Busch Gardens Africa (Tampa Bay) October 2008

Jody the Black Rhino in a relatively ugly enclosure with bare sand and a small mud wallow. There is also a very shallow pond and a normal large pond. For some reason the large pond is blocked off, which makes no sense because Black Rhinos swim often in warm weather.

Its that the old elephant yard you described?

I don't think so. This use to be a Dromedary Camel yard. The elephant yard is directly across the path from the rhino yard and is quite decent. I am not sure if it was an elephant yard before it housed the camels.

It is the old elephant yard, it was built in 1986 when the Nairobi area was created.

Yes your right, this exhibit does look pretty old. I think it is sort of ugly and Jody (the rhino who lives in the exhibit) most of the time stands in the very back of the enclosure almost out of sight by the door all day. She only comes out during the Keeper talks when she gets fed.

As a kid, this yard was full of elephants and calves...I remember hosing down an elephant calf at a keeper talk. That and the monorail are the only two memories I have of visiting the park as a child.

really, they should have african eles