There are three or four rocky pits outside, that are so small and pathetic, I can understand why team tapir didn't think they were exhibits. I havent been to the inside part in over a dozen years, so cannot comment. I don't think it would work out good for any animals (even fliers), and could be a gift shop/resturant.
I remember when the ape house was in use. One of the reason the apes were moved because they were throw their feces at visitors. The outside exhibit areas were open. Inside were the cages and there were little windows to view thru as well. Much of the old zoo that was familiar to me as a child is gone. But I do remember the ape house quite well. The original zoo building still stands even tho it has been renovated thru the years. It is now home to the Tropics. And it is very cool, IMO.
I remember when the ape house was in use. One of the reason the apes were moved because they were throw their feces at visitors. The outside exhibit areas were open. Inside were the cages and there were little windows to view thru as well. Much of the old zoo that was familiar to me as a child is gone. But I do remember the ape house quite well. The original zoo building still stands even tho it has been renovated thru the years. It is now home to the Tropics. And it is very cool, IMO.
The major reason the apes were moved was to to the AZA threatening to remove accredation if the apes couldn't be put in new exhibits. The gorillas and chimps got fantastic homes, but the orangs were stuck in the "temporary" hellhole they still are in now, which is hardly an improvement over this. I remember this exhibit, though only as a toddler before it was closed.
K
klbranstetter
Africa opened in 1994... Those of us who have lived in KC all of our lives for more than 40 years remember quite well what the zoo used to look like. Honestly I did not go to the zoo for years because there was nothing to go see. I went to the zoo a couple of times after Africa opened. I hooked up with an old school friend who enjoy photography as much as I do. We go to the zoo when our schedules can match up!
You need to appreciate what we have. Do you ever visit other zoos? I would love the luxury but time and money prevent that. I want Kansas City to have a zoo that it can be proud of even if exhibits are cookie-cutter. My only complaints with the zoo are the size of some of the exhibits and distance between them but that is slowly changing!
Africa opened in 1994... Those of us who have lived in KC all of our lives for more than 40 years remember quite well what the zoo used to look like. Honestly I did not go to the zoo for years because there was nothing to go see. I went to the zoo a couple of times after Africa opened. I hooked up with an old school friend who enjoy photography as much as I do. We go to the zoo when our schedules can match up!
You need to appreciate what we have. Do you ever visit other zoos? I would love the luxury but time and money prevent that. I want Kansas City to have a zoo that it can be proud of even if exhibits are cookie-cutter. My only complaints with the zoo are the size of some of the exhibits and distance between them but that is slowly changing!
I have done some reading on the old zoo, never really was anything great. In my opinion, when we accept mediocrity, that is all we'll get. Sure, the polar bear exhibit, for example, is certainly not bad, but so much more could have been done with the money, and we just copied what has been done at half a dozen other zoos. I don't think I could truly be proud of an average zoo. That is why I love Africa so much, especially the chimp exhibit, because it goes above and beyond, and it is truly the best. I usually have to walk it 3 times on a visit to take it in.
I have been to about 15 zoos, all the major midwest ones along with National, Philly, and Honolulu, so have a decent idea of what makes a good zoo, and what doesn't. Any zoo (even my favorite, Saint Louis), has flaws that should not be accepted, and people should urge the zoo to do something about it. As much as I love Kansas City, they are not species at all, and fall right in the middle of the pack of zoos. With some great exhibits, and some horrid. They however, are on the San Diego side of things, as opposed to Woodland Park or Saint Louis, where they are just putting in new exhibits to get people through the door, not to really make a world-class zoo.
This 1960's-era Great Ape House is being demolished this week and the zoo will be able to proceed with its Predators complex with the famous building out of the picture. For better or worse, many American zoos do not always maintain historic elements within their grounds and the tendency to resurrect historical architecture is not always a priority. One perfect example of that is Point Defiance Zoo in Tacoma, as that zoo is 110 years old and yet there is hardly anything there that is older than 35 years.
Here is a view of one of the abandoned ape grottoes at Kansas City Zoo:
