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That's really nice that the Minnesota Zoo is trying to breed pure bison. It would be nice if all zoos starting doing this.
 
I'm sure people in Minneapolis will love to see African species but I liked the uniqueness of the Minnesota Zoo with its focus on cold-weather animals. I suppose the other animals are a bigger draw though.
 
elefante said:
I'm sure people in Minneapolis will love to see African species but I liked the uniqueness of the Minnesota Zoo with its focus on cold-weather animals. I suppose the other animals are a bigger draw though.
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The Minnesota zoo has from its beginning exhibited numerous tropical species--tapirs, sun bears, Komodo dragons, hornbills, gibbons, tree kangaroos etc. In recent years, red river hogs, colobus and De Brazza minkeys, lemurs, tamarins and tamanduas have been added to the collection. The development of an African exhibit is not so much a departure from the past but an expansion of a comprehensive zoo that will continue to have a strong--but not exclusive--focus on Northern climate exhibits and species.
 
reduakari said:
The Minnesota zoo has from its beginning exhibited numerous tropical species--tapirs, sun bears, Komodo dragons, hornbills, gibbons, tree kangaroos etc. In recent years, red river hogs, colobus and De Brazza minkeys, lemurs, tamarins and tamanduas have been added to the collection. The development of an African exhibit is not so much a departure from the past but an expansion of a comprehensive zoo that will continue to have a strong--but not exclusive--focus on Northern climate exhibits and species.
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They have tropical species but weren't they always inside? I always thought it was neat because everything that was in an outdoor enclosure could be outside year-round and the tropical ones were always inside and could be viewed year-round.
 
Minnesota Zoo

Guests will have a wild time at the Zoo this summer with the return of two popular exhibits - Africa! and All New Dinosaurs!... African savannah, complete with giraffes, ostrich, bongos, wildebeest, addax and guinea fowl. With the option to hand-feed giraffes, guests will feel like they’re on safari!
 
Minnesota Zoo puts some projects on hold after striking out on state money - TwinCities.com
2 June 2013

Visitors hoping to see Hawaiian monk seals swimming at the Minnesota Zoo will have to hold their breath a little longer.

Lawmakers' unwillingness this session to pass a $800 million bonding bill for public works projects across the state put on hold plans to complete renovations to the million-gallon tank that would house the seals in Discovery Bay.

The zoo needs another $1 million to finish renovations of the tank before the endangered seals that officials hope to acquire can move in. Yet another $2 million is needed for other updates to Discovery Bay.

The $15 million that zoo leaders requested from lawmakers in state bonding dollars was left out of the smaller $156 million measure that won approval in the final hours of the 2013 session. Plans to remodel the zoo's snow monkey exhibit also are on hold.

Lee Ehmke, CEO and director of the facility in Apple Valley, said he hoped lawmakers would reconsider their request to fund the projects next year.

"In the grand scheme of things, it's a setback rather than a change of course," Ehmke said.

Zoo leaders asked lawmakers for $7 million in 2012 to repair the saltwater tank that housed dolphins and received $4 million. The dolphins were permanently relocated to other zoos during the repairs, and Ehmke said it likely will be two years before monk seals replace them.

However, the disappointment in missing out on state bonding funds was tempered with success in other areas, Ehmke said.

Lawmakers maintained the state-operated facility's $5.5 million per year for operations and increased by $500,000 over the biennium money that the zoo receives from the Legacy Fund. Next year, the zoo will have a $25 million operating budget.
Zoo leaders continue to move forward with privately funded projects that are at the top of the list of a master plan approved by the zoo's board in November. The plan outlines a decade's worth of expansions.

First on the list is a new "Crossroads Park" with a carousel featuring endangered species where the zoo's Replay Park now sits on the Northern Trail. That project will be privately funded and designed.

In the fall, the zoo will dismantle the monorail that has carried riders around the grounds since 1979. Ehmke said the monorail is outdated and will cost too much to repair. Interest from riders also declined.
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I don't keep up to date with North American zoos: will these be the only Hawaiian monk seals to be displayed in a mainland zoo? (I have some recollection of mention of them at one of the marineland type places).
 
BeardsleyZooFan said:
Bison Calves: Minnesota Zoo
Minnesota Zoo Welcomes Two Bison Calves as Part of Partnership with DNR - YouTube
Also, the Africa and Dinosaur exhibits have opened.
Minnesota Zoo
The temporary fencing around the Amur Tiger cubs was removed, and the cubs are free to investigate the whole habitat.
Black-Tailed Prairie Dog pups were born recently.
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I'm so glad to see that Minnesota is getting "purebred" bison. People don't realize that there aren't as many pure bison around as they think there are. Is this an eventual plan of the AZA to have a SSP on bison?
 
Ituri said:
SeaWorld San Antonio
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thanks Ituri. Would the Minnesota ones likely be coming from there or from Hawaii?

Oh it's alright, I found the answer in the thread on the previous page: orphaned seals from Hawaii.
 
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