And it needs to be noted that this diagram only depicts the indoor space for one of the two gorilla troops living in CGF. The other troop has an equivalent group "Play area" with limited visitor view and an outdoor enclosure on the second level of the building (only viewed from the private second level Education Center). The central area of linked connected indoor shift cages shown in this diagram is attached to the upper level group holding area, so animals can be moved through and use the entire complex.
I got very curious about Zebraduiker´s arguments concerning the indoor quarters for the gorillas at Bronx, but I think that this diagram pretty much confirms what snowleopard, Zooplantman and others have said.
So I am just wondering:
Are you still critical, Zebraduiker?
I got very curious about Zebraduiker´s arguments concerning the indoor quarters for the gorillas at Bronx, but I think that this diagram pretty much confirms what snowleopard, Zooplantman and others have said.
So I am just wondering:
Are you still critical, Zebraduiker?
True, but I look at the video and try to put what I see in it into the perspective of the diagram and then I read what snowleopard and others wrote. Then I feel pretty comfortable about it all.
Congo Gorilla Forest's outdoor area (two huge gorilla yards) are so impressive that they defy description. It almost seems as if there are miles upon miles of rainforest, as no visitor can truly tell where the exhibit begins or ends. For any doubters that cannot visit New York City and the Bronx Zoo's huge 265 acres then simply gaze at the many photos in the ZooChat gallery. The habitat is brilliant in every shape and form, and a marvellous achievement that has been praised for the past decade since its opening in 1999. I've visited 75 different zoos, aquariums and wildlife parks in my life, and CGF is the best exhibit I've ever seen. That is just my personal opinion, but including the colobus monkey, okapi and red river hog/mandrill exhibits then I'm not really sure that anything else is even close.
As far as the indoor quarters are concerned, industry insiders like "Zooplantman" (who used to work at the Bronx Zoo) have acknowledged that the indoor space is extremely large, and I agree that it would be nice to have exact measurements but those seem to be lacking at the moment. I was told by someone on this forum (who no longer participates due to zookeeping obligations) that the indoor quarters for the gorillas were enormous, two levels high, and full of interlocking gates and tunnels so that the manageability of the apes was as efficient as perhaps anything else ever constructed in a North American zoo.
The most telling example of the size of the entire area is this fact: check out the more than 50 photos of the gorilla area of Congo Gorilla Forest in the ZooChat gallery. There are almost 20 gorillas at the Bronx Zoo, and yet is there a single photo that shows more than 3? The exhibit is not only a magnificent recreation of an African rainforest, but HUGE!!!!
@Dan. Of course I'm still critcial, i've ssen the whole indoor complex with my own eyes, okay ? I know a lot of how to keep gorillas in captivity, some friends are working with big apes, so thats why I can tell you my personal view of the gorilla keeping at the Bronx Zoo, and it isn't the best, like the whole zoo.
Simply stunning that anyone could criticize this great exhibit!
Zebraduiker:
Please tell us more about your credentials! It "sounds" like you know what you're talking about, but without knowing anything about who you are, how do we know how seriously to take your critiques?
