A review of french zoos by a spanish zookeeper

Corby93

Corby93

Well-Known Member
10+ year member
I - Zoo de Bordeaux-Pessac

The last 6 months I've been living in French and in the guild in Spain it is said that "every small french zoo is better than the biggest spanish zoo" and that in France "there is more zoological park culture than in Spain", but, it is this true? As in France, zoos are like butterflies, they are everywhere, I had the opportunity to visit all kind of zoos (big and smalls, from cities and rurals, generalist and specialized in taxa...), I'd like to check if this is really true (I'm going to add as much photos as could be possible in media gallery).

All the reviews are going to try to be the most neutral possibles, and I'm going to make them from the point of view of a freak zookeeper (animal care, spaces, collection...) and a commercial visitor (ease of viewing animals, services, activities...) not, for example, the possibility of see rare species.

First zoo was Zoo de Bordeaux-Pessac, to 20-30 minutes in car of Bordeaux. It's a small-medium zoo, of 5 ha but very well organized. the collection is of over 100 species, well selected for the commercial public (jaguar, kordofan giraffe, lion...) but also with a few species interesting for the freak (european moose for example, I know that in other parts of Europe is typical, but in Spain there isn't any zoo with the species or Sudan cheetah).

The majority of enclosures are not specially sexy (the african savannah for zebras, ostrichs... for example is the typical grassland), but they are good for the animals. A few of them are a little outdated, but the general impression is that the park is improving them little by little.

One enclosure I specially liked is the jaguar enclosure. The design allows the animal to climb, they have a lot of space and it includes a large pond that allows the animal to swim and dive.

The park counts with three inmersive areas (goats, rainbow loris and lemurs). The first one is the typical inmersive area for goats, big for the animals, the second, the same, a great aviary with indoors area that allows the loris to retreat of the public, but the lemurs enclsoure I found it a little bit interesting. The enclosure, dedicated to red ruffed lemur and ring-tailed lemur is the typical great aviary, but the area for the public is a labyrinth, limited by wood, that gives the lemurs enough privacy and prevents the public from accesing areas dedicated to animals.

And as is becoming fashionable in France, the zoos also has a "Night Expérience" with two lodges, one with vision to the lions enclosure and other to the jaguars enclosure.

As I visited the park in winter, a day with few public, the park didn't organized any kind of education activity, so I can't say the quality of them.

In conclusion, is a zoo that is not a must to see, but if you are in Bordeaux or in a near area, is interesting for spend 1 or 2 hours of walk, and if you are a spanish tourist making a french zoo route and you go by car, is as good place as any other to make a stop and stretch your legs.
 
II - Aquarium Biarritz

Most of the times I travel to France from Spain by car, I usually take the Bordeaux motorway, but this time, I entered the country from the coast of the beautiful Pyrénées-Atlantiques, as I had to visit the Biarritz Aquarium. Despite the cold and rainy January day (this part will be important for later), the landscape is beautiful, the city of Biarritz is very pretty, and the roads leading from the Basque Country are very picturesque.

The aquarium itself is located on the Biarritz coastal cliff, with direct views of the Atlantic, near a sandy cove (it's a shame the cold and wind didn't make for an inviting swim; being swept to the bottom of the sea by the current would be a very silly way to ruin a visit to an aquarium). For those who arrive by car, there isn't a free parking, there is near a pay parking (Like the french say 'c'est ne pas grave', but I think is important to know for don't lose time trying to look for a free parking).

But first, a little bit of history (Yes, I'm a full zoo freak, and I consider is important to know the history of the places, when I'll finish all the reviews, I'll explain why). The aquarium was opened in 1933 as a "Musée de la Mer" in the rock "l'atalaye". The idea was developed in 1922 by the local authorities and eleven years later, the museum opened the doors to the public with 36 aquariums showing fishes and crustaceans from gulf of Gascony and a seal called "Oscar". Appart of the fishes, the museum included collections showing the local history (f. example the hunt of the whales), the oceanografic expeditions and the marine etnographic. The first 10 years, the museum approached over 50.000 visitors to the wonderfuls of the seas, and in 1936, two laboratories were built. But, what happened in the Second World War? Like other collections, the laboratories and other enclosures where distroyed in the invasion and the rock l'Atalaye was excavated by the germans for build fortifications and in 1942, the museum closed the doors (the public was very busy with the war to spend a day of visit to a Museum). But, as all bad things, war finished and the museum was planned one more time in 1945 as a new great building dedicated to study the sea and awaken a passion for the sea. In 1952 the aquarium reopened and the new aquariums were created beside new laboratories and a new seal pond, and the last decades the aquarium has continued with a great evolution.

But come back to 2025 and the review.

Like the majority of sea aquariums, is divided in two areas, one dedicated to species from the atlantic area (focused in the local Bay of Biscay) and other in tropical species from Indo-Pacific.

Let's begin with the atlantic area. To level of collection there is not so much I can say, I'm a bird keeper not a fish keeper so I can't speak about animal wellfare, but I found all the aquariums big and beautiful for the species, and the most important, the special focus in local species. That a zoo or an aquarium makes a focus in their regional or local collection and put it in value is always a great new, and the aquarium makes the effort to show a great variety of taxa of fishes and crustaceans from the Bay of Biscay. The next area is dedicated to the museum, did you remember I like history?, the aquarium hasn't forget his history and shows the public an exhibition about oceanography, the history of the museum and a "cabinet de curiosités". A great small museum for complement the atlantic collection. Chapeau!

Next area is the sea-turtles pond, home of green and loggerhead sea turtles. For the "chasing species" visitors, this pond has a intersting species, the common dolphinfish or Mahi-mahi.

And let's arrive to the last area of the atlantic section, the pond of the atlantic grey seals, for see the animation. Did you remember what I said about the rain? Well, I've worked in environmental education for lots of years and one think I've learnt is that not important how much person is in your animation, if they are all the visitors or just one person, and if it's a sunny day or a rainy day, it's important you have respect for the person who has paid to visit the park and do your work, and do a training and an animation in a cold rainy windy sea day, next to the sea in a slippery floor for a few visitors, the zookeeper deserves all my respect.

Now, let's dive in the tropical area. Appart of the typical aquariums (all of them very beautiful, with a big collection of fishes and living corals), the aquarium has a very interesting of jellyfishes (Everytim I see an aquarium with more species of jellyfish than the typical Aurelias, I cry), the typical great tank for sharks and stingrays, with a great surprise, a magnific giant hammerhead shark and a small section for small species of rare crustaceans and fishes and the typical replica of a mangrove (also very nice).

