Any lists of notable non-AZA zoos?

SusScrofa

SusScrofa

Well-Known Member
Most major zoos and safari parks are AZA-accredited and can easily be found on their website. But is there any database that lists non-AZA US zoos? Or does anyone have a list of notable zoos, aquariums or parks that arent accredited. Current ones I know of are:

Columbus Zoo & Aquarium (Columbus, OH - lost credentials recently)
Out of Africa Wildlife Park (Campe Verde, AZ)
Wildlife World Zoo & Safari (Litchfield Park, AZ)
Hemker Zoo (Freeport, MN)
Cohanzick Zoo (Bridgeton, NJ)
 
If you'd like a list of most US Zoos, the best thing I could offer are the lists available on this site. They aren't perfect, but most zoos have a gallery, are included in the drop-down menu in the United States sub-forum, and are pinned on the map under the resources section. Any of these three locations should give you an accurate listing of US zoos, AZA or otherwise.

Notable ones you didn't mention, however, include:
- Pittsburgh Zoo (PA)
- Metro Richmond Zoo (VA)
- Southwicks Zoo (MA)
 
Neil chace said:
If you'd like a list of most US Zoos, the best thing I could offer are the lists available on this site. They aren't perfect, but most zoos have a gallery, are included in the drop-down menu in the United States sub-forum, and are pinned on the map under the resources section. Any of these three locations should give you an accurate listing of US zoos, AZA or otherwise.

Notable ones you didn't mention, however, include:
- Pittsburgh Zoo (PA)
- Metro Richmond Zoo (VA)
- Southwicks Zoo (MA)
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How do I access the site lists just for US zoos?
 
A few more that are ZAA, the better ZAA facilities:
Jackson Zoological Park (MS)
Gulf Breeze Zoo (FL)
Virginia Safari Park
Alabama Safari Park
Mill Mountain Zoo (VA)
Brights Zoo (TN)
Austin Zoo (TX)
Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo
Zoo World (FL)
OC Zoo (CA)
Santa Ana Zoo (CA)
Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch (TX)
Bearizona (AZ)
Monterey Zoo (CA)

Not ZAA:
Wild Florida Safari Park ( Fl)
Safari Wilderness (FL ) - but crazy expensive
Iguanaland (FL)
Gatorland (FL)

Here's the ZAA link, but be aware that some of these are pretty sketchy places, such as Two Tails Ranch. Being ZAA isn't a stamp of quality, but at least it's something.
Zoological Association of America - Accredited Facilities
 
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As far as aquariums go, these are a few better ones that are not AZA:
Clearwater Marine Aquarium
Mississippi Aquarium (working towards AZA)
Maine State Aquarium
Key West Aquarium
Gulf World Marine Park (soon to be AZA)

Sketchy ownership, but larger places:
Seaquest Aquariums (10 locations in USA)
Austin Aquarium
San Antonio Aquarium
 
I've compiled a word document, that I've tinkered with for almost a decade, that is a master list of all the zoos and aquariums in the United States. Currently, as there are constant changes, I have a total of 619 zoos and 175 aquariums to add up to 794 establishments in the country. That includes many nature centers with outdoor birds-of-prey areas, although it is always a grey area as to what exactly constitutes a 'zoo'.
 
TinoPup said:
It really depends what you call notable, I guess. I wouldn't consider Cohanzick notable, for example. But there's hundreds of non-AZA zoos across the country.
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Notable in the sense that its an actual zoo and not a sanctuary, nature center, roadside attraction or glorified petting zoo.
 
snowleopard said:
I've compiled a word document, that I've tinkered with for almost a decade, that is a master list of all the zoos and aquariums in the United States. Currently, as there are constant changes, I have a total of 619 zoos and 175 aquariums to add up to 794 establishments in the country. That includes many nature centers with outdoor birds-of-prey areas, although it is always a grey area as to what exactly constitutes a 'zoo'.
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My document is a little longer than yours ;)
 
I was going to send my document to @Chlidonias, as he kindly offered to post it as a 'sticky' on ZooChat, but perhaps it would be better if @TinoPup shared her document with him. I know that she has a longer list and is perhaps not as picky as I am when it comes to deciding what constitutes a 'zoo'. ;)
 
snowleopard said:
I was going to send my document to @Chlidonias, as he kindly offered to post it as a 'sticky' on ZooChat, but perhaps it would be better if @TinoPup shared her document with him. I know that she has a longer list and is perhaps not as picky as I am when it comes to deciding what constitutes a 'zoo'. ;)
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I've been puttering around with the idea of starting a thread. I guess I'll do that after my zoo trip this week :)
 
SusScrofa said:
Notable in the sense that its an actual zoo and not a sanctuary, nature center, roadside attraction or glorified petting zoo.
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I think that I know what you mean, places that are "real" zoos, that maybe could be AZA, or were AZA, but are not now.

All the places I listed would fall under that idea. Austin Zoo is kind of a "sanctuary" , but it's more marketing than a "sanctuary" that takes in injured birds or what have you.

The ZAA is probably your best resource for zoos that are not AZA. Being as they are trying to be the "alternative to AZA" they attract institutions that want to have some sort of accreditation and association, but are not AZA. Some of their places are really sketchy, but most of the better non-AZA zoos are part of the ZAA.

The ZAA does include a fair amount of zoos that were AZA, but are not any longer for a number of reasons. So, naturally these are more "real" zoos

That's not to say there are not some pretty good zoos that are neither AZA or ZAA. Wild Florida and Gatorland come to mind.

Roadside is a whole other category. Places like Gatorama, Zootastic, Capital of Texas Zoo, etc. would fall under that category, and there are a lot of them.
 
There are hundreds of non-AZA zoos across the country which range from huge world-class zoos to tiny specialist collections to roadside zoos. There is no list of them all, beyond perhaps the lists compiled by ZooChat members snowleopard and TinoPup. What is considered "notable" depends on you own opinion, I guess.
 
I want to do a by-state breakdown on the zoos, aquariums, major sanctuaries etc that are present in the area. Ive begun my research. I don't see any threads of that sort that was done previously. Could be a good resource.
 
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