This is some of the saddest news relating to the zoo in recent memory. She was an awesome bear and a delight to watch. George's and her caretakers must be devastated.
Roger Williams Park Zoo Roger Williams Park Zoo news 2023
- Thread starter wild boar
- Start date
With Keweng's birth of Paia, I have started to wonder if LaRoo is still in Rhode Island. Has she passed or been sent to another zoo? I figure this is a legitimate thought process because I don't see how the zoo could keep three adult tree kangaroos, separated, in addition to a joey. I am also unsure if Morobe is the father, or even at the zoo, because publicity for tree kangaroos tends to be lacking.
The zoo has a lot of space behind-the-scenes in World of Adaptations dedicated to the tree kangaroos. The day room visible to the public is only a small fraction of the zoo's tree kangaroo area. All three adult tree kangaroos should still be at the zoo, even though not all are visible to the public every day. Morobe is the father of the new joey.
Yeah most often then not when the keepers are going in and out you can see all of their backstage, there’s plenty of room for all of them.
A lot of small projects at the zoo are because of a new position, animal care manager, at the zoo. I have spoken to the lady who has the job, and she described it as something like being both a curator and manager of development.
completed:
- animal encounter space
- minor eagle enclosure renovation
- takin enclosure renovation
- minor wolf enclosure improvement
- zebra/wildebeest enclosure renovation
- purchase of advanced snow leopard care equipment
acknowledged upcoming:
- new giraffe feeding platform
- seal enclosure transformation into a penguin pool (I think this is her work)
While I very strongly dislike the animal encounter space, everything else seems to be a huge improvement. I am a bit apprehensive to support what I know should be coming, though. This is because I would like to see the seal enclosure bulldozed and the giraffe yard redone to include the site of the seal pit. Depending on the zoo's future with elephants and their enclosure, the zebra/wildebeest yard improvements might end up being a temporary solution, too.
I hope other members find this as interesting as I did.
completed:
- animal encounter space
- minor eagle enclosure renovation
- takin enclosure renovation
- minor wolf enclosure improvement
- zebra/wildebeest enclosure renovation
- purchase of advanced snow leopard care equipment
acknowledged upcoming:
- new giraffe feeding platform
- seal enclosure transformation into a penguin pool (I think this is her work)
While I very strongly dislike the animal encounter space, everything else seems to be a huge improvement. I am a bit apprehensive to support what I know should be coming, though. This is because I would like to see the seal enclosure bulldozed and the giraffe yard redone to include the site of the seal pit. Depending on the zoo's future with elephants and their enclosure, the zebra/wildebeest yard improvements might end up being a temporary solution, too.
I hope other members find this as interesting as I did.
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Do you have any photos of the improved areas? A while ago I saw pics of the new takin shade structure on the zoo's social media, but I am particularly curious about what the changes to the zebra and wolf exhibits entailed.
The seal pool would've been extremely difficult and costly to demolish. It was certainly considered, hence the masterplan calling for Colobus Monkeys in that space, but penguins are a popular species that can live in the existing exhibit for a relatively reasonable cost of renovation. I agree with you I'd like to see the giraffe yard expanded, but the seal/penguin exhibit wouldn't be the place to do it. If elephants are not in the zoo's long-term plan, then giraffes (mixed with other ungulates) could take over some or all of the current giraffe yard, but if elephants are kept long-term (which I would love to happen, but I acknowledge is unrealistic), then I'd like to see the zoo's African collection expanded to the current North America exhibit, which in my opinion is the zoo's weakest section. That's not to say it's bad, just in need of some TLC.
Why do you "strongly dislike" the animal encounter space? It was a relatively cheap project in a space that the zoo hasn't used effectively in over a decade, and allows an exciting, enriching space for both zoo visitors and the animals (armadillo and tortoise). While I agree it's not the most exciting possible use of that space, I don't see how it's something that one could "strongly dislike". It's also a style of exhibit that would be easy to demolish if the zoo wishes to, so if in a few years the zoo has more ambitious plans (I'd love to see Marco Polo expanded to include a primate habitat), the zoo could easily demolish the Critter Connection to do so.
Where is the "animal encounter space"? I hadn't heard of it before.
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Near the exit of Marco Polo and the Snake Den, in the area that used to be Madagascar (many years ago now).
I haven't been to the zoo since the renovations were finished, but know they are done. I learned all of this on my most recent visit. The animal care manager just listed off some of the things that she has accomplished, and I didn't ask for specifics on everything. The wolf enclosure had only a few updates, like the noticeable reduction of verdure and the wolf den box. I remember noticing the improvements sometime early last year, I think it was.
I think having the armadillo and tortoise encounters in one of the Aldabra tortoise yards was perfectly fine. There was no need to build a new space for this. I was (and still am) hoping for more of these programs to be in a public area of the education center, or right outside of it, seeing as the armadillos and Pickles, the ambassador radiated tortoise, are all a part of that department. It should feature encounters with more species, not just two, too. More often than not, the space is unoccupied, and it also probably won't last, so the construction and demolition costs, while cheap, aren't worth it in my opinion.
