DAY 39: Thursday, August 9th, 2012
Road Trip Review # 44: Denver Zoo
Denver Zoo’s website:
Denver Zoo
Zoo Map:
http://www.denverzoo.org/downloads/DenverZoo_Map_spring2012.pdf
Denver Zoo is an AZA-accredited facility located in Denver, Colorado, and it opened in 1896. It is one of the oldest and best zoos in the United States, and on its 80 acres there are close to 4,000 animals representing almost 700 species. With such a vast collection it is no surprise that the book America’s Best Zoos rates Denver Zoo in the top 10 zoos in the nation in 8 different categories: #2 for hoofstock, #2 for primates, birds, cats, bears, pachyderms, rain forest buildings and shows. The zoo regularly attracts 2 million visitors per year, making it one of the most popular zoos in North America. With the opening of the $50 million Toyota Elephant Passage this zoo is clearly geared towards becoming even more popular in the future. In fact, excluding free zoos (Saint Louis, National, Como Park and Lincoln Park) and theme-parks (Disney’s Animal Kingdom and Tampa’s Busch Gardens) I predict that Denver is only beaten in attendance during 2012 by San Diego and Columbus.
Denver is an incredible zoo and after thinking about it constantly since my visit I would estimate that it is in these positions when analyzing all of the zoos in the United States: #1 for primates in terms of species and quality of exhibits as no other zoo is better; definitely a top 5 zoo for rainforest complexes; possibly a top 10 zoo for its reptile/amphibian collection as there are around 80 species and an incredible number of rarely-exhibited animals; top 5 zoo for hoofed animals; top 5 zoo for pachyderms; top 5 zoo for Asian animals; top 5 zoo for bird collection; possible top 12 zoo for aquariums as there must be over 100 species of fish; and overall an absolute lock for being one of America’s top 10 zoos. It is a big, historic zoo that does not do a lot of tinkering each year but instead opens mega-complexes that are usually brilliant. Tropical Discovery opened in 1993, then Primate Panorama opened in 1996, eight years went by and Predator Ridge/Entrance Complex opened in 2004, eight more years went by and Toyota Elephant Passage opened in 2012, and so the next big thing to happen should be in eight years or less and that will be Asian Temperate Forest (Pallas’ cats, Amur tigers, Amur leopards, lynx, various cold-weather species).
I spent 6 hours at Denver Zoo, meticulously photographing hundreds of signs and exhibits for this review, before resting at the motel for a couple of hours and then taking advantage of Downtown Denver Aquarium’s late-night hours to drop by and spend just over an hour at that facility. This review can be considered Part I of my August 9th Denver experience.
THE BEST:
Primate Panorama – This 7-acre set of habitats features a whopping 20 different kinds of primates (from 3 different continents) and several other species in a wide-ranging style of exhibits. Before going past the main entrance visitors pass a lushly planted squirrel monkey exhibit and a spider monkey/giant anteater habitat that is green and dense with vegetation. Lemur Island features two species (red ruffed and white collared brown) across from Flamingo Lagoon that also features two species (American and Chilean). Black-crested macaques have an outdoor and indoor yard that is seen before the Emerald Forest building is entered. Madagascar is the first themed area and it features the indoor viewing areas for the Lemur Island inhabitants as well as all-indoor exhibits for ring-tailed lemurs and mongoose lemurs.
Tropical Forests has all-indoor exhibits for Goeldi’s monkeys (with a southern tamandua), white-faced saki monkeys (two exhibits), golden lion tamarins (two exhibits), emperor tamarins, pygmy marmosets and aye-ayes. Indoor housing for the squirrel monkeys is also seen here. Back outside is a gorgeous, natural-looking netted enclosure for red-capped mangabeys as well as a similar habitat for golden-cheeked gibbons. Both of those enclosures are superb, and across the pathway is a large outdoor habitat for orangutans that is certainly green and naturalistic but could definitely use a lot more climbing opportunities. The 5 orangs do have access to some large trees and the same goes for the 5 gorillas next door that have one of the largest ape habitats in any American zoo. It is an acre in size and resembles a forested environment which naturally makes it difficult to locate a gorilla. There are massive viewing windows at both exhibits, indoor quarters that are loaded with wooden beams and open year-round, and even a two year-old orangutan that was adorable and drew quite a crowd.
There is an exhibit for a yellow-backed duiker, two red river hog enclosures, plus more excellent, lush primate exhibits for mandrills, DeBrazza monkeys and colobus monkeys (with klipspringers). A blue duiker/silvery-cheeked hornbill exhibit ends the trail. A small walk-through aviary has these 14 species: Von der Decken’s hornbill, black-necked swan, black swan, smew, kookaburra, nene, mandarin duck, bar-headed goose, boat-billed heron, South African shelduck, scarlet ibis, cattle egret, roseate spoonbill and Egyptian vulture.
Besides the 20 primate species in Primate Panorama there are also black howler monkeys in Tropical Discovery and a large troop of hooded capuchin monkeys on the outstanding Monkey Island. The capuchins have a vast network of tall trees to roam about and they fare better than the sad-sack monkeys that are stuck inside the small metal cages of the 1908 Monkey House. Wolf’s guenons, silvered leaf monkeys and the indoor housing for the hooded capuchins is also found here. In total Denver Zoo has 24 primate species, most of the exhibits are exemplary, and I think that it beats out San Diego as America’s #1 zoo for primates. Monkeys, lemurs and apes are already the most popular zoo animals for most visitors (including myself) partly because they are so active and human-like in appearance. To have 7 acres of a zoo set aside for such entertaining and interesting mammals, complete with a replicated West African village, makes this one of America’s 25 best exhibit complexes. One day I’ll sit down and make a list of my 25 favourites and Primate Panorama will be a lock for a place.
Tropical Discovery – This indoor rainforest building opened in 1993 and there are more than 1,000 animals of about 250 species beneath its glass pyramid roofs. There are also around 200 plant species in a lush landscape that is green and dense. I was amazed at the variety on show, as there is a rare crocodilian, 11 species of turtle, 5 species of monitor lizards, 3 cobra species and an astonishing 11 species of viper. This is one of America’s very best zoos for reptiles and amphibians and they are all under one roof. There are many rarities and I’ve spent all summer visiting 45 zoos and aquariums and Denver has a tremendous number of reptiles and amphibians that I’ve not seen anywhere else. There is also a possibility that Denver is one of America’s best zoos for fish, as there are over a dozen aquatic tanks in the Deep Reefs gallery plus at least another dozen tanks throughout the Tropical Discovery building and there is a greater assemblage of species shown here than in some zoos that have separate aquarium facilities.
