I ranked it after personal preference. Important for me is that the zoo keeps many and rare species, educates the people about species conservation and how the zoo keeps the animals (innovative exhibits, breeding station for rare species..)
Leipzig is just fake rock and many events, Berlin has great animal herds, rare species and interesting buildings. The enclosures aren't bad for the animals and much better than most people (mostly Peta and Co) say, they aren't just extremly "natural looking". No fake rock and jeeps in moats but for that durable materials. That means green metal fences instead of fake bars and brick buildings instead of fake-rock bunker. Not everyone likes the style but I do because it mustn't be renovated all five years and it's much cheaper. The money they save with it can be used for the animals.
Leipzig is just fake rock and many events, Berlin has great animal herds, rare species and interesting buildings. The enclosures aren't bad for the animals and much better than most people (mostly Peta and Co) say, they aren't just extremly "natural looking". No fake rock and jeeps in moats but for that durable materials. That means green metal fences instead of fake bars and brick buildings instead of fake-rock bunker. Not everyone likes the style but I do because it mustn't be renovated all five years and it's much cheaper. The money they save with it can be used for the animals.
Thank you so much for that explanation. I am guessing that Berlin has more animal species and Leipzig has more world class exhibits. Leipzig has some of my favorite exhibits; Gondwanaland, Pongoland, and Afrika. For Berlin, what exhibits would you say are the best?
The hoofstock enclosures in the Tierpark are very good, also the Pheasantry and the "Schlangenfarm" (Snake farm).
The best exhibits in the zoo are the hippohouse, the Aquarium, the nocturnal house and not to forget the bird aviaries and the bird houses. Not the best, but one of the most interesting buildings in the zoo-world are the rhino-house and the antelope-house.
Both carnivore buildings in the zoo and the tierpark (Raubtierhaus (Zoo) and Alfred-Brehm-Haus (Tierpark)) are great complexes they are still one of the biggest zoo-buildings in the world and very impressive but not the best of the best of it's kind.
Oh I see, I forgot to mention Stuttgart in my list.