I think it ould have been better here if they would have just left the lions out of the plans and made this whole cat area for the jaguar, they'd have so much space and room.
You all said the RSCC would never give their clouded leopard more climbing logs and they did This exhibit has only just opened hasn't it? Give it a bit more time to grow/have enrichment devices added.
BTW, I agree that is pretty small though.
Is it not true that lions spend 23 hours a day sleeping/resting! 1 hour feeding. Maybe if a strong enrichment program is used. A larger enclosure is not required by the lions. Just the public perception that they would want a larger space.
You all said the RSCC would never give their clouded leopard more climbing logs and they did This exhibit has only just opened hasn't it? Give it a bit more time to grow/have enrichment devices added.
BTW, I agree that is pretty small though.
Yeah, I think it is possibly for these two cat exhibits to receive more foliage as time goes on. Exhibits like the Cat canyon and Bear Canyon enclosures have slowly been evolving over the last years. Logs and plants and naturalistic climbing structures have been added to many of the exhibits over the years.
Sorry, guys... but I will continue to irritate you with my constant mentioning of the rules in Sweden: lions cannot be held in an outdoor enclosure less big than 1000 square meters. IF I did my math right, this one is about one fifth of that. Or maybe one third...
I don´t like that... I simply don´t.
I have a hard time beleiving these great cats will live a good life in such a small enclosure as this one, whatever the enrichment efforts.
It is interesting to read about legislation in different countries, and how in Sweden a new exhibit about the size of the lion enclosure at Elephant Odyssey would be outlawed. I'm still in shock that a brand new set of habitats has so completely underwhelmed everyone, and even those that actually like the $45 million worth of habitats admit that some of the enclosures are disappointing and they are at times downright ugly. What happened in San Diego? Even with foliage growing in over the years, and extra climbing branches added to the exhibits (why not add that stuff now?) the enclosure for the lions will always be FAR too small. Also, the horse and donkey paddocks will always be crap.
It is interesting to read about legislation in different countries, and how in Sweden a new exhibit about the size of the lion enclosure at Elephant Odyssey would be outlawed. I'm still in shock that a brand new set of habitats has so completely underwhelmed everyone, and even those that actually like the $45 million worth of habitats admit that some of the enclosures are disappointing and they are at times downright ugly. What happened in San Diego? Even with foliage growing in over the years, and extra climbing branches added to the exhibits (why not add that stuff now?) the enclosure for the lions will always be FAR too small. Also, the horse and donkey paddocks will always be crap.
Well I agree with everyone that the lion exhibit is too small, I do however think it will ok looks wise in due time. SD certainly rushed this as they weren't willing to wait for plants to grow in more and or invest more in foliage.
I do actually like the exhibit as a whole, and wouldn't call any of it downright ugly.
I also think you are making the mistake of thinking about less than 1% of zoo-goers when you say everyone. That less than 1% is people like us, but the vast majority of people who go to zoos don't think or care about much of what we do. I think EO is a hit with that crowd, which is ultimately the target audience. I will say that it should have been a blockbuster, and it is not that imo.
And just like with monkey trails, this exhibit will look better in time.
