melbourne can perhaps become the initial ZooVic zoo to have them. @Swanson02 I see why you think with the fast pace of this day and age that keeping Indian Rhinos at MZ could seem outdated after 10-15 years...but if designed and built properly believe they could be housed at MZ comfortably for 25-35 years before there was too much public backlash. Plus with having Werribee too it works well because Melbourne can 'retire' individuals there and send any MZ born individuals there for breeding purposes etc which will work wonders for their public relations news. Especially if Melbourne sources their first Indian Rhinos from a zoo where their exhibits there are not as spatially good then the move to MZ will be a progressive move in the lives of those individual Indian Rhinos arriving at Melbourne.

 

[PaddyRickMFZ]

@akasha Absolutely incredible photos Akasha, am blown away, most especially of the Elephants (omg the babies are so beautiful, made my day seeing the photos of them..heck, made my week more like it), & your review itself is brilliant too.



Won't happen (and thank god too) MZ is about to turn 160. It's the oldest continuous zoo in Australia, not to mention one of the most visited and popular. Werribee and Melbourne compliment each other (and Healesville), to me it feels like Werribee is there to 'take the load' off Melbourne's shoulders to a certain extent and give an open range alternative to the mega fauna species who truly do needs acres of space. Melbourne will find a way to stay relevant whether that be with Indian Rhinos, Orangutan extension/upgrade towers, both, or other plans. Think from @akasha 's amazing review it seems Melbourne does jungles/rainforests incredibly well so should stick to expanding that theme with a bit of Australian outback, a Lion pride lane area and some Seal pools, little temperate areas for Red Pandas, reptile house etc.

One thing that did come to mind but borrowed from already brainstormed ideas on here is there's probably enough room at MZ to create a little South American rainforest trail to go with their tropical Africa and tropical SE Asia precincts. Our region is in want of some more South American precincts (though credit to lots of zoos like Auckland, Adelaide, Altina and DDZ zoo for example (and Melbourne itself albeit dwindling now) for still having impressive numbers of South American species).

@everyone RE: Rhinos needing space to run

Is there any portion of the area used as the Elephant yards that has a 70-80m span at some point. I once saw Memphis the White Rhino running when was about 8 or 9 in the late '90s at Perth Zoo and his exhibit was about 60m wide at its widest point. I agree @Zoofan15 that Werribee can inevitably take on a greater number of Indian Rhino soon after but Melbourne can perhaps become the initial ZooVic zoo to have them. @Swanson02 I see why you think with the fast pace of this day and age that keeping Indian Rhinos at MZ could seem outdated after 10-15 years...but if designed and built properly believe they could be housed at MZ comfortably for 25-35 years before there was too much public backlash. Plus with having Werribee too it works well because Melbourne can 'retire' individuals there and send any MZ born individuals there for breeding purposes etc which will work wonders for their public relations news. Especially if Melbourne sources their first Indian Rhinos from a zoo where their exhibits there are not as spatially good then the move to MZ will be a progressive move in the lives of those individual Indian Rhinos arriving at Melbourne.

I very much agree with you. Especially a South American rainforest, or a dome as has been discussed on other threads would be great. It would require the destruction of Growing Wild to allow enough space, which almost everybody here is on board with, but the reality is that it will likely stay for at least a decade

 

[Zoofan15]

@akasha Absolutely incredible photos Akasha, am blown away, most especially of the Elephants (omg the babies are so beautiful, made my day seeing the photos of them..heck, made my week more like it), & your review itself is brilliant too.



Won't happen (and thank god too) MZ is about to turn 160. It's the oldest continuous zoo in Australia, not to mention one of the most visited and popular. Werribee and Melbourne compliment each other (and Healesville), to me it feels like Werribee is there to 'take the load' off Melbourne's shoulders to a certain extent and give an open range alternative to the mega fauna species who truly do needs acres of space. Melbourne will find a way to stay relevant whether that be with Indian Rhinos, Orangutan extension/upgrade towers, both, or other plans. Think from @akasha 's amazing review it seems Melbourne does jungles/rainforests incredibly well so should stick to expanding that theme with a bit of Australian outback, a Lion pride lane area and some Seal pools, little temperate areas for Red Pandas, reptile house etc.

One thing that did come to mind but borrowed from already brainstormed ideas on here is there's probably enough room at MZ to create a little South American rainforest trail to go with their tropical Africa and tropical SE Asia precincts. Our region is in want of some more South American precincts (though credit to lots of zoos like Auckland, Adelaide, Altina and DDZ zoo for example (and Melbourne itself albeit dwindling now) for still having impressive numbers of South American species).

@everyone RE: Rhinos needing space to run

Is there any portion of the area used as the Elephant yards that has a 70-80m span at some point. I once saw Memphis the White Rhino running when was about 8 or 9 in the late '90s at Perth Zoo and his exhibit was about 60m wide at its widest point. I agree @Zoofan15 that Werribee can inevitably take on a greater number of Indian Rhino soon after but Melbourne can perhaps become the initial ZooVic zoo to have them. @Swanson02 I see why you think with the fast pace of this day and age that keeping Indian Rhinos at MZ could seem outdated after 10-15 years...but if designed and built properly believe they could be housed at MZ comfortably for 25-35 years before there was too much public backlash. Plus with having Werribee too it works well because Melbourne can 'retire' individuals there and send any MZ born individuals there for breeding purposes etc which will work wonders for their public relations news. Especially if Melbourne sources their first Indian Rhinos from a zoo where their exhibits there are not as spatially good then the move to MZ will be a progressive move in the lives of those individual Indian Rhinos arriving at Melbourne.

With regards to your idea about the Indian rhinoceros - yes I believe that could work. Indian rhinoceros could initially be housed at Melbourne Zoo with the view of shifting the operation to Werribee a decade from now. This would give Melbourne a star attraction, which will no longer be a novelty in 10 years time and a decade of capitalising on the popularity of any calves born (while Werribee are breeding elephants).

In 10 years time, the exhibit could be redeveloped for Okapi (another idea for the elephant paddocks). It might sound dramatic, but it could take this long to organise imports (bearing in mind Australia doesn’t otherwise have an IRA).

If anyone wants to discuss this further, please post in this thread so there’s no further detraction from this review thread: Future of Melbourne Zoo (Speculation / Fantasy) [Melbourne Zoo]

 

[akasha]

Frogs and Reptiles:

The final section of the zoo which I had time to visit was the frogs and reptiles.

There was an outdoor exhibit for Carolina Box Turtle and Horsfield’s Tortoise, one of twelve species found at only Melbourne Zoo within Australia. I love random little exhibits like this which don’t appear on the map and pop up as a nice little surprise.

Carolina Box Turtle and Horsfield’s Tortoise

The other outdoor exhibit was for Aldabra Giant Tortoise.

Aldabra Giant Tortoise exhibit

Aldabra Giant Tortoise

Adjacent to the main reptile house there was a smaller building for frogs. There was a viewing window into the breeding facilities for Southern Corroboree Frog.

Corroboree Frog viewing

Inside the building there were several vivariums. They housed Stuttering Frog, Spotted Tree Frog, Baw Baw Frog, a mixed exhibit for Eastern Dwarf Tree Frog and Dainty Tree Frog, a mixed exhibit for Green Tree Frog and White-lipped Tree Frog, Southern Bell Frog, and my personal favourite in the collection which was Crucifix Frog. The vivariums were fitted out nicely and most of the frogs showed well.

Stuttering Frog exhibit

Stuttering Frogs

Frog exhibits

Green Tree Frog

Southern Bell Frog

Crucifix Frog enclosure

Crucifix Frog

Between the frog house and the main reptile house was the Frog Disco. It was full of kids busting out moves to Wiggles songs. Those poor parents who brought their kids to the zoo to see animals not a TV screen.