The resume, a 100% recommendated aquarium both for the species hunted, the simple zoo lover or the aquarium/sea freak, all aquariums and species in perfect conditions and the history of the place and the museum very intersting.

I'd like to upload photos of the aquarium but I didn't see any section in the media area, any section where I can upload?
 
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III - Grand Aquarium de Tourainne

From the cold waters from bay of Biscay to other waters, this time to the waters of the Loire River and the Grand Aquarium de Touraine, an aquarium placed to 26 minutes of Tours and 52 minutes of Beauval by car.

The first time I "discovered" this aquarium, the first thing I did was try to investigate. In zoochat there wasn't practically no information or photos and when I search in the web appart that the aquarium was divided in 3 areas (european freshwater, tropical freshwater and seas), like... practically the majority of 'clasical' aquariums and SEA Lifes? and that according to the web is the "Largest Freshwater Aquarium in France and Europe" (God, why the aquariums do that? I've visit like 3-5 aquariums that are "the biggest aquarium in Europe"). The aquarium is part of the Looping Group that is owner, between others of the Grand Aquarium de Saint-Malo, the Planète Sauvage and the Zoo de la Flèche.
So, no information about species or enclosures, no photos, let's discover in person (more funny).

The first area is dedicated to Loire River and their importance as a biodiversity area. (the Loire and the "Val de Loire" are inscribed as World Patrimony by the Unesco). The aquariums and enclosures shows the different stretches of the Loire river and the different species that inhabit each one, the importance of the Loire River as a fishing area and the effect of the pollution. In an era that childrens believe that eggs and milk come from the supermarket (at least this is the situation in Spain), I think that is important expositions like that and that zoos and aquariums show the importance of the nature as a sustainable source of resources, and the importance of caring it, in this case keep clean the rivers both for keep intact the biodiversity and have a susteinable source of resources (and how to exploit it in a soustainable way). The collection of this section includes fishes and crustaceans both native and invasive species and the majority of species are the typical of european freshwater aquariums (carps, minnows, trouts, barbels...) but also a few species interesting like white breams (rare in France and not as frequent in freshwater aquariums like others cyprinids), atlantic salmon, turkish crayfish, rainbow shiner and rock bass (this 3 last invasive species in Loire River). All the section is very nice and very well themed. The tanks for the sturgeons I found them very beautiful (I'm a simply fan of the sturgeons since I was a student in ETSI Montes and see them in the piscifactory of the university) and the most impresive enclosure
was the replica of a river port, showing a group of wels catfishes. I think they are the biggest one I've seen in my life.

The next section is the one dedicated to tropical freshwaters, showing the typical collection of Malawi Lakes, South East Asia, Amazonas and other south american rivers. Nothing special for this area (the typical one) but very nice and themed. The collection is the typical Malawi and central Africa Lakes cichlids, south america cichlids, freshwater stingrays, pangasius... For reptiles and amphibians lovers, this area counts with a group of iberian ribbed newts (relatively common, but like the sturgeons, I'm a fan of this wonderful and simpatic newt, and as is relatively frequent in the wild where I live in Spain, is a good way to remember my home)

The last area is dedicated to tropical sea species. Like the tropical freshwater, is a typical section dedicated to the sea, but the variety of aquariums and species is biggest (for the species hunter there are a few rare species) and like the other sections, is well themed and designed both for the animals and visitors.

For finish, I found this a really nice aquarium, very recommended for spend a morning or an afternoon, highly recommended for a Central France tour or for those zoo-freaks or aquariums-freaks interested in local species.
 
The Biarritz aquarium seems like a bit of an outlier, an old building that somehow has kept its original function until today and still kind of does a good job at it. I guess it is somewhat of a similar situation to the oceanografic museum in Monaco.
 
IV - ZOO DE DOMAINE DE PESCHERAY

First time I told a spanish friend (who has visited the zoo first) that I was going to visit this zoo the answer was "you are completely mad, is not a bad a zoo, but it's going to take you a long time to get there, it's in the middle of nowhere", and yeah, he was 100% right. Arrive to this zoo is a little long, but the zoo you find is a really nice place.

Oppened in 1974, the zoo is placed in the "domaine de Pescheray" (Domaine is the french term to talk about the lands, farm areas, gardens... of a castle, manor or a feudal area) and is near a very beautiful castle built in the XV century, that includes one of the biggest dovecotes of france with over 2.000 niches for pigeons. Actually, the zoo colaborates with ESAT and Cités Caritas to employ over 70 disabled workers (in part as a wish of the former owner, Madame Chaverebière de Sal, that transfered all the assets to Secours Catholique with the condition of developing social works)

Now, let's come back to the visit. The day was a relatively cold, rainy day of February, but not bad for make a visit to a zoo, and first thing you see is a wonderful wooden landscape and the visitors facilites (shop, restrooms, buildinf of "zookeeper for one day"), all of a wood and very well integrated of the landscape. Those buildings reminded me the typical wooden buildings found in national parks in the american series of television and I simply loved them. The majority of viewpoints, fences, buildings... all over the park where of wood and very well integrated with the nature.

The collection you are going to find is very interesting. The park shows a really nice collection of french and european species, mixed with species from other french territories (Mayotte, French Guiana) and other species like meerkats or wallabys. All over the park you find education panels about the work of the zoos, specially of the AFDPZ (the French association of zoos).

First area you found is "La Ferme du Monde", a very nice domestic animals area, found in the middle of the forest. The natural vegetation, the wooden fences and the wooden buildings make a very beautiful landscape (I've seen lots of domestic animals area in Spain, exactly of the same size and were so much worst, just for use ugly construction fences or metal buildings). Near this area there is a beautiful lake for waterfowls and frised pelicans.

The next area is all the sections dedicated to european species. For arrive, there is a beatiful walk in the middle of the forest, that the park has made a photo exhibition, showing different species of european wildlife.

First enclosures you find for european species are an aviary for european genets (small for the animals but not specially horrible) and european marmots (a very nice enclosure, perfect in size, with a small hill, perfect for the marmots to spot the landscape).

Next enclosure is the one dedicated to european brown bears, not specially sexy, but with natural sustrate and areas for climb and with stones and natural logs for the bears. Like the domestic areas, is exactly the same. Exhibitions in Spain, of approximately the same size, that could be, not bad for the animals, but like the floor is 100% concrete and the image is artificial creates an awful landscape.

Near the bears there is a big enclosure for handicaped european griffon vultures, with lots of rocks, perfect for this mountain scavengers and the enclosures for deers, mouflons and european ibexs. These one are all the same. A simple hunting net, very big enclosure and natural landscape. Simple design, good result.

