Changes You Would Make to Your Zoo

Bronx Zoo:

1. Add Pygmy Hippos and Bongo to Congo Gorilla Forest.
2. Add Komodo Dragons to the Reptile House.
3. Move the Polar Bears to the Central Park Zoo and Replace them with either Sloth Bears or Maned Wolves and Giant Anteaters.
 
these are the changes I would make to the San Diego Zoo:

I would Demolish Elephant odyssey and Polar bear plunge and rebuild Horn and Hoof Mesa

I would Demolish the African Kopje so I could extend Goat and Sheep Canyon

I would Demolish Sun Bear Forest so I could extend Bear Canyon

I would Demolish Panda trek so I could rebuild the historic seal and sea lion pools

I would Demolish Monkey Trails, Absolutely apes, and Gorilla tropics so I could rebuild Bird and Primate Mesa

I would Demolish the Childrens Zoo so i could extend Reptile Mesa

I would change Urban Jungle back to Elephant Mesa

I would open the off exhibit Hoofstock yards (viewable from Skyfari), so I could bring back species like Moose, Red goral, Marsh deer, Cretan wild goat, Philippine brown deer, European roe deer, Vaal rhebok and many many others !!!

I would Demolish Tiger River and Ituri Forest so I could bring back Cascade Canyon and whatever else was in that spot prior to those exhibits

Now for the San Diego Wild Animal park:

I would bring back the Wgasa Bushline Monorail to travel around the Field Exhibits

I would add more species to the Asian Plains exhibit like Saiga, Javan rusa and Altai wapiti

I would add more species to the East African field exhibit

I Would change African Forest back to Asian Waterhole and add more species like Indian muntjac and European bison

I would Reopen Mountain Habitat and bring back species like Himalayan tahr and European mouflon and maybe add Spanish ibex

I would add more Animals to the South African and North African Field exhibits like Jacksons hartebeest and maybe Cape mountain zebra if I can get some

I would add a North American Field Exhibit and a South American Field Exhibit add species like Wood bison and Guanaco

I would add more hillide exhibits along the monorail route and add species to them like Central Chinese Goral and Japanese serow

I would take out the zipline and Rebuild the Australian Forest and add species like Southern cassowary and Grizzled tree kangaroo

I would Bring Bonobos to the Island exhibit, and build an Island for Mandrills and an Island for orangutans

I would Add more Aviaries and Small Ungulate Paddocks, Primate Cages, Animal Grottos to Nairobi Village
 
Birmingham - First thing I would divide it into three parts Trails of Africa (Africa Animals), Alabama Wildis (Natives), and an unnamed Australasia section.

I would destroy and replace the predator building with a Lion/Hyena/Wild Dog/Leopard Rotational exhibit where they can view the hoofstock. I would also use the available space just to the right that is just trees as expanded hoofstock space

I would add Alabama megafauna (deer cougar coyote and black bear) to Alabama Wilds. This would include the current Alligators moved there as well.

I would use the available expansion for a "high veldt" exhibit with several hoofstock on a boardwalk style exhibit. This exhibit would be where the two big ponds in the front, the front entrance, and the main parking lot are.

The primate building, alligator exhibit and train station would be removed. That space would be used to expand the Rhino yards in order to get the 3 rhinos at least an acre of space. Hopefully you could introduce a hoofstock species with them.

Animals that are displaced by destroying the old buildings will have new outdoor exhibits built where they fit geographically. Meerkats would have an exhibit near Trails of Africa, as would endangered Sand Cat and Black Footed Cat.

The final section would be in the lower left of the Zoo. First would be new outdoor Orangutan and Tiger exhibits. All the birds/reptiles in this area would moved to their respective geographic areas.
 
Although it is not my home zoo, there is a lot of things that could be changed at Wildlife World Zoo and Aquarium in Arizona. First they should update about 75% of their exhibits. They should also make some bigger such as the dingo exhibit. One more thing they could change and focus more on the animals instead of making money.
 
ungulate nerd said:
these are the changes I would make to the San Diego Zoo:
Click to expand...

...uh, why? Tiger River was infinitely more interesting than Cascade Canyon ever was; that said, I would absolutely endorse redesigning the tiger habitat.

