King of Komodo Dragons
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thank you for the info, I'll make a note of that for my visit!
San Diego Zoo San Diego Zoo News 2024
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splendens
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You might need some binoculars or a camera with some nice zoom, the exhibits are very far from where you are able to access. There are a few other species in the exhibits as well.
King of Komodo Dragons
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Thanks for the heads up, I am bringing a camera so hopefully it shouldn't be an issue.
Just a note to say that, per zootierliste, San Diego received 1.0 Banded palm civet (Hemigalus derbyanus) from Nashville and he is now on show. A lovely addition and one of my favourite species.
The banded palm civet is not technically on exhibit. He is kept in the old laughing kookaburra cage next to the "Animals in Action" tour meeting point on the side of the greater one-horned rhinoceros barn in Urban Jungle. He's been there for over a year now. It is tucked right up against the barn and away from the main guest pathway, with various plantings in the way. He is not signed. You would have to be very lucky to ever catch a glimpse of him if you aren't taking an "Animals in Action" tour. Maybe during Nighttime Zoo? Maybe.I did not see it on my visit this July but I did not explore every nook and cranny (but I saw the vast majority of exhibits). If I knew about it I probably would’ve asked about it.
There are no takin at the Safari Park. It is too hot and too dry for them there.
@splendens is right with where and how to spot them at the Zoo. I saw one of all three subspecies today.
A couple of updates from my visit today:
-The former West African lungfish tank on the lower level of Cool Critters has reopened with African butterflyfish and unidentified cichlids.
-There is now a small school of Atlantic spadefish in the deep water portion of African penguin pool in Africa Rocks. The penguins do not currently have access to that portion of the pool.
-The Tundra Aviary has reopened, but not all of the birds have moved back yet. Currently there are just northern cardinals and rose-breasted grosbeaks in the aviary.
-Eagle Trail is currently closed.
So the ZTL listing of it being "seen and signposted" is actually not true I guess.
splendens
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Do you know if the zoo still has either of their lungfish species? Interesting choice with the spadefish, looks like they might be the only ones in California, wonder why they chose them. Probably aren't many South African or African fish species that can cohab with penguins? Only the Academy of Sciences keeps/kept pajama sharks with them.
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Yeah, I would say it is not…
The west African lungfish is gone, but the South American lungfish is still on exhibit in South American tank across from the Chinese giant salamanders. I saw it yesterday.
There are not many readily available African/South African fish species, which is why local leopard sharks were chosen for the exhibit at opening. I imagine the spadefish being a large fish with a stable population that’s readily available in the trade made them a safe choice for trying to reintroduce fish to the exhibit after the initial issues with the penguins.
Panda_Fan
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The video states that the you can reservate with a QR code a place for the pandas viewing, but I'm curious to know if anyone else knows something more.
Thanks
So there are 3 ways of viewing the pandas for guests: Timed tickets, Standy line, and a paid BTS early morning experience.
The timed tickets are what you can get from the QR codes available only at the zoo during your visit. You will have a time slot you can go see the pandas with anyone else in the same time slot. It’s like a Fastpass for Disneyland rides.
Standby line is just that. You will have to wait in a queue by the exhibit as it looks like the panda exhibit will open around 9:30 AM. So you will have to wait and I can only imagine it will be quite the line.
And lastly a paid early morning experience. You get a tour before the zoo is open and an exclusive viewing of the pandas without crowds. Last I saw, it was sold out well into September and still selling out.
The link below is to the page with all I talked about
https://zoo.sandiegozoo.org/giant-pandas/visit
Panda_Fan
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Thanks!!!So there are 3 ways of viewing the pandas for guests: Timed tickets, Standy line, and a paid BTS early morning experience.
The timed tickets are what you can get from the QR codes available only at the zoo during your visit. You will have a time slot you can go see the pandas with anyone else in the same time slot. It’s like a Fastpass for Disneyland rides.
Standby line is just that. You will have to wait in a queue by the exhibit as it looks like the panda exhibit will open around 9:30 AM. So you will have to wait and I can only imagine it will be quite the line.
And lastly a paid early morning experience. You get a tour before the zoo is open and an exclusive viewing of the pandas without crowds. Last I saw, it was sold out well into September and still selling out.
The link below is to the page with all I talked about
https://zoo.sandiegozoo.org/giant-pandas/visit
A very good friend is visiting the zoo this weekend, probably tomorrow. She's not a "zoo nerd" but a biology student and a big animal lover with interests in colorful birds and cats. She's been before but any tips or rarities to draw attention to? I've given some already but
BlobfishBoy
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Ah, that's a shame she missed the sun bears. I've always been lucky with the bears in Atlanta; I think I've seen them on all six of my visits. Usually they're pretty active, too, moving around and climbing. I never knew until recently that they were rarities, either, so I took them for granted! It'd be really disappointing to come to the zoo specifically hoping to see rare sun bears for the first time and then miss your shot.
That’s a shame. Do you know why Eagle Trail is closed, and whether it will reopen soon? Why was the Tundra Aviary empty?
The sun bear is an infamous no-show. You are very lucky if you happen to catch a glimpse of her! She is very reclusive and prefers to spend most of her time indoors. I tend to have the best luck seeing her later in the afternoon, as this is when she is shut out of her indoor quarters while the keepers set it back up for the night.
I do not know why the Eagle Trail was closed or when it will reopen/if it has already reopened. The Zoo has been going through and renovating most of their aviaries one-by-one in order to comply with the new USDA regulations for birds, so it is entirely possible it is because of this, or it could be that they are introducing the new harpy eagle pair, or something else entirely.
The Tundra Aviary was emptied for renovations needed to comply with the new USDA regulations for birds.
ConcernedThirdParty
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ConcernedThirdParty
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The Tundra Aviary has been empty since at least last November so, something must be delaying the renovations.
Oh cool, nice that they’re getting an upgrade. Exciting to hear about a harpy pair!
Crazy to think that San Diego needs renovations to comply with the new bird standards. Given how many roadside zoos with terrible mammal exhibits have never gotten much trouble from the USDA, I'm curious as to what about these new bird standards is requiring San Diego to renovate. I've been critical of USDA standards a lot before- but it'd be concerning if these new standards cause more trouble for good zoos than the bad ones that deserve to be shut down.
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