Next enclosure is an area for demoiselle cranes and vulturine guineafowls. These last I was very surprised, because I've worked with them and in Spain, you've to keep them in birdcages completely protected from wind and inclement weather, because in practice one bad rainy or cloudy day, they become ill and die, but I found the 2 birds in perfect conditions.

The next enclosures are dedicated to the 4 "fashion" rewilding species in Europe (the aurochs, the european wisent, the tarpan and the Przewalski's horse) with the inevitably information about the human evolution. To difference with the other ungulates exhibition, these enclosures were in open landscapes.

Following the walk there are three walkthroug enclosures, one dedicated to european fallow deer, other to Bennet's wallabys (with an adyacent no inmersive enclosure for emus) and other to axis deers (and other no inmersive enclosures for european roe deers). The three enclosures where big, limited with small security fences and with a very beautiful landscape. The idea of not include emus (due to the possibility of attack unpolites visitors or a gentle visitor just because they have a bad day) and roe deers (I supose that the reason is the more shy behaviour or if they are animals from recovery centers like in Spain, they are potencially aggresive for the public) shows that in this zoo there are good thinking heads (I've seen enough small zoos and "sanctuaries" that the inmersive enclosures are full of potencially dangerous species or not adecuated species)

Leaving the inmersive enclosures, there is a small restaurant (l'escale gourmande) and the handicap white european storks, porcupines and meerkats enclosures (in work that day, but also big and nice for the animals)

Next enclosures was dedicated to european lynxes, racoons and ural owls, followed by a big enclosures for european water buffalos (domestic species), european wildcat (an aviary a little bit small) and european wolf. This last was a very big enclosure, in the middle of the forest, not specially complex, but with rock dens for the wolfs.

In this area there are also some aviarys (all of them not sexy but not bad for the birds) for barn owls, snowy owls, european eagle owl and long-leggedd buzzard. This last species I found it very interesting, and after investigate a little bit, for my surprise is relatively frecuent in french zoos (according to ztl in 5 zoos) and private breeders. How a north african species could be so frecuent in french zoos and in Spain (that we have two cities in North Africa and that the species is relatively frequent as visitor in Iberian Peninsula, and that there are lots of recovery centers reciving migratory species that have damaged with eolic turbins in the South) there is only one individual in spanish zoos, is because in the past, when France had more territories in North Africa, the species was imported in a relatively good numbers.

Leaving behind the raptors aviaries there is a beautiful prairie for whooper swan and european elk and a very big enclosure for raccoon dogs.

Next area there is a small sections of aviaries for pheasants and a enclosure for Reeve's muntjack and asian small-clawed otter. The aviaries are not the biggest, but are of a fine design of wood, with natural vegetation (perfect for the birds, allowing them to hide of the public or the female from the male when this one became aggresive in reproduction stage) and with wooden refugies.

Then you arrive to the south american area (the objetive of the "species hunters"). This area includes islands for marmosets and squirrel monkeys, a big aviary with a wooden shelter for ocelots, some aviaries for macaws and amazons parrots, a big enclosure for the crab-eating racconns (with a big pond and lots of areas to climb), the big prairie for tapirs, capybaras and waterfowls and an aviary for the tayras (big, with lots of structures for the animals to allow them to climb).

The last enclosure was a big area for ring-tailed and Mayotte's lemur.

And what about the education? Appart of the interpretation about the work of zoos, I didn't found any talk or education activity, I must say that was a bad day, I was practically alone in the zoo, and as I found in the web, the park organises every good day activities for the public.

The resume: The park is not a "must to visit place", but not bad if you are going to spend some time in central france or if you are going to visit the relatively near "Zoo de la Flèche". The landscape is wonderful, the collection interesting, the castle beautiful and the impresion is that the park is making better and new enclosures, so is probably that in the future we will see new developments. Some of the aviaries and enclosures for small carnivores like the genets are a little bit outdated, but the impresion you have is that are in process of renovating. This park is more for a relaxation day than for a "I must see all the species" frenetic visit.
 
V - Spaycific Zoo

All right, Domaine de Pescheray took me just a morning. It's lunch time, nothing else to do in the day, which options we have? rest for a work day tomorrow or go to visit an unknow near zoo with no information of how big is, how many time is necesary to visit...?

Whoever does not want to take risks, should stay at home.

Here we go, next objective, the Spaycific Zoo, in the locality of Spay, near Le Mans.

This zoo opened in 1989 as a "jardin des oiseaux", but with time, the parc presents today a great variety of species, both commercial small species for the typical public and rare species for the species hunter. Looking for the web, you find that the focus of the park is show this small rarities and that every year, they make the effort to show more species like that (The impression I have is that the direction of the park has a good team of naturalists trying to look for interesting species)

As soon as I enter, first impression I had was the park had a walk a little bit disrupted for the visitor (never trust in first impressions my friends), but after a complete walk, I found that this "disrupted" had a meaning. The labyrinthine routes through the park, makes that the visitor has to spend more time visiting the park, and that instead of spend just 20 or 30 minutes to visit a certain area, has to spend 1 hour, very well thought.

Compared to other zoos, the park doesn´t play with sexy XXL enclosures, plain of decoration or architecture. Instead, the exhibitions allow the visitor enjoy the animals from other points of view that you haven't the opportunity in other zoos. For example, in the vivarium, a tunnel allows to the children enjoy of the snakes above them.

The park has got the typical simply enclosures for terrestral medium mammals like capybaras, small felids (red lynx, serval, jaguaroundi), dingos... (all of them of good size for the animals and wonderful for enjoy them, I don't remember any bad enclosure for the animals), small enclosures for squirrels (all of them perfect for the small species they had), typical bird cages and a small nice vivarium with enclosure for invertebrates, reptiles, birds and a nocturnal area). One enclosure I specially liked was that dedicated to kinkaju and armadillos, and not because was sexy or beautiful (it was a very simple enclosure), but because it showed that it's not necessary spend lots of money to keep fine an animal. In the past, I had to think a good way to make a good enclosure for kinkajus, and I didn't know how to do it without do a expensive design (not the best idea for a nocturnal animal, beautiful, but not specially interesting for the public). The design of Spaycific zoo is very simple, but 100% appropiate. A small wooden indoor area in the public area, wooden supports, net enclosure, covered for give them a nocturnal appearence, a natural sustrate of leafs and soil, and lot of structures for climb. Chapeau!