One major criticism of some mega-rainforest complexes like the ones found in Omaha, Bronx and Cleveland is that some large mammals get short-changed in terms of the size of their exhibits. Denver only has 7 mammal species and 3 of them are bats so the largest species on display is a mixed-species enclosure featuring black howler monkeys (that were roaring up a storm on my visit for at least 10 straight minutes) and capybaras. Practically every other animal is a reptile, amphibian or fish and Tropical Discovery might be the most underrated Reptile House/Aquarium in North America as all of the exhibits are consistently excellent.
Mammal Species List (7 Species): Prevost’s squirrel, Malayan mouse deer, vampire bat, big fruit bat, short-tailed bat, black howler monkey and capybara.
Reptile/Amphibian Species List (77 Species) : Siamese crocodile, matamata turtle, black-breasted leaf turtle, Florida red-bellied turtle, Mississippi map turtle, common cooter, Alabama map turtle, spotted turtle, stinkpot turtle, yellow-spotted side-necked turtle, spot-bellied side-necked turtle, Reimann’s snake-necked turtle, Mexican spiny-tailed iguana, clubtail iguana, panther chameleon, Cuban false chameleon, Cuban knight anole, Klemmer’s day gecko, giant New Caledonia gecko, eastern glass lizard, giant hump-headed lizard, ocellated dab lizard, small Javan forest dragon, Philippine sailfin lizard, frilled lizard, shingleback skink, caiman lizard, crocodile lizard, crocodile monitor, spiny-tailed monitor, green tree monitor, black tree monitor, Komodo dragon, green anaconda, green tree python, emerald tree boa, green vine snake, Everglades ratsnake, tiger ratsnake, rufous-beaked snake, tentacled snake, common cantil, many-horned adder, fer-de-lance, West African green mamba, Jameson’s mamba, neotropical rattlesnake, eastern diamondback rattlesnake, canebrake rattlesnake, ridge-nosed rattlesnake, prairie rattlesnake, copperhead, Louisiana pine snake, king cobra, monocled cobra, suphan cobra, bushmaster, Sumatran pit viper, horned bush viper, side-striped palm viper, Vietnamese pit viper, African bush viper, Nepal viper, Kanburi pit viper, eyelash viper, Gaboon viper, Wagler’s viper, Mangshan viper, Vietnamese mossy frog, golden frog, green treefrog, barking treefrog, Tanzanian big-eye frog, dying poison arrow frog, yellow-banded poison dart frog, Sabana Surinam toad and eastern newt.
Fish Species List (I stopped keeping track after I hit the Deep Reefs section and its dozen or more packed aquariums but what is below is a complete list from the main rainforest dome plus a few extras from other areas): arapaima, arowana, pacu, archer fish, mudskipper, long-horned cowfish, vermiculate river stingray, round stingray, yellow stingray, red-hooked silver dollar, peacock bass, white cichlid, severum cichlid, parrot cichlid, lemon cichlid, Dow’s cichlid, spot-line peacock cichlid, Brichard’s cichlid, Congo tetra, kribensis, short-nosed unicorn tang, dusky squirrelfish, spotted gar, black crappie, Spanish hogfish, argus grouper, lookdown fish, French grunt, dollar sunfish, red breast sunfish, blackbar soldierfish, golden puffer, Madagascar cichlid fishes, Madagascar rainbow fishes, blind cave fish, cherry barb, tiger barb, pink-tailed chalceus, Boseman’s rainbow fish, pink kissing gouramis, flag-tailed prochilodus, red-bellied piranha, red-tailed black shark, bala shark, white-spotted bamboo shark, variegated shark, coral cat shark, giant danio, clown loach, feather fin synodontis catfish, red-tailed catfish, black spiny catfish, suckermouth catfish, shovelnose tiger catfish, shovelnose catfish and Marlier’s Julie.
Invertebrate Species List (4 Species): African flat rock scorpion, two-spotted assassin bug, tarantula and horseshoe crab.
Toyota Elephant Passage – This 10-acre complex cost a staggering $50 million and represents one eighth of the entire acreage of the zoo. It opened on June 1st, 2012 and is the zoo’s first major exhibit complex since 2004’s Predator Ridge. The zoo has had timed ticket entries for the first 10 weeks since the unveiling of the grand new complex but all of that ends by mid-August as the crowds will begin to diminish and very soon it will be open for anyone at any time. To construct this gargantuan undertaking approximately 6 hoofstock paddocks were eliminated (meaning the loss of bison, caribou, musk oxen, yak and others) while two badly outdated metal cages were bulldozed (Pallas’ cat and cougar). The end result has meant the creation of a flawed but still excellent 10-acre zone that represents one of the best Asian sections at any American zoo.
Toyota Elephant Passage Website:
Denver Zoo: Toyota Elephant Passage
Toyota Elephant Passage (naming rights were established when the car company donated $5 million) might be the largest and most costly zoo complex constructed in the past 20 years. Zoo Miami spent about $50 million on Amazon and Beyond in 2008 and Bronx Zoo also spent a fortune on its Madagascar House but Denver certainly has made a statement with its newest mega-complex. There are 5 main yards that feature a rotating trio of animals (a similar policy to Predator Ridge): Asian elephants, Indian rhinos and Malayan tapirs. Signs are up everywhere informing visitors that they could see one of the three species in any one of the enclosures, although there is a 6th yard that is set aside only for Malayan tapirs that features a pool, dark netting and in no way could hold a rhino or elephant.
Of the 5 main yards (totaling around 2 acres of space) there are pools in 4 of them and they are enormous structures featuring hundreds of thousands of gallons of water. The best thing about the habitats is that it makes it very easy to get close to the animals, and on three occasions I was no farther than 20 feet from a full-grown male elephant and that is a very cool experience. The yards are long and narrow (sort of like the 4.5 acre paddock at Kansas City Zoo) and while there are two aging females eventually Denver will have an all-bull herd similar to what has been set up at Birmingham Zoo. The viewing of the pachyderms is brilliant on every level, as besides the deep pools and close-up encounters there is a huge Amphitheater with two shows a day with an elephant, tapir or rhino. Plus there is a Crossing Bridge that goes over the entrance pathway and enables the animals to switch habitats. Without even venturing into Toyota Elephant Passage it is very easy to see 4 out of the 6 large yards, as well as the Sarus crane enclosure. A massive barn has 8 side stalls that are not able to be viewed, but the sandy common area with yet another pool can be seen. I wish that Denver had gone all-out and created a European-style elephant house with an enormous common area but the one they did build is still one of the largest in North America.
