Best Sea lion enclosure in the Benelux

[felis silvestris]

This is just a bit of fun to judge the general consensus on the best enclosure for Sea lions in the Benelux. I have added a few photos from the gallery to make it easier for members to compare the different exhibits. If anyone wants to make an argument for a particular enclosure, please feel free to do so. Also, I would encourage people to list the enclosures in order of what they think is the best.

The Snow Leopard and Clouded Leopard threads are closing tomorrow, so if you want to vote or give an opinion on the exhibits do it soon before they close.

If you want to vote for “Other” (Erholungspark, Vrauwenpoulder or Boudewijn) then please say which one you’re voting for.

Blackenberge SL (Californian)



Boudewijn SP (Californian)



Erholungspark (Californian)

Unfortunately, there are no photos of this enclosure in the gallery. If someone could describe or provide a photo of the enclosure, that would be great.

Artis (Californian)



Emmen (Californian)



Ouwehands (Californian)



Rotterdam (Californian)



Vrauwenpoulder Waterland (Californian)

Unfortunately, there are no photos of this enclosure in the gallery. If someone could describe or provide a photo of the enclosure, that would be great.

Dolfinarium Harderwijk (Californian)



Dolfinarium Harderwijk (Stellers)



Pairi Daiza (Stellers)



Monde Sauvage (Patagonian)



Photo credits to @snowleopard @vogelcommando @KevinB @korhoen @twilighter @Tiger

 

[snowleopard]

I saw all 10 of the nominees during my extensive 2019 European zoo trip. Sea Life Blankenberge's pool is not very large. Artis's exhibit is very old-fashioned and small. Boudewijn's pool (which does not actually show up in the poll) looks like a low-budget SeaWorld stadium. Ouwehands is extremely basic and the same goes for Monde Sauvage. I recall the two Harderwijk pools not being very large or modern either.

That leaves Emmen, Pairi Daiza and Rotterdam as the top 3 in my personal opinion. Both Emmen and Rotterdam have large pools, but with contrasting rockwork as Emmen's is new and fake while Rotterdam's looks more authentic. But I would definitely choose Pairi Daiza as the best overall exhibit as aesthetically it looks amazing in person, the underwater viewing area is spectacular, and there's more space for the pinnipeds than some people think. There's also a lot of land areas that appear to be natural coastlines and several different depths to the pool.

 

[snowleopard]

Sorry about the Boudewijn enclosure not showing up. It was showing up on my phone. If anyone wants to know what it looks like, it’s just a basic sea lion arena with a small pool

The photo (which I think is one of mine) does show up, but no one can vote for Boudewijn because it is not listed in the poll. Don't worry about it though, as no one will vote for it anyway!

 

[felis silvestris]

The photo (which I think is one of mine) does show up, but no one can vote for Boudewijn because it is not listed in the poll. Don't worry about it though, as no one will vote for it anyway!

It’s in the “other” category as it’s one of the worst enclosures.

 

[felis silvestris]

Score update. Pairi Daiza are in front with half the vote. Perhaps this is due to their spectacular unwater viewing, naturalistic coastline and different pool depths.

 

[felis silvestris]

Poll closed. Congratulations to Pairi Daiza for having the Best Sea Lion enclosure in the Benelux. Having lots of theming, naturalistic coastline, a beautiful underwater viewing area and deep pool gave it the edge. This is their first win so far.

Pairi Daiza: 47.4%
Rotterdam: 21.1%
DH Californian: 15.8%
Emmen: 10.5%
DH Stellers: 5.8%