What a line-up of species! Many of the exhibits at this zoo appear to be spectacular and I've read rave reviews from some ZooChatters...but on the flipside I've also heard from a couple of folks that the enclosures are splendid to the human eye but not always practical for the inhabitants.
This is one of the best mixed exhibit line-ups (lines-up?) I have ever seen.
The zoo as a whole?
I really enjoyed it - almost all the animals were very visible, the exhibits were (mostly) very well-sized (sometimes an issue when exhibits are so heavily-themed) and the theming was generally nicely done, with some good attention to detail.
The little niggling problems:
- the lawns - as discussed elsewhere, a golfing fairway does take the edge off a supposedly naturalistic exhibit
- The Rules - every zoo has rules, and indeed every zoo should have rules, but here The Rules were ever-present - the largest sign at the entrance to each indoor area related The Rules for that area, and two rather stern looking women in uniform (examples of what Hercule Poirot would call femmes formidables that we dubbed the Zoo Police) strolled the pathways enforcing The Rules without mercy. There was no food from outside to be brought in, for example, and they were opening bags to check. Just felt The Rules were a little too ever-present.
- the gorilla viewing area that was suddenly entirely unthemed - was this where the money ran out? Suddenly it's just flat concrete and metal-framed windows and it just looks like they haven't finished.
- one or two exhibits had rather limited viewing (the Common Hippos had very little non-underwater viewing, and the camel area was just bizarre!) but again, that's a factor of the layout they've chosen.
I think it can be summed up as - very nice, but I'm glad all zoos aren't like that. I think this type of zoo is much more enjoyable in moderation!
Interesting summary above. This enclosure seems to work better for me somehow than some of the others. Maybe the rocks and water make a better mix. There does seem to have been an awful lot of rockwork used across the construction of this Park.