The Asian theme is enhanced with all sorts of cool signs that have a rustic feel to them, a marketplace atmosphere outside of the elephant barn, and there is an excellent netted clouded leopard habitat with several areas for them to climb, tall grass that has been allowed to grow, and large viewing windows for the public. A Sarus crane yard is very pretty and features a cascading pool; and a true highlight is the northern white-cheeked gibbon habitat as instead of one island there are actually three of them that come with long ropes that allow the apes to brachiate over the heads of visitors along the wooden boardwalk. While I was there the pair of gibbons was leaping from tree to tree and they did not appear to be scared to cross over their onlookers from island to island. What a great idea! The gibbon house is next to the islands but there isn’t viewing of the indoor area and I foresee that being an issue in the cold Colorado winters.
Toyota Elephant Passage is not perfect, as so far I have been raving about the 10-acre complex. The sightlines are terrible, as at 4 out of the 6 yards it is common to be glancing across the habitat and seeing visitors looking back in your direction from the other side. While walking through the Asian area it is easy enough to see visitors strolling along the pathway bypassing the entire zone, and thus zoos like North Carolina, Nashville and Dallas have done a great job of immersing humans in elephant habitats with nothing but naturalistic backdrops. Denver does not come close to that, but the spectacular viewing areas, the close proximity of the animals, the many deep pools and the novel ideas (crossing bridge, viewing of indoor barn, gibbons overhead) make up for what is lost in terms of a natural appearance.
While I have praise for the exhibits featuring elephants, rhinos, tapirs, Sarus cranes and clouded leopards (all of which I saw close-up on my visit) the weakest section is the central building. The flying fox enclosure is of average quality, and there are decent terrariums for these 6 species: Solomon Island eyelash frog, Javan hump-headed lizard, Asian gliding frog, green tree python, blood python and prehensile-tailed skink. The fishing cat and small-clawed otter exhibits are the two most disappointing as they are all indoors and while streams trickle through them they are too small for such potentially active animals. The end of the building has beautiful views of one of the main yards as glass viewing windows look out onto one of the larger pools. Overall Toyota Elephant Passage is an awesome addition to one of America’s 10 best zoos and while some people can criticize the price tag or nitpick about small details on the whole the vast majority of visitors will be duly impressed and thankful that their local zoo just got even better.
Predator Ridge – This award-winning complex opened in 2004 and features a rotating mix of lions, spotted hyenas and African wild dogs in 3 exhibits that resemble Samburu National Park in Kenya. Two of the enclosures are large, grassy yards with many massive boulders in the background to simulate the feeling of walking within an African kopje. There are issues with sightlines as often it is possible to look across the habitat and see other humans looking back at you, but overall it is a worthy addition to the zoo and one of the best lion complexes in America. The third yard is a small side exhibit with a long line of viewing windows and within it are often elderly animals, youngsters or even healthy carnivores being shifted out of the main exhibit yards. A large air-conditioned building has mock-rock in the visitor section to help immerse people into a kopje, large viewing windows into both main habitats, and side exhibits for these 3 species: African rock python, puff adder and Nile monitor.
Predator Ridge has more to it than the trio of carnivores as there are African crested porcupines, African crowned cranes, banded mongooses, leopard tortoises and spur-winged plovers in small yards. The entire entrance area was redone in 2004 and it is excellent as there is plenty of space that avoids constant congestion. Lots of metal animal statues abound, there are clearly-labeled visitor amenities and the two-level main gift shop is one of the best that I’ve ever seen. People remember the lions, hyenas and wild dogs but Predator Ridge and the fairly new entrance complex combine to form a powerful first impression of this great zoo.
Hoofstock Paddocks (and other critters) – As most zoos have phased out their collection of hoofstock it is great to see Denver maintain a series of 16 large yards that feature an impressive variety of animals. The spacious habitats are for the most part all top-notch, with no mown golf courses but instead tall grasses for many of the antelope. There used to be even more exhibits but construction on Toyota Elephant Passage meant that at least 6 additional paddocks were demolished. This area reminds me of Red Rocks at Saint Louis Zoo, as in both instances there are large hoofstock yards in a long oval-shaped line.
Exhibit list (16 enclosures): gerenuk/Abyssinian ground hornbill/West African crowned crane; cape buffalo; red kangaroo/emu; cheetah; warthog; kori bustard; common eland; bongo; Somali wild ass/ostrich; okapi/saddle-billed stork/secretary bird; okapi (second okapi yard); dromedary; Przewalski wild horse; Bactrian camel; Reticulated giraffe; and Grevy’s zebra.
THE AVERAGE:
Northern Shores – This 3-acre complex opened in 1987 and while it was once brilliant unfortunately time has dulled its edges. The polar bear exhibit has a half-sunken ship for the bears to climb on and a deep pool with underwater viewing but the enclosure is almost entirely textured mock-rock and it must be scorching hot in the summer. Times have changed and many zoos (Toronto, Columbus, Detroit, etc.) have opened polar bears exhibits with large grassy fields and in that regard Denver’s enclosure has fallen behind the times. There is a smaller second exhibit with a huge pool that currently contains a grizzly bear.
A 140 foot-long, narrow sea lion pool is still quite impressive and there are daily shows here; a new play area for children is small and hidden away; the river otters are active in their glass-fronted pool with underwater viewing; and the two weakest enclosures are for Arctic foxes and harbor seals. The signage, visitor paths and exhibits themselves are all a bit dated but nothing terrible, and nearby is an incredibly lush forest called Wolf Woods that is so green and natural-looking that it makes it impossible to locate one wolf let alone a pack in the nearly acre-sized habitat.
Sheep Mountain – Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep and Dall sheep (rarely exhibited in North American zoos) reside in two towering mountain habitats that opened to the public in 1979. These mock-rock structures are nicely textured and are at a great height so the sheep have many vantage points to leap around and look down upon visitors.
Bird World – There are around 70 species inside this vast structure that opened in 1975 and around the building are very large aviaries for Steller’s sea eagles (two aviaries), bald eagles and Andean condors. An outdoor African black-footed penguin pool is tiny and quite outdated as I guess that it was built when the building first opened and it is placed directly at the entrance. Upon entering one encounters an introductory set of 8 exhibits with these 9 species: kea, green magpie, rainbow lorikeet, blue-naped mousebird, crested-wood partridge, white-collared yuhina, African pygmy falcon, Micronesian kingfisher and Bali mynah. All of the enclosures are perhaps 6 ft. squared and not very large at all for such active little birds.
