@SwampDonkey Best project the zoo has had in quite awhile, definitely worth the wait. Didn't get to see any Orangutans using it unfortunately, but it looks amazing .
@ajmcwhipsnade I believe the gaur were closer to the Indian rhino habitat which is down the trail, I may be mistaken but I believe this new habitat is a newly developed area.
@animalman0341 I remember it being a smallish overgrown enclosure for Gaur. I’m really pleased the Orangs have an outside now, that was probably the only disappointment from our visit
@SwampDonkey I'd say a strong case could be made it's the best orangutan habitat in North America, however unfortunately that isn't a very high bar to pass. This exhibit isn't perfect, however, and has a lot of space it underutilizes by a lack of climbing features throughout the exhibit (other than the O-Line stands, which are always a nice touch). Much of the exhibit was also in full sun, not exactly an ideal scenario for great apes. If only some North American zoos would learn some lessons from Europe or Australasia in terms of how to best exhibit orangutans...
@Neil chace Will the trees grow larger? I can't tell what kind of trees they are, but if they are the kind that will get big enough to hold some weight then in 5-10 years this exhibit will have nice shade and climbing.
@SwampDonkey That's certainly fair (and something I've observed with a lot of rainforest buildings), but unfortunately I am not a tree expert and don't have an answer to that question. The big area I'm talking about though is the area without any trees on the far left of this photo. Surely there would be more effective uses of space for an animal that should be almost completely arboreal.