As for the Marco Polo's Adventure Trek area, I think that it should either be demolished, at the expensive cost, or slightly reworked and rethemed into something different. I like the idea of a South China/Laos/North Vietnam endemism based area (northern treeshrews, northern white-cheeked gibbons, pygmy slow lorises, Cambodian binturongs, Vietnamese sika deer, eastern hoolock gibbons*, black-throated laughingthrushes, McCord's box turtles, black-breasted leaf turtles, and big-headed turtles, among others) or a "Voyage Through Japan" zone (Japanese black bears*, red-crowned cranes, Japanese serows*, snow monkeys, coconut crabs, Japanese giant salamanders, Japanese mountain hawk-eagles*, and tanukis*). My point is that using Marco Polo and European exploration as a grouping idea for these animals requires much more theming than what is currently present but also more species, given that the concept refers to trade routes throughout all of temperate and tropical Asia.
*I recognize that these species would require the difficult task of importing them, but that doesn't change my thinking that they would be great additions.
Nah Marco Polo Trek is such a goated idea of an area. It's important to the Italian Culture of Rhode Island.
I agree, I really like the theming and it's a really unique exhibit that I hope the zoo doubles down on going forwward. However, I do think that some of the thematics are "missing" now that the Marco Polo Plaza is basically never open. I would love to see the zoo either re-open the plaza and/or renovate it into an interpretive plaza with some smaller exhibits that fit the theming. There are also two species not currently in the collection that were described by Marco Polo that I feel would do wonders to improve this section: unicorns and dragons.
Now, you might be wondering, "aren't those creatures mythical?", to which I'd answer while they might be mythical creatures, they were mythical creatures described by Marco Polo. Marco Polo's "dragon" was actually a Chinese Alligator, while Marco Polo's "unicorn" was an Asian rhino (thought to be Sumatran, but Greater One-Horned Rhino would serve the same purpose). I do love that area of the zoo, and think the snow leopard and bear exhibits are the two strongest exhibits in the entire zoo, but would love to see the theme and interpretive qualities of the exhibit expanded upon. There is some room to possibly add a few other species as well, but these are the two big ones that I think would do wonders to breathe new life into the exhibit and improve its interpretive and educational qualities.
ifesbob
Well-Known Member
Something that makes sense for a geographic region a zoo is in makes more sense as a course of action than something some zoogoer (even a zoochatter) thinks would be cool, even if it absolutely would be a cool exhibit (seriously, I like that idea). I also think that it is cool to connect history to the present and to connect mythical explanations of things to the real life things they refer to. It's also more practical than a total rework while still providing novelty.
I sincerely hope I do not come across as rude when I say this, and if I do, I'm really sorry. I have no clue what your entire first sentence is supposed to say.
I wasn't taking into account this part of the exhibit, but it significantly enhances the rest of the theming.
The snow leopard enclosure is definitely one of the best, but how could you say that about the bears'? Most of the "mountain peaks" are not traversable, especially for an older bear, and only cover space, uselessly, in the enclosure.
This was my whole point.
If theming is to be attempted, I would prefer the design is intricate enough to simulate emersion. The selection and inclusion of species also contributes to the theme. Amur tigers don't fit at all, and domestic camels have no conservation value. The red panda and crane enclosures should be connected and the muntjac could move there, too. Any well-represented male Persian onagers could replace the camels, or else Myanmar Eld's deer. Striped hyenas, dholes, or, by some miracle, new Asiatic black bears might/would be good animals for the bear enclosure. Maybe some of the following in enclosures where there is room, though there obviously won't be space for the bigger ones:
blue-crowned laughingthrush
Pallas's cat
Chinese alligator
northern treeshrew
Indian flying fox
Asian palm civet
Indian rhinoceros
Myanmar Eld's deer
northern white-cheeked gibbon
Asian forest tortoise
We're getting beyond news at this point, and into the realm of speculation. As such, I'll respond to this in the thread designated for that, linked here:
the future of roger williams park zoo
Amur Tigers are literally the tiger that lived along the much of the route Marco Polo traveled.
~Thylo
From the maps I've looked at, the former range of Amur tigers extended a little more than 400 miles west from the base of the Korean Peninsula, whereas Marco Polo traveled north up until about 600 miles west of the Korean Peninsula's beginning. In any case, the range and his routes never overlapped much, if at all. I could be wrong, but are you absolutely certain that what you said is true?
I believe it's pretty well accepted nowadays that the extinct Caspian Tiger population was not distinct from extent Amur Tigers. At the least, the two were extremely similar and Amur Tiger makes for a great stand in for the extirpated populations.
~Thylo
Well somethimes a zoo has no choice but get what is available at the time rather than make 100% accurate exhibits.