There are 3 walk-through aviaries that are all fairly small in comparison to the mammoth versions that have opened since the 1970’s in various other zoos, but they are the highlights of Bird World. The first of a trio of walk-through aviaries is called “Rain Forest” and features these 16 species: Lady Ross’ turaco, sunbittern, green-naped pheasant pigeon, green-winged dove, northern helmeted curassow, grosbeak starling, yellow-breasted ground dove, boat-billed heron, white-faced whistling duck, silver-beaked tanager, hammerkop, hottentot teal, nicobar pigeon, blue-crowned motmot, green-winged macaw and blue-and-gold macaw. Upon exiting this aviary an open-fronted Asian Jungle exhibit has these 5 species: Mariana fruit dove, hooded pitta, African pygmy goose, Pekin robin and blue-crowned laughing thrush.
The second walk-through aviary is called “Tropical Forest” and it features these 11 species: turquoise tanager, blue-gray tanager, paradise tanager, nicobar pigeon, Bartlett’s bleeding heart dove, speckled mousebird, spur-winged plover, crested wood partridge, red-crested finch, red-legged honeycreeper and violaceaous euphonia. Upon exiting this aviary there is a rhinoceros hornbill exhibit.
The third and final walk-through aviary is called “Aquatic Bird Habitat” and it features these 9 species: two-toed sloth, Lady Ross’ turaco, ringed teal, common piping guan, crested oropendola, hammerkop, Rothschild’s peacock pheasant, Inca tern and storm stork. Upon exiting this aviary there is an open-fronted Egyptian plover exhibit.
“Deep in a Swamp” has these 8 species: three-toed box turtle, Mariana fruit dove, pileated woodpecker, golden-headed quetzal, elegant-crested tinamou, yellow-breasted ground dove, Pekin robin and African pygmy goose. “The Bird’s Kitchen” is a window that looks into the food preparation area, and “Living Jewels of the Bird World” ends the tour with these 7 species in 6 very small box-like exhibits: blue-crowned motmot, blue dacnis, tawny frogmouth, violaceous euphonia, blue-breasted kingfisher, green aracari and paradise tanager.
The entire north-east section of the zoo is dominated by a couple of acres of bird exhibits (including Bird World and aviaries that I’ve already mentioned) and Nurture Trail is a small and densely planted pathway that goes past a few large bird exhibits for these 4 species: secretary bird, red-crowned crane, swan goose and vulturine guineafowl. The Avian Propagation Center opened in 2007 and it is off limits to the public except for the new Nurture Trail zone and two large aviaries on the side of the building that feature a keel-billed toucan/red-legged seriema exhibit and a kookaburra/Victoria crowned pigeon/palm cockatoo enclosure. Lorikeet Adventure, a walk-through aviary where visitors can feed the colourful birds, completes the Birds-themed north-eastern corner of the zoo.
Pachyderms – This area used to be home to both the Asian elephants and Malayan tapirs but of course those species have moved into expensive new habitats. A Nile hippo yard is left and it is small and quite poor in quality, and I saw a black rhino in a yard that was a little better but not top-notch by any means. However, this area is under construction and fairly soon the extra space left by the departure of the tapirs and elephants will mean that the black rhinos and Nile hippos will receive expanded habitats. The work is due to be completed by September and by my estimation I would guess that the remaining pachyderms will move into exhibits as least three times larger than their current ones. The removal of the elephants will certainly benefit the rhinos and hippos and already new shade structures have been constructed in two different paddocks.
THE WORST:
Feline House – This 1964 structure is well past its due date and the zoo even acknowledges that the building is aging on its website. Now that Toyota Elephant Passage is up and running a capital campaign will begin for Asian Temperate Forest that will see either a redevelopment or a demolishment of the Feline House. All of the cats have both indoor and outdoor exhibits and while that fact makes this not the worst big cat house in America but for a zoo with such fame as Denver this is the one major eyesore that blots the reputation of the establishment. There are 9 species and only the mongooses and tree shrews have all-indoor exhibits, while there are 3 adequate outdoor yards for maned wolves, striped hyenas and Amur tigers. The 4 species that have both a small indoor area and a small outdoor yard, with some animals separated and thus rotating between the pair, are the snow leopards, Amur leopards, servals and fossas. To be perfectly honest this area is not as bad as it used to be as there are only 3 big cat species in crappy exhibits while the rest of the animals are much smaller in size.
Species list (9 species): Amur tiger, Amur leopard, snow leopard, serval, fossa, striped hyena, maned wolf, northern tree shrew and dwarf mongoose.
Bear Mountain – This historic structure opened in 1918 and it was the first naturalistic, mock-rock exhibit in the country. There has been a lot of press about this ground-breaking trio of enclosures and the zoo is proud of its history as there is mention of Bear Mountain in just about every advertisement available. There are a few coatis that run amok amongst the columns of the main exhibit, and the other two enclosures are essentially bear grottoes that are long past their better days. Two grizzly bears and two Asiatic black bears lounged against cement backdrops in their tiny pits, and while these are far from the worst bear pits in the zoological world they are still very disappointing. Even with a pool and plenty of deadfall in tiered cement grottoes these two pits have been hosting bears for almost 100 years and such a great zoo should really have smaller mammals in the enclosures. Somewhat bizarrely there is a Humboldt penguin exhibit (that opened in 1980) next to the coatis and the penguins are found in a fairly outdated little pool.
THE FUTURE:
Denver Zoo Master Plan Overview:
Denver Zoo: About Us: Master Plan
OVERALL:
Denver Zoo has 5 outstanding areas (Primate Panorama, Tropical Discovery, Toyota Elephant Passage, Predator Ridge and Hoofstock Paddocks) , 4 average areas (Northern Shores, Sheep Mountain, Bird World and Pachyderms) and 2 terrible sections (Feline House and Bear Mountain – although notably historic). The zoo seems to have something for everyone in terms of its animal collection, its modern, Omaha-sized exhibit complexes, and even with the many historic details. What it definitely lacks is any kind of children’s zoo as for the very first time on this trip I toured a facility completely alone. Denver has a carousel and a small train loop but there is not a major playground or decent kiddie zone and there is so much to see and do while walking vast distances that taking small children along didn’t seem like a great idea as it already took me 6 hours to see everything going by myself at a decent pace.
Denver Zoo even gets the finer details correct, such as having a top-class gift shop; two outdoor Wildlife Theaters with several shows each day; a brand-new huge foldout map that is very similar to the maps produced by the San Diego parks and the SeaWorld establishments; wide pathways to accommodate the more than 2 million people that will attend the zoo in 2012; and cheap admission ($15) and cheap food in comparison to most other major zoos. The past 20 years have seen 4 outstanding exhibit complexes constructed and I’m already excited to eventually re-visit the zoo when the Felines House is turned into an Asian Temperate Forest and many of the big cats finally get spacious new habitats. I’ll end this lengthy review, perhaps my most detailed ever, with one thought. I am curious as to what Denver Zoo looks like in the wintertime under a couple of feet of snow, as when it comes to the climate that is one area that San Diego Zoo will always have on its side.