As a Californian who sees Zalophus californianus daily, I never saw the need to keep them in zoos and/or aquariums. Just go down to the beach. In San Diego, the Children's Pool has harbor seals as well.
 
ungulate nerd said:
these are the changes I would make to the San Diego Zoo:

I would Demolish Elephant odyssey and Polar bear plunge and rebuild Horn and Hoof Mesa

I would Demolish the African Kopje so I could extend Goat and Sheep Canyon

I would Demolish Sun Bear Forest so I could extend Bear Canyon

I would Demolish Panda trek so I could rebuild the historic seal and sea lion pools

I would Demolish Monkey Trails, Absolutely apes, and Gorilla tropics so I could rebuild Bird and Primate Mesa

I would Demolish the Childrens Zoo so i could extend Reptile Mesa

I would change Urban Jungle back to Elephant Mesa

I would open the off exhibit Hoofstock yards (viewable from Skyfari), so I could bring back species like Moose, Red goral, Marsh deer, Cretan wild goat, Philippine brown deer, European roe deer, Vaal rhebok and many many others !!!

I would Demolish Tiger River and Ituri Forest so I could bring back Cascade Canyon and whatever else was in that spot prior to those exhibits

Now for the San Diego Wild Animal park:

I would bring back the Wgasa Bushline Monorail to travel around the Field Exhibits

I would add more species to the Asian Plains exhibit like Saiga, Javan rusa and Altai wapiti

I would add more species to the East African field exhibit

I Would change African Forest back to Asian Waterhole and add more species like Indian muntjac and European bison

I would Reopen Mountain Habitat and bring back species like Himalayan tahr and European mouflon and maybe add Spanish ibex

I would add more Animals to the South African and North African Field exhibits like Jacksons hartebeest and maybe Cape mountain zebra if I can get some

I would add a North American Field Exhibit and a South American Field Exhibit add species like Wood bison and Guanaco

I would add more hillide exhibits along the monorail route and add species to them like Central Chinese Goral and Japanese serow

I would take out the zipline and Rebuild the Australian Forest and add species like Southern cassowary and Grizzled tree kangaroo

I would Bring Bonobos to the Island exhibit, and build an Island for Mandrills and an Island for orangutans

I would Add more Aviaries and Small Ungulate Paddocks, Primate Cages, Animal Grottos to Nairobi Village
Click to expand...

Well, I don't know how many percent of your post is serious and how many percent you are kidding.

Anyway: While I am 100 percent agree with everything about the SD Safari Park (You forgot to transform the name back into the beloved "San Diego Wild Animal Park" don't you?), I have to insist against some of your proposals about San Diego Zoo: Polar Bear Plunge, African Kopje, Sun Bear Forest, Panda Trek, Tiger River and Ituri Forest are all good to excellent exhibits (although they could sometimes be a little more "original" = more correct in the geographical theme). So they should be kept "alive".

But I am absolutely agree about the reopening of the off exhibit hoofstock yards and specially the demolition of Elephant odyssey (in other words: "Mr Gorbatchev, tear down this... ugly enclosure...:D).
 
Toronto Zoo:

I would divide the Toronto Zoo into seven geographic regions, one representing each continent.

1) I would make the greenhouse gift shop the main gift shop and turn the main gift shop into an antarctic area with penguins and a 4-D theatre.

2) I would turn the kid's zoo into a european area which would be divided into a coastal area with seals, an arctic area with polar bears and reindeer, and a forest area with foxes, lynxes, and wild boars.

3) I would keep the australasian area as it is but possibly add more species like saltwater crocodiles, koalas, and cassowaries.

4) I would make the eurasian area focus on animals from around asia. It would include a new pavilion for rainforest species like orangutans, a grasslands area for species like rhinos, and a mountains area for species like tigers and snow leopards.

5) I would turn the americas area and tundra trek into a north american area. The canadian domain hill would be turned into a new off-exhibit breeding centre for hoofed animals like wood bison and the canadian species would move to north america. The americas pavilion would be converted into a deserts, forests, and swamps pavilion with species like otters, beavers, and alligators.

6) The african area would mostly stay the same except for the addition of a madagascan area in the pavilion and a congo forest trail with gorillas and okapis in the area occupied by the gorilla ropes course and africa restaurant.

7) I would turn the indomalaya area into a south american area. The indomalaya pavilion would become an amazon pavilion with jaguars and tapirs and the indian rhino/malayan woods/macaque area would become an andes/pampas/galapagos exhibit with anteaters, andean bears, and giant tortoises.
 
Saint Louis Zoo

1.) Remove all of the smoking areas inside the zoo, and build a sheltered spot outside either entrance instead.

2.) Turn the smoking spot near Big Cat Country into a "learning hut" like the one for cheetahs in River's Edge.

3.) Move the snow leopards into the empty exhibit in Big Cat Country, demolish their old exhibit, and expand the Amur leopards' and pumas' real estate.

4.) Re-name & re-purpose Chain of Lakes. I'm thinking something akin to National zoo's American Trail. Relocate the swans and alligator snapping turtles, keep the river otters, add in beavers, etc.

