I think one of the great things about zoos is that you can find peronalities with certain animals: It reminds you they are unique living things that can process thought and not just chemicals in a test tube. Even the professionals can't deny that. Fair enough if people stick to their locals, if that's where their heart is. I too wish to travel, but to see the wild sights of the World: South Africa and Sumatra are high up there.
Well, in truth, some of them have had names, but we never used them. It just became the budgies or the guinea pigs or the goldfish.
And now I tend to keep amphibians and inverts. You can't really name inverts; and I just don't feel the need to name fire-bellied toads and tree frogs!
And I enjoy seeing wild animals as well - but opportunities time-and-money-wise are few and far between. Animal highlight of 2007 was probably humpback whales in Dominica, which was a great trip.
The average zoogoer definitely cares much more about seeing animals than exhibits, of that there is little doubt. However, the average ZooChatter cares TEN TIMES more about photos of exhibits rather than photos of animals. For proof of this just randomly click on any ZooChatter's photos, and the ones of enclosures are viewed far more often than the ones featuring animals. I've uploaded over 11,000 photos, and if I were to upload a photo of a red panda tomorrow a few people would take the time to closely examine the photo. If I uploaded a photo of the red panda's exhibit, there would be ten times the response. Red pandas are a dime a dozen but their enclosures are all unique. I gather that ZooChatters aren't like normal people.
Please note that I am not advocating that zoos completely abandon exhibiting live animals. However, I certainly think that they should present a more holistic view of ecosystems.
Regarding visitation, numerous studies have revealed that the majority of zoo visitors are interested in the zoo primarily as a social and recreational venue. This helps explain why so many visitors spend such little time looking at the actual animals.
The average zoogoer definitely cares much more about seeing animals than exhibits, of that there is little doubt. However, the average ZooChatter cares TEN TIMES more about photos of exhibits rather than photos of animals. For proof of this just randomly click on any ZooChatter's photos, and the ones of enclosures are viewed far more often than the ones featuring animals. I've uploaded over 11,000 photos, and if I were to upload a photo of a red panda tomorrow a few people would take the time to closely examine the photo. If I uploaded a photo of the red panda's exhibit, there would be ten times the response.
walking through Woodland Park Zoo IS like walking through a zoo with no animals. The landscape is great, but people FREQUENTLY complain that they cannot see any animals!