One of the things I remember most from my 2003 visit was the Reptile House, so I was keen to revisit it. Most of Melbourne’s speciality species are reptiles so that adds another layer of interest for zoo nerds.

The house is an octagon with exhibits on both sides of the walkway. I walked around twice, looking at the outside exhibits and then the inside ones. It was very crowded which made it difficult to navigate and meant I didn’t get to study each exhibit as closely as I would have liked to.

Walking clockwise, the first exhibit was for Fijian Crested Iguana and also held some young Aldabra Giant Tortoise. These iguanas are one of my favourite reptiles, their vibrant blues and greens are stunning, and I always enjoy seeing them.

Iguana and Tortoise exhibit

Fijian Crested Iguana

Next was an exhibit for Rhinoceros Iguana.

The next exhibit was for Freshwater Crocodile. It was a generous size and nicely fitted out.

Freshwater Crocodile exhibit

Freshwater Crocodile

Next was an exhibit for Philippine Crocodile, which was also spacious and well-presented.

Philippine Crocodile exhibit

Philippine Crocodile

Next was a mixed exhibit for snakes. It held Eastern Diamond-back Rattlesnake and Corn Snake.

Rattlesnake exhibit

Eastern Diamond-back Rattlesnake

The next exhibit was for Frill-necked Lizard. I enjoyed the mix of natives and exotics in the reptile house, it made moving on to each new exhibit exciting because I had no idea what to expect next.

TBC…

 

[akasha]

The following exhibit was a mix of Double-crested Basilisk and Twist-necked Turtle. The bright green basilisk is a very cool display animal, and the turtle was of interest as one of Melbourne’s specialties.

Double-crested Basilisk exhibit

Double-crested Basilisk

Twist-necked Turtle

The next exhibit held Philippine Sail-finned Dragon and Spiny Terrapin.

Philippine Sail-finned Dragon

Switching to the inside of the loop, there was an exhibit for Arafura File Snake, which was deep in shed.

The exhibits on the inside are smaller. The next held Central Netted Dragon, followed by exhibits for Mexican Cantil, and Pueblan Milk Snake, both Melbourne specialties, and then one for Monocled Cobra.

Central Netted Dragon

Mexican Cantil

There was a mixed exhibit for Southern Pilbara Rock Monitor and Red-barred Dragon, which made for a cute combo.

Monitor and Dragon exhibit

Southern Pilbara Rock Monitor and Red-barred Dragon

Next was Rainbow Boa, another Melbourne specialty.

Rainbow Boa

Next was viewing into the centre of the reptile house, giving a glimpse behind the scenes.

Behind the scenes in the reptile house

Next was Merten’s Water Monitor, followed by Boyd’s Forest Dragon and then Dumeril’s Boa.

Dumeril’s Boa exhibit

Next was one of my favourite species in the reptile house, the bright yellow Eyelash Viper.

Eyelash Viper

There was an exhibit for Death Adder, which is an awesome species I always enjoy seeing.

Death Adder

Next was another of my favourite exhibits, containing two small and no doubt often overlooked species; Striped Legless Lizard and Canberra Grassland Earless Dragon. I’m all about cute, and reptiles don’t get much cuter these guys.

Mixed native exhibit

Striped Legless Lizard

Canberra Grassland Earless Dragon

Next was a nice big Tiger Snake, and the final exhibit was for Reticulated Gila Monster.

Tiger Snake

Gila Monster exhibit

Due to the crowd, I definitely missed things in the reptile house, but from everything I saw it still holds great variety and is certainly one of my favourite parts of the zoo.

That concludes my review of Melbourne Zoo. There was another trail at the beginning of the zoo which I didn’t have time to visit, so this is not a complete summary of the zoo.

I managed to spot eight of Melbourne’s twelve specialties, others may have been on display but I missed them.

If I were to use one word to describe Melbourne Zoo, it would be ‘green’. I love the lush forests, and the way the exhibits fit into this environment. Though it doesn’t hold the species diversity it once did, Melbourne is still one of the premier zoos in Australia and well worth a visit.