Any other changes I would make are already under way!
 
My home park is the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo. Are you reading this, Dr. Kuhar? :) Alterations are grouped by section...

Australian Adventure...
...Add a dual, large-tank aquarium building replacing the non-functional playground between the Tucker Court picnic pavilion and dingoes. Cut into the hill behind it if need be. One tank is a Great Barrier Reef tank, the other, a spacious shark tank.
...Take the doghouse out of the dingo exhibit; I realize it is shelter/protection, but it makes the species look less-impressive, like a domesticated dog.

Africa...
...replace the overflow parking area between the Vet Center and Big Creek and create a "Predators of the Serengeti" exhibit. Koepe-theme it (think Ft. Wayne Kids Zoo), and add Cape dogs, hyenas, bring the cheetahs down from PCA. Maybe relocate your lions there.
...I know it is sacrilege, but remove the historic Monkey Island, along with it's adjacent building and leopard enclosure. Expand the black rhino range (and our successful breeding program!). Bowtie it with another barn for white rhinos and/or couple it with an okapi enclosure.
...install an exhibit similar to the hornbill (?) aviary that the Indy Zoo has (the multi-species glass enclosure on the trail between their cheetahs and elephants) on the pathway to the African Plains exhibit. Give visitors something between exhibits. While we're at it, make the entrance to the African Plains exhibit more-prominent!

Northern Trek...
...Replace the arc of the sea/sea Lion, polar bear and grizzly pits with a new themed exhibit. Ideally, a new polar bear and seal exhibit with underwater viewing would be nice, but a new grizzly enclosure a la Columbus would be acceptable.
...I know the onagers are a critical species, but replace it or the camels with northern plains species like buffalo and pronghorn. Just seems like a better thematic fit.
...after you exit Wof Wilderness, how about a wolverine enclosure embedded into the exterior hill? (Across from the reindeer.) Again, think Columbus.

PCA...
...where do I begin? There is a dark side of me that likes PCA a little, but I know it was practically outdated when it opened. Proud of our primate collection, how about nuking it and replacing it with Cat and Primate Building 2.0. (Sorry, fish lovers.)
...that said, I would take the picnic area between the Treetops Cafe and employee/back entrance and create a new gorilla exhibit. I enjoy the moated openness of Cincy's Gorilla World and Taronga's gorilla exhibit. Couple it with a friendly indoor viewing area (a la Toledo) for Cleveland's long winters. My other thought was an indoor, moated greenhouse-style gorilla exhibit. Face it south for max sun, keep it lush and toasty twelve months a year.

Waterfowl Lake...
...replace that goofy rope playground with a carousel and toddler stream like Toledo's. Oh, wait! ;) But, don't wait to get that party area and restroom up there, like I saw on the extended site plan!
 
Cleveland Metroparks Zoo

1.10 level parking garage from the 25th street bridge to the tram pick up of the current lot.

2.A new main entrance at the center of the current 25th street lot.The entrance shall include the Victor Shreckengost terracotta mastodon sculptures which once adorned the old pachyderm building.A new gift shop and possibly new zoo admin/edu building could be included here.

3.Acquisition and demolition of the Wyrwas Aluminum Casting Plant making way for outdoor enclosures for Orangutan and Malayan Tapir.

4.Demolition of the parking lot opposite of the Rainforest makes way for a South American Forest which would include displaced primate species from PCA including spider monkey,howler,squirrel and saki.The exhibit would also have a new spectacled bear exhibit.

5.Implication of all of Wyldjaguar plans for the African Predators and Rhino Yards.(would also change the zoo logo to a design which alludes to our success with Black Rhino).

6.Northern Trek would be split in two North America which would include the current Wolf Wilderness as well as new exhibits for polar bears,grizzly bears,black bears, seals and hoofstock.

7.The second half of Northern Trek would include amur tiger,snowleopard,pallas cat and sloth bear(the zoos current masterplan which might be up in the air calls for an Asia Zone at Waterfowl lake this could also work for this zone in our opinion).

8.African Forest/Madagascan Forest.The African Forest would include a state of the complex for multiple groups of bachelor groups of gorilla as well as other mandrill and other african primates currently housed at PCA and additions of pygmy hippo and okapi.The Madagascar forest would include the zoos lemurs and fossa.

9.State of the art aquarium at Brookside Park (which is owned by the zoo).We would also love for the zoo to rehash the idea of a real aquarium on the Lake Erie at the site of the old port authority behind Cleveland Browns Stadium.We have always had this awesome idea for this aquarium to have an outdoor polar bear exhibit which would have a frozen Lake Erie as its back drop in the winter.