The great point of this park for the public are the inmersive enclosures. My zoo and falconry master one time told me "if you are going to make a walkthrough enclosure, you have to make it inmersive, but not intrusive. Always give the animal the possibility to retrieve from the annoy public or simply if they don't want to see your ugly face".

And that's what all the enclosures of Spaycific Zoo does. All the enclosures allow the visitors to enter with the animals, but all of them allow the animals to have enough save space. Appart of the typical walk-through enclosures one for lemurs and other for australian marsupials (parma and Bennett's wallabys and red kangaroos), the park has lots of different inmersive aviaries.

The two big ones are those dedicated to african and south american species. Both of them are size XXL, first one 2.500 m2 and 12 metres tall and second one of 1.600 m2 and in the two aviaries you find a nice collection of birds and mammals. In the african aviary, you find sacred and northern bald ibis, egyptian goose, white-necked cormorants, white pelicans, Abdim's storks, grey crowned cranes and western sitatungas (a nice combination of species and all of them strong enough to avoid predation between them) and two adjacent enclosures for marabus (this year the park had chicks) and northern ground hornbill and in the south american aviary a nice collection of parrots, cariamas, scarlet ibis and Azara's agouti.

The other inmersive aviaries (one dedicated to egyptian fruit bats and others dedicated to small birds like turacos, doves, bishops...) are small structures (all of the same design tunnels in form of bow, made of metal, plain of vegetation and space for small birds) , that if you show to a "architecture fan"... well I think that is only necessary see zoochat forum to see how enclosures like that are criticed for not be "architectonic wonderfuls", but for me, that I've work for small zoos, that you haven't got always lots and lots of resources and money, enclosures like that are more inspiring for the public, showing how the wit can do beautiful enclosures, wonderful for the animals. For private birds owners or small zoos, this enclosures are wonderful to take as example for create beautiful small spaces (but designed and built with great taste)

To level of education, the park does interesting activities, and one point I found of respect, the person I saw doing the talk about lemurs, after investigate a little bit, I found that was the manager of the park (I've seen enough numbers of owners or managers of small zoos that, as we say in Spain, they don't get down in the mud)

This time I'm not going to add media (except for some of the animals of the park), because I've seen that other zoochater has add updated photos (including the new asian aviary that was in construction when I visited the park)

In resume: Interesting park to visit for hunter species or lovers of birds or private bird breeders that want to take ideas for their own designs. For turists that visit Le Man or near areas, is also an interesting place to spend a good time. It's not an stressful park that is 100% complementary and recommended for a visit to the area, and is also near the big zoo de la Flèche, and is probably a park that I'm going to repeat visit, despite not being a sexy park and I've really interest in see the future developments of this park (just before my visit, the park opened a new asian walk-through aviary and addded to the collection different bird species, including the rare Cissa hypoleuca concolor)
 
VI - Jardin Floral de Orleans

And now it's time to visit one of the spirit city of France, the beautiful Orleans, city of Jeanne d'Arc (or Joan of Arc). How many times we think in Paris as the mandatory city to visit in France but how many we think in Orleans? And after visit the two cities, I found this last more beautiful than the capital, and with a beautiful butterfly greenhouse, how can a zoo freak can resist to a place like that?

To the south of the city, in 1964 was founded the "parc floral de la Source", in a 35 ha landscape of a castle, like a place dedicated to the horticulture. Actually, the exhibitions of the park show that horticulture and the importance in Orleans history as economic engine. The botanic collection of all the park shows floriculture, arboriculture, gardening... For the botanic lovers, the park is simply wonderful. I visited in early spring and wasn't full of flowers, I don't want to imagine the vision of the garden in full floration in May or June with the roserie or the collection of lilies and orchids in full floration.

But Corby, this is a review for zoos, is interesting to know about little flowers, but where are the animals? We want animals!!

Ok, ok, let's come back to the zoological enclosures and collection, because the park, appart of the botanical collection, has a small but interesting collection of animals. We are going to go from less to more.

For the children, the park has a very nice domestic animals area with different french races of chickens, rabbits, sheeps, goats... and for my surprise, some Javan green peafowls. Like the domestic area of Zoo de Pescheray, the design was simple, but designed with great taste (green landscapes, wooden beautiful refugees and fences...), an idilic place for make the children contact with the domestic farm animals (nothing to do with ugly enclosures dedicated to domestic animals from lots of spanish zoos or "sanctuaries")

Appart of this domestic animals area, in the tropical area of the park, a beautiful bamboo forest, there are some bird cages for small psittacines like lovebirds, small australian parakeets, cockatiels... and other big one (and old pigeon house), redesigned also for small psittacines, but also for australian boobook and white-faced scops-owl. These birds participates in encounters with birds of prey for the children in summer. The design of this enclosures I found a little bit strange in shape, but good for the animals, with refugees for the cold and wind. Like the flowers area, as the visit was made in days of cold nights, trees and vegetation wasn't fully growth, but the impression is that in hot days, the vegetation makes a so beautiful landscape both for birds and visitors.

And at last, the butterfly greenhouse. This greenhouse is not specially big, but all design has been made with lot of taste. Full of tropical vegetation and domestic plants like citrics, suitable for caterpillars. I've seen some "butterfly houses" that they are called butterfly house for don't call them with other names in that, with lucky you see one or two butterflies, and I love butterfly enclosures like that where you have the sensation of be fully sorrounded by them. The park cooperates with local tropical butterflies farms in South America, Africa and South-East Asia. These farms are great example of sustainables explotations of the rainforest, helping the local communities and tropical species.

For complete the work with the butterflies, the park has added lots of nutricious plants for indigenous french species all over the garden. It's wonderful see how parks like that cooperate in conservation both indigenous and tropical species.

For finish. This park is a very beautiful landscape, and for those who want to make, for example, a Paris-Beauval route, is 100% recommendable. A middle stop to rest, a beautiful city and a wonderful collection of butterflies.
 
VII - Reserve Zoologique de la Haute-Touche

To less of one hour of Beauval, in the locality of Obterre, there is a small forest reserve (just 436 ha of forest and prairies) called la Réserve Zoologique de la Haute-Touche.