Road Trip Review # 44: Denver Zoo
Denver Zoo’s website:
Denver Zoo
Zoo Map:
http://www.denverzoo.org/downloads/DenverZoo_Map_spring2012.pdf
Denver Zoo is an AZA-accredited facility located in Denver, Colorado, and it opened in 1896. It is one of the oldest and best zoos in the United States, and on its 80 acres there are close to 4,000 animals representing almost 700 species. With such a vast collection it is no surprise that the book America’s Best Zoos rates Denver Zoo in the top 10 zoos in the nation in 8 different categories: #2 for hoofstock, #2 for primates, birds, cats, bears, pachyderms, rain forest buildings and shows. The zoo regularly attracts 2 million visitors per year, making it one of the most popular zoos in North America. With the opening of the $50 million Toyota Elephant Passage this zoo is clearly geared towards becoming even more popular in the future. In fact, excluding free zoos (Saint Louis, National, Como Park and Lincoln Park) and theme-parks (Disney’s Animal Kingdom and Tampa’s Busch Gardens) I predict that Denver is only beaten in attendance during 2012 by San Diego and Columbus.
Denver is an incredible zoo and after thinking about it constantly since my visit I would estimate that it is in these positions when analyzing all of the zoos in the United States: #1 for primates in terms of species and quality of exhibits as no other zoo is better; definitely a top 5 zoo for rainforest complexes; possibly a top 10 zoo for its reptile/amphibian collection as there are around 80 species and an incredible number of rarely-exhibited animals; top 5 zoo for hoofed animals; top 5 zoo for pachyderms; top 5 zoo for Asian animals; top 5 zoo for bird collection; possible top 12 zoo for aquariums as there must be over 100 species of fish; and overall an absolute lock for being one of America’s top 10 zoos. It is a big, historic zoo that does not do a lot of tinkering each year but instead opens mega-complexes that are usually brilliant. Tropical Discovery opened in 1993, then Primate Panorama opened in 1996, eight years went by and Predator Ridge/Entrance Complex opened in 2004, eight more years went by and Toyota Elephant Passage opened in 2012, and so the next big thing to happen should be in eight years or less and that will be Asian Temperate Forest (Pallas’ cats, Amur tigers, Amur leopards, lynx, various cold-weather species).
I spent 6 hours at Denver Zoo, meticulously photographing hundreds of signs and exhibits for this review, before resting at the motel for a couple of hours and then taking advantage of Downtown Denver Aquarium’s late-night hours to drop by and spend just over an hour at that facility. This review can be considered Part I of my August 9th Denver experience.
THE BEST:
Primate Panorama – This 7-acre set of habitats features a whopping 20 different kinds of primates (from 3 different continents) and several other species in a wide-ranging style of exhibits. Before going past the main entrance visitors pass a lushly planted squirrel monkey exhibit and a spider monkey/giant anteater habitat that is green and dense with vegetation. Lemur Island features two species (red ruffed and white collared brown) across from Flamingo Lagoon that also features two species (American and Chilean). Black-crested macaques have an outdoor and indoor yard that is seen before the Emerald Forest building is entered. Madagascar is the first themed area and it features the indoor viewing areas for the Lemur Island inhabitants as well as all-indoor exhibits for ring-tailed lemurs and mongoose lemurs.
Tropical Forests has all-indoor exhibits for Goeldi’s monkeys (with a southern tamandua), white-faced saki monkeys (two exhibits), golden lion tamarins (two exhibits), emperor tamarins, pygmy marmosets and aye-ayes. Indoor housing for the squirrel monkeys is also seen here. Back outside is a gorgeous, natural-looking netted enclosure for red-capped mangabeys as well as a similar habitat for golden-cheeked gibbons. Both of those enclosures are superb, and across the pathway is a large outdoor habitat for orangutans that is certainly green and naturalistic but could definitely use a lot more climbing opportunities. The 5 orangs do have access to some large trees and the same goes for the 5 gorillas next door that have one of the largest ape habitats in any American zoo. It is an acre in size and resembles a forested environment which naturally makes it difficult to locate a gorilla. There are massive viewing windows at both exhibits, indoor quarters that are loaded with wooden beams and open year-round, and even a two year-old orangutan that was adorable and drew quite a crowd.
There is an exhibit for a yellow-backed duiker, two red river hog enclosures, plus more excellent, lush primate exhibits for mandrills, DeBrazza monkeys and colobus monkeys (with klipspringers). A blue duiker/silvery-cheeked hornbill exhibit ends the trail. A small walk-through aviary has these 14 species: Von der Decken’s hornbill, black-necked swan, black swan, smew, kookaburra, nene, mandarin duck, bar-headed goose, boat-billed heron, South African shelduck, scarlet ibis, cattle egret, roseate spoonbill and Egyptian vulture.
Besides the 20 primate species in Primate Panorama there are also black howler monkeys in Tropical Discovery and a large troop of hooded capuchin monkeys on the outstanding Monkey Island. The capuchins have a vast network of tall trees to roam about and they fare better than the sad-sack monkeys that are stuck inside the small metal cages of the 1908 Monkey House. Wolf’s guenons, silvered leaf monkeys and the indoor housing for the hooded capuchins is also found here. In total Denver Zoo has 24 primate species, most of the exhibits are exemplary, and I think that it beats out San Diego as America’s #1 zoo for primates. Monkeys, lemurs and apes are already the most popular zoo animals for most visitors (including myself) partly because they are so active and human-like in appearance. To have 7 acres of a zoo set aside for such entertaining and interesting mammals, complete with a replicated West African village, makes this one of America’s 25 best exhibit complexes. One day I’ll sit down and make a list of my 25 favourites and Primate Panorama will be a lock for a place.
Tropical Discovery – This indoor rainforest building opened in 1993 and there are more than 1,000 animals of about 250 species beneath its glass pyramid roofs. There are also around 200 plant species in a lush landscape that is green and dense. I was amazed at the variety on show, as there is a rare crocodilian, 11 species of turtle, 5 species of monitor lizards, 3 cobra species and an astonishing 11 species of viper. This is one of America’s very best zoos for reptiles and amphibians and they are all under one roof. There are many rarities and I’ve spent all summer visiting 45 zoos and aquariums and Denver has a tremendous number of reptiles and amphibians that I’ve not seen anywhere else. There is also a possibility that Denver is one of America’s best zoos for fish, as there are over a dozen aquatic tanks in the Deep Reefs gallery plus at least another dozen tanks throughout the Tropical Discovery building and there is a greater assemblage of species shown here than in some zoos that have separate aquarium facilities.