10.New Bird Building at Brookside Park

Team Tapir223
 
For Central Park Zoo I now decided that if Gus the polar bear either dies or is moved to another zoo there could be a chance they will not bring back Polar Bears so here's two choices:

1. Renovate the exhibit and make home to Arctic Wolves. I feel like that they deserve Wolves in a New York City Zoo.

2. Bring the Penguins into the Polar Bear exhibit, put The Puffins and other Seabirds into the Penguin Exhibit and put Arctic Foxes into the Puffin Exhibit.
 
Gforrestersmith said:
For Central Park Zoo I now decided that if Gus the polar bear either dies or is moved to another zoo there could be a chance they will not bring back Polar Bears so here's two choices:

1. Renovate the exhibit and make home to Arctic Wolves. I feel like that they deserve Wolves in a New York City Zoo.

2. Bring the Penguins into the Polar Bear exhibit, put The Puffins and other Seabirds into the Penguin Exhibit and put Arctic Foxes into the Puffin Exhibit.
Click to expand...

1. What about the underwater viewing? Thats why I say black bear or brown bear. I wish walrus or steller sea lion but thats not possible most likely.

2. They could not survive the summer outdoors in new york. The puffin exhibit is way to small for arctic fox.
 
uszoo said:
1. What about the underwater viewing? Thats why I say black bear or brown bear. I wish walrus or steller sea lion but thats not possible most likely.

2. They could not survive the summer outdoors in new york. The puffin exhibit is way to small for arctic fox.
Click to expand...

You know what? Maybe for number 2 they could add Arctic foxes to the Polar Bear exhibit and keep the Penguins and Puffins where they are.
 
Fossil Rim Wildlife Center:

1. Add new facilities for Hippos similar to the ones they have for Rhinos.
2. Add more Przewalskis Horses.
3. Add Capybaras and Red Pandas to the private area.
4. Add the following animals to the Drive Thru- Gaur, Pronghorn, Pe're David's Deer, Barasingha, Takin, Dromedary Camel and Bactrian Camel.
5. Add a Habitat for Green Tree Monitor to the Children's Animal Center.
 
Kansas City Zoo:

1.) Asia- Raze the small Tiger Trail section of exhibits and old ape exhibits to make room for a third continental exhibit focusing on Asia. Most (if not all) species will be retained with tigers being the main attraction. Depending on which subspecies we could obtain breeding individuals of, the Sumatran brothers might leave. Siamangs would join Orangutans in a forested enclosure. Sloth bears due to the climate will be added as well as medium to large-sized hoofstock: brow-antlered deer, muntjac, gaur, banteng, babirusa, takin, goral, and markhor being possible additions; snow or clouded leopards; a large aviary (which the zoo lacks) will feature a variety of species. It will be similar to AsiaQuest at the Columbus Zoo and will take up the space previously mentioned and some of the forested area around Australia.

2.) Africa- The flamingos would be added to much of the water surrounding the enclosure. The painted dogs would be moved to a new kopje enclosure adjacent to the lions and meerkats and their exhibit would be replaced with fossas and lemur island would be built in the nearby body of water. The terrible sightlines in the exhibits would be concealed and more naturalistic barriers would take their place. The Grant's zebras would be replaced with the more endangered Hartman Mountain zebras and Okapi would be added near the gorilla and bongo enclosures. The aforementioned Congolese forest exhibit would receive Colobus monkeys and mandrills and a trail built through the elephant exhibit would reach this section, thus eliminating the wobbly bridge. The elephant exhibit would be retrofitted and expanded to around 5-6 acres and would now be able to hold a breeding herd.
 
Jaguarundi said:
Kansas City Zoo:

1.) Asia- Raze the small Tiger Trail section of exhibits and old ape exhibits to make room for a third continental exhibit focusing on Asia. Most (if not all) species will be retained with tigers being the main attraction. Depending on which subspecies we could obtain breeding individuals of, the Sumatran brothers might leave. Siamangs would join Orangutans in a forested enclosure. Sloth bears due to the climate will be added as well as medium to large-sized hoofstock: brow-antlered deer, muntjac, gaur, banteng, babirusa, takin, goral, and markhor being possible additions; snow or clouded leopards; a large aviary (which the zoo lacks) will feature a variety of species. It will be similar to AsiaQuest at the Columbus Zoo and will take up the space previously mentioned and some of the forested area around Australia.



