Very nice photo! I've been searching for a good full picture of this exhibit since the orangutan moved there, as it was quite refurbished since their last residents moved out. Also, what did you think about the zoo?
@Velas Thank you! I spent
great day at Sao Paulo zoo, watching the highlights Black Lion Tamarin, Blond Capuchin, Buffy tufted-ear marmoset, Spix's Macaw etc.
The zoo is very big, but well manageable. I had a very pleasant time there, but I had the feeling that Sao Paulo zoo is one of Grand World Zoos, which is good, but didn't make the effort to be great. Amazing tropical landscape, scenic lake, wild primates at the zoo grounds, strong conservation messages.
Tapir/Capibara exhibit is brilliant, but they need to think a bit for the Megafauna in general. They could build one of the best Savanna's in the world at those zoo grounds! The new Safari, for example, felt quite raw and the older Lion exhibits looked much better done. The Amphibian and Birds of Pray collection is also very strong.
@twilighter Good to hear that you had a pleasant time at São Paulo! Its been really cool to hear that you liked my country's zoos, even though their quality isn't that high when compared to other ones. Hoping that you come back in the future to visit the ones you missed!
About the zoo, I have quite some mixed feelings, and you actually share some of my opinions. They have all the tools on their hands to make it one of the best ones in Latin America (like they tend to promote), and even become an world-class one, but since it and Simba Safari got privatized, they hardly come out of their comfort zone and preffer to do cheap solutions instead of actually making good changes for their animals. They strong point is the native collection, but their exotic megafauna is in dire need of changes.
The former African elephant exhibit is now holding Blackbucks, instead of becoming an extra area for their non-breeding rhino pair, their African savannah went from an incredible and large antelope collection into a scarce population of aging individuals, the cheetah exhibit became a home for Crowned cranes and the list goes on... And Simba Safari is the most disapointing part of all things. They reopened before getting the buildings finished and didn't even bother to import more animals, just picked some individuals from the zoo, buyed some others from farms and called it a day. I'm really hoping that the zoo changes their mind quickly and do another masterplan, because it is a shame to see such a giant from the past turning into a bland institution.
@Velas I would definitely come back, because there's still a lot to explore in your incredible country
Your comments about the zoo and the Safari make complete sense and I don't understand why they didn't make some extra efforts, since the zoo is quite popular and has good income, I believe.
I was expecting more diverse Antelope collection too. The zoo huge Savanna had one Waterbuck and one Grevy's Zebra on my visit.
@twilighter Good to see! Who knows, maybe you end up finding me if you come to my local zoo ! And indeed, there's a lot more to see, specially in the form of birds, reptiles and mammals
They do have a good income, since their tickets are quite expensive when compared to other zoos (even though there are some that have higher prices). Unfortunately, the zoo's new owners simply don't want to spend a lot of it.
Their savannah is indeed quite empty, and most probably will stay that way. There used to bee three zebras, a pair of waterbuck and a dromedary until recently, but they moved the two elderly mares to the safari, as well as the dromedary, and the other waterbuck apparently died of old age. You can see what their hoofstock collection used to look like here, on this thread made by @Enzo: Biggest historical hoofstock collections in zoos - ZooChat. Again, I'm hoping for them to get more animals for the zoo, even if it is just more Grévy's zebras (because they're the only ones in Brazil), but it sadly seems that it won't be the case.
@Velas Your local zoo will be a mandatory destination on my next visit It would be great to meet you one day !
I know that Sao Paulo had great hoofed collection and I can feel that the zoo has enormous potential. Hopefully will see more positive things in the future