Oppened in 1980, the park is part of the Museum National d's histoire naturelle de Paris, and was designed as a complementary wildlife breeding center for the Paris Zoo and Menagerie du Jardin des Plantes, focused mainly in cervids. Following this philosophy, the park has created the CERFS (Centre d'Élevage et de Recherche pour la Fauna Sauvage), the first laboratory dedicated to the biotechnology applicated to the breeding of endangered species. Between other projects, the park is developing a unic in vitro fertizilization breeding methodology, in that an endangered deer species embrion is implanted in a not endangered female deer. Other breeding projects (appart of the EEPs) developed by the park are the european pond turtle and the little bustard (this last not on show)

As soon as we arrive, the first area the visitor is going to find is the "safari" area. The first part is an european area in which the visitor can see some of the most common french ungulates (alpine ibex, european red deer, european wild boar and fallow deer) and a group of european grey wolfs. All the enclosures are big, the animals have lot of space, the forested area gives a wonderful vision of the animals, but the mistake is that you can only see this area when you enter in the park and you can't see it by foot. C'est ne pas grave, because all species are common, but I think could be better if the visitor could see this area by walk and with calm. In all the area you have big interpretation pannels talking about how european species are recovering, their ecological paper (for example, the wild boars as seed dispersers) and the different conservation problems that french wildlife has in XXI century.

Next safari area shows different african and asian species like white-tailed gnou, Taiwan sika deers,Przewalski's horses... all of them very interesting species, but luckily, this area can be seen by a pedestrian walk.

After the safari area, you arrive to the parking of the park and the visitor area. The park gives to the visitor a very nice option of visit and it's that you can rent bikes to go for a walk in the forest. There are some areas that are restricted, and there are lots of bikes parking all over the park. Very nice!

In the visitor area you can find the gift shop, the restaurant (is the only place where you can find thinks like coffee or coke in all the park) and some small enclosures for marmosets, lovebirds and a nursery for european pond turtles. This last enclosure was very nice for me, because when I began as a teenager in a recovery wildlife center, european ponds turtles was one of the species I began, and in Comunidad de Madrid, is a very endangered species. Every year I see more and more european (and spanish) zoos making efforts to breed and release this wonderful species and making the public know them. Near this area, you can see also some ponds for the adults. All the ponds are really big and can be seen by wooden viewpoints with lot of information about this and other european wetlands species. As was a spring sunny day, the ponds all over the park were full of european green frogs in display. It's always nice seeing how zoos can be sanctuaries for local species and that visitors can see them developing their natural behaviour.

The next area is dedicated to lemurs. The park has a really nice collection (ring-tailed, crowned, black, red-bellied and black and white ruffed), in a enclosure of interesting design. The indoor area is simple, a little bit ugly building, made of concrate, with mess enclosures, but connected to very beautiful islands, by an underground small tunnel, all of them with natural vegetation and areas for climb. Everyday, the park makes educational talks, talking about the lemurs, their situation in the wild... and gives the opportunity to the public to look the animals active in the outdoor area. A very interesting investigation project that is been developing by the park in Mayotte, is the investigation of the genetic of Mayotte's brown lemur. The project is focused in discovering if, after 1000 years of isolation from malagasy populations, the lemurs from Mayotte are a different species from the mainland population.

In the next area you can see the enclosures for wallabys and chinese water deer. This enclosure is wonderful for the animals, but quite a challenge for the nature shooters or fan of the species. Is a very big enclosure, full of nature prairie wetlands vegetation, with lots of space to hide or rest, very adecuated to this shy, solitary animal. I visited this park first in Autumn 2024 and one second in Spring 2025, and just in this one I could spot them (and that was because I spend some time and tried to look in different times). The vision of these cute ears, rising through the tall grass, it was worth it, and at the end of the day, that's the challenge of see or shoot wild animals. If you want see them of a easy way, go to visit a Museum, not?

From this point, you begin to visit the "prairie enclosures" for ungulates. All of them are big enclosure, in natural landscapes. I love more this enclosures than the "arquitectonical ones" of city zoos, that's because I've the feeling of be more connected to the wildlife. It's not the same see, for a example, an european elk, in the middle of the city, surrounded by fake stone, noise, buildings... than in a nature enclosure, with a natural lake, listening the same european birds (or nearly similar) that are in their native forests, seen lots of butterflies and insects (that's a thing I love of France, there are butterflies all over the place, how can be possible that in a relatively cold-temperate country are more butterflies than in a Mediterranean country!, damn pesticides)

In this area you can see the enclosures for european elks (the one that I described before) and european waterfowls, Japanese sika deers, white-lipped peccaries, asian prairies for axis, blackbucks and gaurs, walk-through areas for wallabies and domestic species, the XXXL enclosure for indian muntjacks (like the enclosure for chinese water deers, wonderful for the animals but all a challenge for the shooter, I couldn't spot them) and enclosures for arruis, mediterranean mouflons and Nubian ibexs. These last had a simple but very beautiful enclosure, with mounds of stones to climb and develop their natural behaviour.

The next area is a circle circuit, where there are enclosures for ungulates and carnivores. The enclosures for the carnivores (dholes, lynxes, Sumatran tigers and Mackenzies wolfes) are very simple, tall mess iron limit (a little bit ugly), sorrounding big nature areas for the animals. Appart of be a little bit difficult to see the animals, they weren't specially bad for the animals. In this area (in the high season) you have a food truck and a really nice pic-nic area to rest.

Near the carnivores enclosures (in the middle ring) you have also the enclosures for hog deers, red kangaroos and capybaras and in the outer ring (this doesn't sound a little bit like the star wars's galaxy map?) the big enclosures for big ungulates.

This area is home of very interesting species like Vietnamese sika deer, sambars, Dybowskis's deers, Eld's deers, Taiwan sika deers, addaxs, scimitar-horned oryx... (in resume, a natural sanctuary for endangered asian and african ungulates) and is a mixture of prairies and forest XXL enclosures, all of them with viewpoints where you can enjoy the animals. These enclosures are very beautiful and with lot of space for all the animals, and is wonderful the vision of the herds grazing in natural landscapes, but for shooters, please, take a very good len for the camera. Takes good shoots of rare species is a little bit difficult. The area I personally enjoyed was the enclosures dedicated to Chinese species.

In this area, you found a circled enclosure for Reeve's muntjack, red panda and japanese crane (this last is one of my fetish species) that is sorrounded by a prairie for Père David's deer and a XXL prairie for marjors and takins. This last, appart of big, had lots of rocks area to climb, wonderful for the markjors, and a great opportunity to nature shooters to get good shoots of these magnificent goats in a nature landscape. In this area, the park also develops daily talks about red pandas. Appart of talk about the species and the work of the Red Panda Network (the ONG focused in this small carnivore in Nepal), the park shows how the daily trainings are made for the red pandas and how they do for make the daily revision and the veterinary training (If more parks do trainings like, how easy could be the work for the zookeeper and how less streasful for the animal).