 

[Zoofan15]

The following exhibit was a mix of Double-crested Basilisk and Twist-necked Turtle. The bright green basilisk is a very cool display animal, and the turtle was of interest as one of Melbourne’s specialties.

Double-crested Basilisk exhibit

Double-crested Basilisk

Twist-necked Turtle

The next exhibit held Philippine Sail-finned Dragon and Spiny Terrapin.

Philippine Sail-finned Dragon

Switching to the inside of the loop, there was an exhibit for Arafura File Snake, which was deep in shed.

The exhibits on the inside are smaller. The next held Central Netted Dragon, followed by exhibits for Mexican Cantil, and Pueblan Milk Snake, both Melbourne specialties, and then one for Monocled Cobra.

Central Netted Dragon

Mexican Cantil

There was a mixed exhibit for Southern Pilbara Rock Monitor and Red-barred Dragon, which made for a cute combo.

Monitor and Dragon exhibit

Southern Pilbara Rock Monitor and Red-barred Dragon

Next was Rainbow Boa, another Melbourne specialty.

Rainbow Boa

Next was viewing into the centre of the reptile house, giving a glimpse behind the scenes.

Behind the scenes in the reptile house

Next was Merten’s Water Monitor, followed by Boyd’s Forest Dragon and then Dumeril’s Boa.

Dumeril’s Boa exhibit

Next was one of my favourite species in the reptile house, the bright yellow Eyelash Viper.

Eyelash Viper

There was an exhibit for Death Adder, which is an awesome species I always enjoy seeing.

Death Adder

Next was another of my favourite exhibits, containing two small and no doubt often overlooked species; Striped Legless Lizard and Canberra Grassland Earless Dragon. I’m all about cute, and reptiles don’t get much cuter these guys.

Mixed native exhibit

Striped Legless Lizard

Canberra Grassland Earless Dragon

Next was a nice big Tiger Snake, and the final exhibit was for Reticulated Gila Monster.

Tiger Snake

Gila Monster exhibit

Due to the crowd, I definitely missed things in the reptile house, but from everything I saw it still holds great variety and is certainly one of my favourite parts of the zoo.

That concludes my review of Melbourne Zoo. There was another trail at the beginning of the zoo which I didn’t have time to visit, so this is not a complete summary of the zoo.

I managed to spot eight of Melbourne’s twelve specialties, others may have been on display but I missed them.

If I were to use one word to describe Melbourne Zoo, it would be ‘green’. I love the lush forests, and the way the exhibits fit into this environment. Though it doesn’t hold the species diversity it once did, Melbourne is still one of the premier zoos in Australia and well worth a visit.

Thanks for the review @akasha. It’s been very enjoyable to read and I know everyone has appreciated hearing your opinions and insights. You mention that Melbourne is very ‘green’ and I agree, it has a real park like vibe to it, which is great to see - especially for a city zoo.

 

[Jambo]

Great Review @akasha. Being a local, it was really interesting to see another non locals perspective.

Melbourne is the greenest zoo I've ever visited! A lot of the gardens and flora are very well maintained. The Rainforest precincts are exceptional and incredibly immersive. I guess Melbourne's extensive history does have something to do with that. Some of their trees are well over a century old!

 

[Grant Rhino]

Great review again @akasha - I agree too. I think one thing I've always loved at MZ is the greenery. As a local growing up with it I've also become used to it - to the point that when I go to other zoos interstate or overseas I sometimes even think to myself "where are all the trees here?". I've realised recently that greenery is something I look for and value highly in a zoo, and it affects my opinion of a zoo greatly. Anyway, great review!

 

[The Sleepy Hippo]

Yes. As I explained above, the ban is on species from the Suidae family.

That is devastating. Red River Hog and Wart Hogs would be amazing additions.

 

[PaddyRickMFZ]

That is devastating. Red River Hog and Wart Hogs would be amazing additions.

I very much agree