One major criticism of some mega-rainforest complexes like the ones found in Omaha, Bronx and Cleveland is that some large mammals get short-changed in terms of the size of their exhibits. Denver only has 7 mammal species and 3 of them are bats so the largest species on display is a mixed-species enclosure featuring black howler monkeys (that were roaring up a storm on my visit for at least 10 straight minutes) and capybaras. Practically every other animal is a reptile, amphibian or fish and Tropical Discovery might be the most underrated Reptile House/Aquarium in North America as all of the exhibits are consistently excellent.
Mammal Species List (7 Species): Prevost’s squirrel, Malayan mouse deer, vampire bat, big fruit bat, short-tailed bat, black howler monkey and capybara.
Reptile/Amphibian Species List (77 Species) : Siamese crocodile, matamata turtle, black-breasted leaf turtle, Florida red-bellied turtle, Mississippi map turtle, common cooter, Alabama map turtle, spotted turtle, stinkpot turtle, yellow-spotted side-necked turtle, spot-bellied side-necked turtle, Reimann’s snake-necked turtle, Mexican spiny-tailed iguana, clubtail iguana, panther chameleon, Cuban false chameleon, Cuban knight anole, Klemmer’s day gecko, giant New Caledonia gecko, eastern glass lizard, giant hump-headed lizard, ocellated dab lizard, small Javan forest dragon, Philippine sailfin lizard, frilled lizard, shingleback skink, caiman lizard, crocodile lizard, crocodile monitor, spiny-tailed monitor, green tree monitor, black tree monitor, Komodo dragon, green anaconda, green tree python, emerald tree boa, green vine snake, Everglades ratsnake, tiger ratsnake, rufous-beaked snake, tentacled snake, common cantil, many-horned adder, fer-de-lance, West African green mamba, Jameson’s mamba, neotropical rattlesnake, eastern diamondback rattlesnake, canebrake rattlesnake, ridge-nosed rattlesnake, prairie rattlesnake, copperhead, Louisiana pine snake, king cobra, monocled cobra, suphan cobra, bushmaster, Sumatran pit viper, horned bush viper, side-striped palm viper, Vietnamese pit viper, African bush viper, Nepal viper, Kanburi pit viper, eyelash viper, Gaboon viper, Wagler’s viper, Mangshan viper, Vietnamese mossy frog, golden frog, green treefrog, barking treefrog, Tanzanian big-eye frog, dying poison arrow frog, yellow-banded poison dart frog, Sabana Surinam toad and eastern newt.
Fish Species List (I stopped keeping track after I hit the Deep Reefs section and its dozen or more packed aquariums but what is below is a complete list from the main rainforest dome plus a few extras from other areas): arapaima, arowana, pacu, archer fish, mudskipper, long-horned cowfish, vermiculate river stingray, round stingray, yellow stingray, red-hooked silver dollar, peacock bass, white cichlid, severum cichlid, parrot cichlid, lemon cichlid, Dow’s cichlid, spot-line peacock cichlid, Brichard’s cichlid, Congo tetra, kribensis, short-nosed unicorn tang, dusky squirrelfish, spotted gar, black crappie, Spanish hogfish, argus grouper, lookdown fish, French grunt, dollar sunfish, red breast sunfish, blackbar soldierfish, golden puffer, Madagascar cichlid fishes, Madagascar rainbow fishes, blind cave fish, cherry barb, tiger barb, pink-tailed chalceus, Boseman’s rainbow fish, pink kissing gouramis, flag-tailed prochilodus, red-bellied piranha, red-tailed black shark, bala shark, white-spotted bamboo shark, variegated shark, coral cat shark, giant danio, clown loach, feather fin synodontis catfish, red-tailed catfish, black spiny catfish, suckermouth catfish, shovelnose tiger catfish, shovelnose catfish and Marlier’s Julie.
Invertebrate Species List (4 Species): African flat rock scorpion, two-spotted assassin bug, tarantula and horseshoe crab.
Toyota Elephant Passage – This 10-acre complex cost a staggering $50 million and represents one eighth of the entire acreage of the zoo. It opened on June 1st, 2012 and is the zoo’s first major exhibit complex since 2004’s Predator Ridge. The zoo has had timed ticket entries for the first 10 weeks since the unveiling of the grand new complex but all of that ends by mid-August as the crowds will begin to diminish and very soon it will be open for anyone at any time. To construct this gargantuan undertaking approximately 6 hoofstock paddocks were eliminated (meaning the loss of bison, caribou, musk oxen, yak and others) while two badly outdated metal cages were bulldozed (Pallas’ cat and cougar). The end result has meant the creation of a flawed but still excellent 10-acre zone that represents one of the best Asian sections at any American zoo.
Toyota Elephant Passage Website:
Denver Zoo: Toyota Elephant Passage
Toyota Elephant Passage (naming rights were established when the car company donated $5 million) might be the largest and most costly zoo complex constructed in the past 20 years. Zoo Miami spent about $50 million on Amazon and Beyond in 2008 and Bronx Zoo also spent a fortune on its Madagascar House but Denver certainly has made a statement with its newest mega-complex. There are 5 main yards that feature a rotating trio of animals (a similar policy to Predator Ridge): Asian elephants, Indian rhinos and Malayan tapirs. Signs are up everywhere informing visitors that they could see one of the three species in any one of the enclosures, although there is a 6th yard that is set aside only for Malayan tapirs that features a pool, dark netting and in no way could hold a rhino or elephant.
Of the 5 main yards (totaling around 2 acres of space) there are pools in 4 of them and they are enormous structures featuring hundreds of thousands of gallons of water. The best thing about the habitats is that it makes it very easy to get close to the animals, and on three occasions I was no farther than 20 feet from a full-grown male elephant and that is a very cool experience. The yards are long and narrow (sort of like the 4.5 acre paddock at Kansas City Zoo) and while there are two aging females eventually Denver will have an all-bull herd similar to what has been set up at Birmingham Zoo. The viewing of the pachyderms is brilliant on every level, as besides the deep pools and close-up encounters there is a huge Amphitheater with two shows a day with an elephant, tapir or rhino. Plus there is a Crossing Bridge that goes over the entrance pathway and enables the animals to switch habitats. Without even venturing into Toyota Elephant Passage it is very easy to see 4 out of the 6 large yards, as well as the Sarus crane enclosure. A massive barn has 8 side stalls that are not able to be viewed, but the sandy common area with yet another pool can be seen. I wish that Denver had gone all-out and created a European-style elephant house with an enormous common area but the one they did build is still one of the largest in North America.
