I think that this exhibit is about 15 years old, and it does give the orangutans a lot of height. I much prefer Melbourne's, but that is of course still quite new and full of loads of climbing opportunities.
it really is a beautiful exhibit, and IMO it has the nicest plants in any animal exhibit at taronga.
for quite some time the vegetation around the perimiter walls was quite taller, which further enhanced the 'rainforest' look but even after its re-planting its still so attractive, and to reach the exhibit you wander underneath a shady fig with established taro, or elephant ears all around you.
the exhibit opened in 1994 i think, and i can still remember the excitement surrounding this enclosure. anyone who had seen the orangs all home would understand. melbournes new exhibit is much better than tarongas, but it must be acknowledged that taronga had its orangs in this setting for well over a decade before melbourne transferred its primates out of their grottoes.
sadly, this exhibit has never reached its full potential to me....crab-eating macaques were removed early on in the piece, for good reason but the mixing of the two species was still great to see. in the future, it would be nice to see a boardwalk rising from underneath the gigantic fig into the canopy which could look out over the exhibit, a view you can only get from the sky safari.