Following the walk of the circle, in the end, you arrive to the african enclosures section. The first enclosure is a big prairie for red lechwe and beisa orix with an adjacent enclosure for african spurred tortoise, followed by a big wetland for african species (marabous, pelicans, grey crowned cranes, ibis and sitatungas). The vision in this enclosure is very beautiful. Wetlands birds, lots of space, full of tall grass, the vision of gulls and other local species...

The other enclosures of this section are two big prairies for elands, waterbucks, ostriches, zebras and watussis, typical enclosures for red river hogs, striped hyenas, griffon vultures, southern cheetahs, porcupines and meerkats, two islands for Guinea baboons (Yes! at least a zoo not showing hybrids baboons, thank you, sorry but I'm really tired of the populations of hybrid baboons of spanish zoos) and enclosures for cranes and european tortoises.

And that's the Reserve de la Haute-Touche. If you are a species hunter, but you don't have pacience or a very good len, or a arquitectonical lover, I don't recommend you this park. It's a park 100% recommended for really nature lovers, a relaxation place, a place to contact with the nature and to rest of the city. As is not far from Beauval, is for those who visit the big park, is very well recommended (the contrast of a fully busy zoo and after a relaxed zoo is wonderful). Next ones will be their cousins from the capital.
 
VIII - Paris Zoological Park

From the peaceful nature landscapes of Haute-Touche, it's time to go to the frenzy of the capital.

Ready to leave at 5 a.m., an XXL sausage, fromage and bacon sandwich and cherry coke for the lunch (as you can see, everything very healthy) and cameras ready for the capital, nothign can't stop the travel!!

But yeah, the parisians and their morning traffic jams are the first thing that capital can offer (for a "bird country" like me, this situation can be stressfull, but, how a visit to the capital can be completed without enjoy their famous traffic jam?)

At last, with a delay of one hour, courtesy of the paris traffic, we arrive to the Paris Zoological Park in the beautiful Bois de Vicennes.

The first steps of the zoo were in 1931, in that a Colonial Exhibition was created as a temporary zoo in the bois de Vicennes. The exposition was very popular for the parisiens and the Paris's City Hall and Museum National d'Histoire Naturelle decided to create a permanent zoo. Opened in 1934 as a complement to the Menagerie du Jardin des Plantes, the original park was designed under the concept of the famous zoo figure Carl Hagenbeck of show animals in no barriers enclosures with concrete rocks as sceneray. And how can we show this idea? creating a 65 m artificial rock in the middle of the park. For the times, the enclosures were not bad and the collection of the park really interesting, including giant pandas, sea elephants, hapalemurs, aye ayes, koupreys... To the opening of the park, a group of kordofan giraffes arrived, an our current captive population of this endangered species is descendant of this first group. But with time, began to be outdated and not XXI century enclosures. The public of the zoo began to descend and the enclosures needed great work of renovation.

The decision was made, the zoo needed a real upgrade and in 2008, the zoo closed for a real renovation. For 6 years, the works began and a new zoo was opened for the capital. The XXL rock (in the past house of zookeepers and lions) stayed in the middle of the zoo, as a symbol of the park.

The new park was designed as a place to enjoy 6 biozones: Patagonia, Sahel-Soudan, Guyanas, Madagascar, Europe and Cameroon (This last one was not developed, instead there is a beautiful natural garden with plays areas, focused in native wildlife). The park was thinked not as a place to see animals like a collection of stamps, instead as a place to get in contact to the living spaces where animals live, but is this real?

My first mistake for visit this park, was that I had really high standars. Other less sexy or smalls parks I enjoyed more because I didn't expect anything of them and my problem with Paris Zoo was that everyone talked me really well of this park, that I expected more. I enjoyed the park, but it wasn't the same like when I visited other big zoos.

The Paris Zoo is 100% an architectonical zoo. For the fans of the architecture, they are going to enjoy it. My impresions was that the enclosures of the park were designed more for the enjoy of the architectures of the park, but as all of them were good for the animals, nothing to say for this part, it's a simple matter of taste, I prefer the more natural integrated enclosures, than the architectonical modern enclosures. The only enclosure I didn't like was the walk-through inmersive aviary for african birds, but because was plain of concrete and was a little bit ugly, the enclosure was perfect for the animals that were inside.

As a "bad point", there are some areas in the Sahel area of the park, that you walk and you don't see any animals.

But not everything is bad! As a really good point, the sensations of the park, specially in the areas dedicated to Patagonia and Guyana, is that you are in these areas. I really enjoyed the sensation of walk and have this feeling, and see how the designers have get this goal, and specially for the Guyana area, that you are in a relatively cold city, and you see lots of vegetation that gives the impresion that you are in a tropical landscape. You don't have this sensation, for example, in the tropical rainforest area of Bioparc Valencia, that has a better weather for vegetation like that.

The Patagonia area is the representation of rocky coasts (for sea lions and Humbold'ts penguins), andean forests (for pudus and chilean pumas) and plains and steppes (for rheas, maras, guanacos and vicugnas).

The African area is home of emblematic species like giraffes and lions (the must see for commercial visitors) but also has threatened or rare species like otocyons, addaxs or roan antelopes. In the area that sorrounds the big rock, you can find a very nice exhibition showing the history of the zoos and lots of photos about the past and the evolution of the park (very interesting for the freak and educational for the public, making understand the evolution of the zoos).

The european area has three areas, the vivarium, the big vultures aviary and the coniferous forest, with natural enclosures for iberian wolfes, european lynxs and wolverines.

The Madagascar area shows two of the ecosystems of the island, the tropical rainforests, with lots of small species in the greenhouse and outdoor enclosures for different species of lemures, including the rare great bamboo lemur, and fossas and the tropical dry forests, with an area of sparse vegetation, showing radiated tortoises and crowned sifakas.

The last area is the Guayana area, also featuring in the greenhouse, and with outdoor nature enclosures for species like tapirs, jaguars, bush dogs, monkeys...

For me, the park has two really good points: the european vivarium and the greenhouse.