The Asian theme is enhanced with all sorts of cool signs that have a rustic feel to them, a marketplace atmosphere outside of the elephant barn, and there is an excellent netted clouded leopard habitat with several areas for them to climb, tall grass that has been allowed to grow, and large viewing windows for the public. A Sarus crane yard is very pretty and features a cascading pool; and a true highlight is the northern white-cheeked gibbon habitat as instead of one island there are actually three of them that come with long ropes that allow the apes to brachiate over the heads of visitors along the wooden boardwalk. While I was there the pair of gibbons was leaping from tree to tree and they did not appear to be scared to cross over their onlookers from island to island. What a great idea! The gibbon house is next to the islands but there isn’t viewing of the indoor area and I foresee that being an issue in the cold Colorado winters.
Toyota Elephant Passage is not perfect, as so far I have been raving about the 10-acre complex. The sightlines are terrible, as at 4 out of the 6 yards it is common to be glancing across the habitat and seeing visitors looking back in your direction from the other side. While walking through the Asian area it is easy enough to see visitors strolling along the pathway bypassing the entire zone, and thus zoos like North Carolina, Nashville and Dallas have done a great job of immersing humans in elephant habitats with nothing but naturalistic backdrops. Denver does not come close to that, but the spectacular viewing areas, the close proximity of the animals, the many deep pools and the novel ideas (crossing bridge, viewing of indoor barn, gibbons overhead) make up for what is lost in terms of a natural appearance.
While I have praise for the exhibits featuring elephants, rhinos, tapirs, Sarus cranes and clouded leopards (all of which I saw close-up on my visit) the weakest section is the central building. The flying fox enclosure is of average quality, and there are decent terrariums for these 6 species: Solomon Island eyelash frog, Javan hump-headed lizard, Asian gliding frog, green tree python, blood python and prehensile-tailed skink. The fishing cat and small-clawed otter exhibits are the two most disappointing as they are all indoors and while streams trickle through them they are too small for such potentially active animals. The end of the building has beautiful views of one of the main yards as glass viewing windows look out onto one of the larger pools. Overall Toyota Elephant Passage is an awesome addition to one of America’s 10 best zoos and while some people can criticize the price tag or nitpick about small details on the whole the vast majority of visitors will be duly impressed and thankful that their local zoo just got even better.
Predator Ridge – This award-winning complex opened in 2004 and features a rotating mix of lions, spotted hyenas and African wild dogs in 3 exhibits that resemble Samburu National Park in Kenya. Two of the enclosures are large, grassy yards with many massive boulders in the background to simulate the feeling of walking within an African kopje. There are issues with sightlines as often it is possible to look across the habitat and see other humans looking back at you, but overall it is a worthy addition to the zoo and one of the best lion complexes in America. The third yard is a small side exhibit with a long line of viewing windows and within it are often elderly animals, youngsters or even healthy carnivores being shifted out of the main exhibit yards. A large air-conditioned building has mock-rock in the visitor section to help immerse people into a kopje, large viewing windows into both main habitats, and side exhibits for these 3 species: African rock python, puff adder and Nile monitor.
Predator Ridge has more to it than the trio of carnivores as there are African crested porcupines, African crowned cranes, banded mongooses, leopard tortoises and spur-winged plovers in small yards. The entire entrance area was redone in 2004 and it is excellent as there is plenty of space that avoids constant congestion. Lots of metal animal statues abound, there are clearly-labeled visitor amenities and the two-level main gift shop is one of the best that I’ve ever seen. People remember the lions, hyenas and wild dogs but Predator Ridge and the fairly new entrance complex combine to form a powerful first impression of this great zoo.
Hoofstock Paddocks (and other critters) – As most zoos have phased out their collection of hoofstock it is great to see Denver maintain a series of 16 large yards that feature an impressive variety of animals. The spacious habitats are for the most part all top-notch, with no mown golf courses but instead tall grasses for many of the antelope. There used to be even more exhibits but construction on Toyota Elephant Passage meant that at least 6 additional paddocks were demolished. This area reminds me of Red Rocks at Saint Louis Zoo, as in both instances there are large hoofstock yards in a long oval-shaped line.
Exhibit list (16 enclosures): gerenuk/Abyssinian ground hornbill/West African crowned crane; cape buffalo; red kangaroo/emu; cheetah; warthog; kori bustard; common eland; bongo; Somali wild ass/ostrich; okapi/saddle-billed stork/secretary bird; okapi (second okapi yard); dromedary; Przewalski wild horse; Bactrian camel; Reticulated giraffe; and Grevy’s zebra.
THE AVERAGE:
Northern Shores – This 3-acre complex opened in 1987 and while it was once brilliant unfortunately time has dulled its edges. The polar bear exhibit has a half-sunken ship for the bears to climb on and a deep pool with underwater viewing but the enclosure is almost entirely textured mock-rock and it must be scorching hot in the summer. Times have changed and many zoos (Toronto, Columbus, Detroit, etc.) have opened polar bears exhibits with large grassy fields and in that regard Denver’s enclosure has fallen behind the times. There is a smaller second exhibit with a huge pool that currently contains a grizzly bear.
A 140 foot-long, narrow sea lion pool is still quite impressive and there are daily shows here; a new play area for children is small and hidden away; the river otters are active in their glass-fronted pool with underwater viewing; and the two weakest enclosures are for Arctic foxes and harbor seals. The signage, visitor paths and exhibits themselves are all a bit dated but nothing terrible, and nearby is an incredibly lush forest called Wolf Woods that is so green and natural-looking that it makes it impossible to locate one wolf let alone a pack in the nearly acre-sized habitat.
Sheep Mountain – Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep and Dall sheep (rarely exhibited in North American zoos) reside in two towering mountain habitats that opened to the public in 1979. These mock-rock structures are nicely textured and are at a great height so the sheep have many vantage points to leap around and look down upon visitors.
Bird World – There are around 70 species inside this vast structure that opened in 1975 and around the building are very large aviaries for Steller’s sea eagles (two aviaries), bald eagles and Andean condors. An outdoor African black-footed penguin pool is tiny and quite outdated as I guess that it was built when the building first opened and it is placed directly at the entrance. Upon entering one encounters an introductory set of 8 exhibits with these 9 species: kea, green magpie, rainbow lorikeet, blue-naped mousebird, crested-wood partridge, white-collared yuhina, African pygmy falcon, Micronesian kingfisher and Bali mynah. All of the enclosures are perhaps 6 ft. squared and not very large at all for such active little birds.
There are 3 walk-through aviaries that are all fairly small in comparison to the mammoth versions that have opened since the 1970’s in various other zoos, but they are the highlights of Bird World. The first of a trio of walk-through aviaries is called “Rain Forest” and features these 16 species: Lady Ross’ turaco, sunbittern, green-naped pheasant pigeon, green-winged dove, northern helmeted curassow, grosbeak starling, yellow-breasted ground dove, boat-billed heron, white-faced whistling duck, silver-beaked tanager, hammerkop, hottentot teal, nicobar pigeon, blue-crowned motmot, green-winged macaw and blue-and-gold macaw. Upon exiting this aviary an open-fronted Asian Jungle exhibit has these 5 species: Mariana fruit dove, hooded pitta, African pygmy goose, Pekin robin and blue-crowned laughing thrush.