2.) Africa- The flamingos would be added to much of the water surrounding the enclosure. The painted dogs would be moved to a new kopje enclosure adjacent to the lions and meerkats and their exhibit would be replaced with fossas and lemur island would be built in the nearby body of water. The terrible sightlines in the exhibits would be concealed and more naturalistic barriers would take their place. The Grant's zebras would be replaced with the more endangered Hartman Mountain zebras and Okapi would be added near the gorilla and bongo enclosures. The aforementioned Congolese forest exhibit would receive Colobus monkeys and mandrills and a trail built through the elephant exhibit would reach this section, thus eliminating the wobbly bridge. The elephant exhibit would be retrofitted and expanded to around 5-6 acres and would now be able to hold a breeding herd.
Click to expand...

Excellent ideas for a already very solid zoo !

Team Tapir223
 
Milwaukee County Zoo:
-Build an exhibit behind/next to giraffe building for red river hogs. Maybe built an outdoor meerkat exhibit in that area if there is left over space.

-New elephant exhibit in place of Australia building .

-New Australia building in a forested area (the zoo has A LOT of it)

-Expand hippo exhibit into current red river hog and elephant exhibits. Include underwater viewing.

-Bear dens need more naturalistic look and green digging areas.

-Completely renovate Small Mammal house from floor to ceiling and make exhibit larger and get air conditioning.

-Renovate colobus monkey, siamang, and orangutan exhibits. Add outdoor exhibits for colobus monkeys and Diana monkeys.
 
I'm surprised that no one used this page in a year!

Anyway, here's some more changes I'd do to some American zoos and aquariums.

Smithsonian National Zoo:
1. Replace the zoo's herd of Asian elephants with African elephants and giraffes. Then build a new large exhibit called "African Giants". The exhibit would feature the following animals- African elephants, Grevys zebras, Rothschild giraffes, blue wildebeest, scimitar horned oryx, Dama gazelles, impalas, ostriches, marabou storks and Kori bustards.

2. Replace the Great Ape house into a new, expanded and up to date orangutan facility. This is so the National Zoo could get better chances of breeding more Orangutans in the future.

3. As the zebras and antelopes move from "Cheetah Conservation Station" to "African Giants"; the current zebra habitat would be a new home for the zoo's Przewalski horses while the current oryx and gazelle habitat would be a new home for okapis and duikers.

4. The giant anteaters would move in with the maned wolves at 'Cheetah Conservation Station" and their current habitat would become one for bush dogs.

5. The building that was home to the former invertebrates house would become a breeding center for Indian Gharials and/or Komodo Dragons.

6. As the Przewalski horses move to "Cheetah Conservation Station", their current habitat would become a new pool for African penguins.

Woodland Park Zoo:

1. Add okapis to the former elephant habitat.

Alaska Zoo:

1. Make some of the habitats a lot more realistic.

2. Add the following exotics to the zoo- American Bison, Amur Leopard, Chinchilla, Cougar, Dhole, Fallow Deer, Guanaco, Japanese Macaque, Mountain Tapir, Pe're David's Deer, Persian Onager, Przewalski Horse, Red Panda and Striped Hyena.

National Aquarium in Baltimore:

1. Add collared anteaters and agoutis to the rainforest.

2. Move the Dolphins to a sanctuary and replace them with California sea lions.

What do you think?
 
I definitely couldn't ever see a switch to African elephant, especially since the exhibit is so new. The zoo has housed African elephants but decided to stick with elephants and is centering around a long term commitment to the species. This is why the originally got rid of the giraffes and rhino. I do agree though about bringing in giraffe.

I think after the bird house renovation i would like to see some new cat exhibits. They have such successful breeding programs for their lions and tigers and i think its about time they got a new space, especially the tigers. You would think with the zoo's popular Asian exhibits and almost total Asian theme that they would have a new space by now.
 
NATIONAL ZOO:

I think it is important for the national zoo to keep asian elephants because most zoos in the USA have african elephants, and asian elephants need all the help they can get.

The national zoo has announced they want to bring back the animals they got rid of to make room for elephants (but put them in a different part of the zoo), but out of those animals, they want to have hippos back the most. They are unaware if that will happen.

I think that the great ape area needs a revamp, especially the indoor area, not the outdoor exhibits. The O-Line is great.

They should have the tiger exhibit and cheetah conservation station switch places, so tigers are in the asian area at the front of the zoo, and start a better africa section where big cat hill is. They can bring back hippos, rhinos, and giraffes there. If there isn't enough room, they can probably also take over the farm barn area since its kind of boring, and exotic animals are more appealing.

Last, they could make the anteaters and maned wolves share a exhibit, and it would be a brand new exhibit closer to the spectacled bears, to fit with a south american theme, since amazonia is right there also.
 
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