First one, I found it a little bit disappointing. This vivarium is found inside the big rock, and shows a very interesting collection of european reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates. As a fan of european small species, I was excited to see a real good collection (in the past I went crazy a friend of me making questions about the enclosures) but when I go inside, my lucky decided that in the day I visited the park, some of the aquariums and terrariums were under renovation and some species were not on show... As we say in Spain "mi gozo en un pozo" (My joy in a well). Forgeting my bad luck, the vivarium is a really nice enclosure. It's always good see big zoos (specially capital zoos) putting into value the national endangered species. The zoo also developes breeding programs for european endangered species. These delicated species are not on show, an this point, that could be a little bit dissapointing for the species-hunter, I found responsable. It's more important get good breeding results than show a species that is going to be appreciated for 1 between how many? 10.000 visitors? 100.000? and for educational levels you can get the same results with a less delicated species. In the vivarium you can see also a very original exhibition dedicated to the blob (a kind of myxomycete) and I think is the only one in a zoo (but not 100% sure)

The greenhouse is also a very good enclosure. In this one, you can find enclosures for guyana and madagascar species. The greenhouse has a nice collection of birds like red ibis, curassows, Madagascar crested ibis... that can be found all over the place and a collection of aquariums, terrariums and other enclosures for fishes, manatees, reptiles, amphibians, giant anteaters, sloths, fruit bats, lemurs and small monkeys. The only problem I found in this area was that the walks doesn't allow crowds and if you visit a zoo in a spring sunny day, full of school visitors (like the day I decided to visit the zoo), you can find a little bit difficult to take photos of the animals. I've listen sometimes that french children are more polite and civilized than spanish (or mediterranean countries) one, but after work 15 years in environmental education and after visit this day paris zoo, I must say NO. Children are children and they climb, scream and want to discover animals in all the countries, an in this part of the park I had a little revelation. I was trying to take good photos of a crocodile tegu, and a small girl was blocking my tries. At first I began to get angry. How a caterpillar can dare to blockeate my tries to get a shoot of a rare species!, but after a little bit seeing her, I found that this little one, was really interested in the lizard. I don't know if she is an animal lover, if she is going to be zookeeper, biology or veterinary in the future, but was I saw was a child that was as interested in the animal I loved. We say all the time that the three functions of the zoos are conservation, investigation and education, but if you see reviews or threads in forums like that, you always see comments of children annoying, and I don't talk about real vandalism, I talk about children blocking our visions of the animals or making us fail taking photos, I include myself in this category. How can we talk about the importance of preserv the future of the wildlife and make children understand the importance of the nature, when we complain when children do exactly this one? Sorry for the long reflexion, but I found this one as a epiphany, and if not take a good photo of the lizard made a small children became a reptile lover, god bless this fail.

For finish the resume, the Paris Zoo is highly recommended, but is not a zoo that you expect more expansions. The impression of the zoo is that is finished and that not more big works are going to be made (maybe I'm wrong and in the future lots of new enclosures and species will arrive). It's a 100% must to see zoo (specially for architecture lovers) and a very nice place. The collection is really good and the exhibitions nice both for the animals and the visitors and if you combine the day with a visit to the Bois de Vicennes, you will have a very good day in the french capital.
 
Thank you, Corby, for this review of the Paris Zoological Park.
Honestly, the Paris Zoo, along with its counterpart at the Jardin des Plantes, is one of my favorite zoos. Perhaps because I like the architectural enclosures of urban zoos, so they're filled with history. (That said, I really like the more "naturalistic" approach of zoos like La Haute-Touche.)
One of the highlights of my visit was the primate aviaries. Although at first glance they seem horribly artificial, it's clear that they are perfectly suited to their inhabitants. They offer a climbing volume that few zoos can match, and they have turned them into some of the most active primates I've seen.
 
IX - Menagerie du Jardin des Plantes

Before continue with the reviews, I must say thank you for the good reports I've been reading all these days. If I haven't commented them is for not break the continuity of the reviews and thank you also for the opinions of people who don't share my likes. I enjoy a lot share opinions, comments... with people who don't think like me and I found it very useful! For those who want to share their comments about zoos (overall if they are different to mine) Don't be shy!! It is much more interesting, fruitful and fun share different opinions (if they are with polite) than if we all think the same.

Now, from the relatively tranquility of Bois de Vicennes, we go to the gardens of the Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle and the Menagerie de Jardin des Plantes, the last of the zoos part of the Museum (the institution also has an Aquarium, the marinarium de Concarneau, not visited by me for the moment).

If a visit to Haute-Touche is a visit to the nature and a visit to Paris Zoo is a vision of modern architecture, the visit to the Menagerie is a visit to the history. Opened in 1794 (making it one of the oldest zoological gardens in the world), the visit to the menagerie, the museums and the jardin des plantes is a travel to a most romantic age and an era of scientific expeditions and travels searching rare or new species to new exotic lands. The sculptures of Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, Buffon and Cuvier shows this past and remmind us the origin of the taxonomic descriptions of the species.

In the past, the park was the typical zoological garden, with lions, giraffes and othe big animals in small, horrible enclosures (as curiosity, the first giraffe that arrived to France was present in this park in 1827), but like other institutions, the evolution of other modern french zoos, has made the menagerie evolved and renovated, and focused more in small and medium species than in big species.

I enjoyed this visit more than the Paris Zoo (even though this one is better) for different reasons, mainly because my expections of the modern cousin were so much bigger (one more time folks, don't expect anything).

The sensation when you visit the Menagerie is that you travel to the other centuries and you are in the times of Buffon, and that the spirit of the ilustrated mans is everywhere. The old enclosures are practically intact, and some of the enclosures are updated, but the sensation is that the park is in evolution and that wants to give better spaces and enclosures for the animals.

For the ungulates, appart of awful points of vision for the visitors (and specially for the species hunter who wants to take a good photo), the enclosures weren't specially bad. This same enclosures for big cats could be simply awful, but when your life is just eat and your brain and main necessities are these, the enclosures were not SO BAD (yeah, they could be bigger enclosures, but after work with zebras, lechwes... I've seen the necessities of the majority of the ungulates are very simple)

Other words are the enclosures for primates and carnivores. First one, what I've seen in old photos is that is better no comment, but during my visit, the park was creating a big space for orangutans, so let's give the benefit of the doubt and see the new space (according to map web they expect to finish in autumn). The indoor enclosures were small, but with lot of height to climb and lot of structures, making a not bad indoor area for the orangutans and mangabeys.

The carnivores area had exactly the same problem. Small enclosures for animals that need a lot of space... The good point is that the enclosures had not big surface area, but is compensated by lots of structures to climb and that the selection of species (clouded leopard, chinese leopard, caracals and yellow-thorated marten) was good (or not so bad) for this kind of enclosures.

The enclosures for other mammals were not so bad. Binturong, red pandas, sousliks, porcupines, pademelons... all of them in not XXL enclosures, but not bad for them.