The second walk-through aviary is called “Tropical Forest” and it features these 11 species: turquoise tanager, blue-gray tanager, paradise tanager, nicobar pigeon, Bartlett’s bleeding heart dove, speckled mousebird, spur-winged plover, crested wood partridge, red-crested finch, red-legged honeycreeper and violaceaous euphonia. Upon exiting this aviary there is a rhinoceros hornbill exhibit.
The third and final walk-through aviary is called “Aquatic Bird Habitat” and it features these 9 species: two-toed sloth, Lady Ross’ turaco, ringed teal, common piping guan, crested oropendola, hammerkop, Rothschild’s peacock pheasant, Inca tern and storm stork. Upon exiting this aviary there is an open-fronted Egyptian plover exhibit.
“Deep in a Swamp” has these 8 species: three-toed box turtle, Mariana fruit dove, pileated woodpecker, golden-headed quetzal, elegant-crested tinamou, yellow-breasted ground dove, Pekin robin and African pygmy goose. “The Bird’s Kitchen” is a window that looks into the food preparation area, and “Living Jewels of the Bird World” ends the tour with these 7 species in 6 very small box-like exhibits: blue-crowned motmot, blue dacnis, tawny frogmouth, violaceous euphonia, blue-breasted kingfisher, green aracari and paradise tanager.
The entire north-east section of the zoo is dominated by a couple of acres of bird exhibits (including Bird World and aviaries that I’ve already mentioned) and Nurture Trail is a small and densely planted pathway that goes past a few large bird exhibits for these 4 species: secretary bird, red-crowned crane, swan goose and vulturine guineafowl. The Avian Propagation Center opened in 2007 and it is off limits to the public except for the new Nurture Trail zone and two large aviaries on the side of the building that feature a keel-billed toucan/red-legged seriema exhibit and a kookaburra/Victoria crowned pigeon/palm cockatoo enclosure. Lorikeet Adventure, a walk-through aviary where visitors can feed the colourful birds, completes the Birds-themed north-eastern corner of the zoo.
Pachyderms – This area used to be home to both the Asian elephants and Malayan tapirs but of course those species have moved into expensive new habitats. A Nile hippo yard is left and it is small and quite poor in quality, and I saw a black rhino in a yard that was a little better but not top-notch by any means. However, this area is under construction and fairly soon the extra space left by the departure of the tapirs and elephants will mean that the black rhinos and Nile hippos will receive expanded habitats. The work is due to be completed by September and by my estimation I would guess that the remaining pachyderms will move into exhibits as least three times larger than their current ones. The removal of the elephants will certainly benefit the rhinos and hippos and already new shade structures have been constructed in two different paddocks.
THE WORST:
Feline House – This 1964 structure is well past its due date and the zoo even acknowledges that the building is aging on its website. Now that Toyota Elephant Passage is up and running a capital campaign will begin for Asian Temperate Forest that will see either a redevelopment or a demolishment of the Feline House. All of the cats have both indoor and outdoor exhibits and while that fact makes this not the worst big cat house in America but for a zoo with such fame as Denver this is the one major eyesore that blots the reputation of the establishment. There are 9 species and only the mongooses and tree shrews have all-indoor exhibits, while there are 3 adequate outdoor yards for maned wolves, striped hyenas and Amur tigers. The 4 species that have both a small indoor area and a small outdoor yard, with some animals separated and thus rotating between the pair, are the snow leopards, Amur leopards, servals and fossas. To be perfectly honest this area is not as bad as it used to be as there are only 3 big cat species in crappy exhibits while the rest of the animals are much smaller in size.
Species list (9 species): Amur tiger, Amur leopard, snow leopard, serval, fossa, striped hyena, maned wolf, northern tree shrew and dwarf mongoose.
Bear Mountain – This historic structure opened in 1918 and it was the first naturalistic, mock-rock exhibit in the country. There has been a lot of press about this ground-breaking trio of enclosures and the zoo is proud of its history as there is mention of Bear Mountain in just about every advertisement available. There are a few coatis that run amok amongst the columns of the main exhibit, and the other two enclosures are essentially bear grottoes that are long past their better days. Two grizzly bears and two Asiatic black bears lounged against cement backdrops in their tiny pits, and while these are far from the worst bear pits in the zoological world they are still very disappointing. Even with a pool and plenty of deadfall in tiered cement grottoes these two pits have been hosting bears for almost 100 years and such a great zoo should really have smaller mammals in the enclosures. Somewhat bizarrely there is a Humboldt penguin exhibit (that opened in 1980) next to the coatis and the penguins are found in a fairly outdated little pool.
THE FUTURE:
Denver Zoo Master Plan Overview:
Denver Zoo: About Us: Master Plan
OVERALL:
Denver Zoo has 5 outstanding areas (Primate Panorama, Tropical Discovery, Toyota Elephant Passage, Predator Ridge and Hoofstock Paddocks) , 4 average areas (Northern Shores, Sheep Mountain, Bird World and Pachyderms) and 2 terrible sections (Feline House and Bear Mountain – although notably historic). The zoo seems to have something for everyone in terms of its animal collection, its modern, Omaha-sized exhibit complexes, and even with the many historic details. What it definitely lacks is any kind of children’s zoo as for the very first time on this trip I toured a facility completely alone. Denver has a carousel and a small train loop but there is not a major playground or decent kiddie zone and there is so much to see and do while walking vast distances that taking small children along didn’t seem like a great idea as it already took me 6 hours to see everything going by myself at a decent pace.
Denver Zoo even gets the finer details correct, such as having a top-class gift shop; two outdoor Wildlife Theaters with several shows each day; a brand-new huge foldout map that is very similar to the maps produced by the San Diego parks and the SeaWorld establishments; wide pathways to accommodate the more than 2 million people that will attend the zoo in 2012; and cheap admission ($15) and cheap food in comparison to most other major zoos. The past 20 years have seen 4 outstanding exhibit complexes constructed and I’m already excited to eventually re-visit the zoo when the Felines House is turned into an Asian Temperate Forest and many of the big cats finally get spacious new habitats. I’ll end this lengthy review, perhaps my most detailed ever, with one thought. I am curious as to what Denver Zoo looks like in the wintertime under a couple of feet of snow, as when it comes to the climate that is one area that San Diego Zoo will always have on its side.