Now the part of the aviaries and bird enclosures. The most attractive enclosure is "le Grand volière", a big walk-through enclosure were you can see different wetlands species (the most interesting were the white-winged ducks), and around the park you have small aviaries for birds of prey, macaws, keas (all the of the same old design, a relatively tall aviaries with a limit of iron bars, not bad for the birds, but of relatively bad vision for take photos) and the typical french "pheasanerie", and I want to take a special point for this kind of areas because is the one that I've had more discussions.

I've listen (and read) a lot of times that pheasaneries are not addecuated for modern zoos because they "simple chicken coops" and they are old designed (majority of these commentaries, after a little bit of investigation come from people who haven't work with birds in their lifes). Well, I must say that there is a part that I agree. Show a collection of pheasants, like a collection of stamps, in small aviaries of 2x3 m, all of mess, with practically no vegetation, is not addecuated for the animals and not educational for the public (and they don't appreciate it, let's be clear, for a person who can hardly differentiate a sparrow of a giraffe, is not going to difference the 20-30 different species of pheasants), but after have work with over 300 species of birds, from ratites to honeycreepers, I must say that the most "casse-oeufs" are the pigeons and the pheasants, and that monitorize properly a pair in an aviary (not say in an XXL enclosure) is all a headache for the zookeeper. The aggresive behaviour of the male during the courtship, the monitor of the nest and the chicks... this kind of activities (really important to get good results for endangered species like Palawan, Edwards or fire backed pheasants) are so much easy in relatively small aviaries (WELL DESIGNED AND ADDECUATED SIZE not poultries of 2x3 m) than in XXL aviaries. One more time, the function of the zoos is make investigation and get good results in breeding of rare species and of lots of endangered pheasants there is not practically information about them in the wild.

And yes, the pheasantry of the jardin des plantes have small but good aviaries for pheasants, other small birds species and tamarins.

The aviary, I most enjoyed was the houbara aviary, and not for the rarity (that also I enjoyed), but by its design. This aviary is a small representation of north africa and middle East asia deserts, and is made of mess and glass. The surface of the enclosure was big enough to allow the houbaras to walk, plenty of vegetation to allow them to hide from the public and the floor was of small sand. I found it very beautiful and nice.

And now, the last point, the reptiles and amphibian collection. I lied when I said that I didn't had high standars for the Menagerie, and I expected a big herp collection (specially of amphibians) and I found less species that I expected. The park is renovating the big reptiles build, and the collection is showed in the relatively small vivarium. I must say that the collection is good, not so much big, but very interesting, and that all the terrariums were good for the animals.

And after visit the three zoos fo the Museum, the natural, the architectonical and the historic, I must say that is really interesting how the three are complementary and are really different for the be three parks of the same institution.

Of the three parks, the one that I most liked is the Haute-Touche Zoo. I'm a nature spirit and if I have the option, I prefer to connect with the nature. To level of enclosures, Haute-Touche is the winner, but to level of recreation, I must say that the Paris has done very well the homework. To level of collection, I think that Menagerie and Zoo are in a draw (both of them have collections of the same size of species and have rarities for the species hunter, although for a target audience, the pressence of giraffes or lions is an undoubted attraction, not forget, zoos are business, and if we want conservation and investigation programms, the parks sould be profitables). And of the three, which one has a change to repeat the visit? I must say the winner is the Menagerie. Haute-Touche is found in a relatively not good place (except if you visit also Beauval) and Paris Zoo as I said is finished and I don't expect big news (obviously if I visited Paris with another zoo fan, I repeat visit to the zoo, it's a very good zoo), but of the three the Menagerie has more sensation of be in evolution and I have great interest to see how this zoo is going to be developed in the future.
 
Reading the latest reviews, I've been reminded of past visits and shared and contrasting points.

I visited the Reserve Zoologique de la Haute-Touche a few weeks ago and was pleasantly surprised. Overall, I found it magnificent. An example that you don't need to invest millions of euros to achieve beautiful facilities that offer a great quality of life for the animals. And the collection is excellent. A visit I will always recommend.

In contrast, the Paris Zoo. I visited it a few years ago and was quite disappointed. I found it to be a zoo without personality and far from the level of other French zoos like Beauval or Doue. Perhaps it was like I did with Corby: I went there with high expectations, and they weren't met. Is it a good zoo? Yes, it is, but far from the best. In my opinion, of course.

Regarding the Menagerie, I remember its visit exactly as Corby says: a step back in time. It has a lot of charm. However, and from my lack of knowledge, I don't know if this type of facility can provide a sufficiently good quality of life for the animals, and from the general public's point of view, I wouldn't find it strange if this place didn't enjoy their sympathy...

Once again, thank you for putting this thread together. I'll keep an eye on it, as it's very interesting.
 
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Thank you, Corby, for this eagerly awaited review.
I've already mentioned it above, but the Menagerie at the Jardin des Plantes is one of my favorite zoos. Why: you said it yourself, it's a journey into the past, through the history of zoos.
I visit the menagerie every year or two and I constantly see the progress made.

Regarding the carnivore house and the primate house, while there's room for criticism regarding the size of the enclosures, it's clear they're much better than before. Five to ten years ago, snow leopards and jaguars were still housed in the carnivore house, and currently, the Chinese leopards will no longer be on display long-term (the last remaining individual is very old, and the park doesn't want to move it, preferring to offer it a retirement at the Jardin des Plantes for the rest of its life). Also, in the primate house, I remember a time not so long ago when I used to observe the lion-tailed macaques in that building.

Overall, the enclosures are good, even very good, and I think the lesson we could learn from the Menagerie is: "space isn't everything when it comes to enclosure design."

Now, I'm really looking forward to reading your next zoo review.
 
Tamandua56 said:
Thank you, Corby, for this eagerly awaited review.
I've already mentioned it above, but the Menagerie at the Jardin des Plantes is one of my favorite zoos. Why: you said it yourself, it's a journey into the past, through the history of zoos.
I visit the menagerie every year or two and I constantly see the progress made.

Regarding the carnivore house and the primate house, while there's room for criticism regarding the size of the enclosures, it's clear they're much better than before. Five to ten years ago, snow leopards and jaguars were still housed in the carnivore house, and currently, the Chinese leopards will no longer be on display long-term (the last remaining individual is very old, and the park doesn't want to move it, preferring to offer it a retirement at the Jardin des Plantes for the rest of its life). Also, in the primate house, I remember a time not so long ago when I used to observe the lion-tailed macaques in that building.

Overall, the enclosures are good, even very good, and I think the lesson we could learn from the Menagerie is: "space isn't everything when it comes to enclosure design."

Now, I'm really looking forward to reading your next zoo review.
Click to expand...
I’ve only been to Jardin des Plantes twice, but it’s one of my favourite zoos
 
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