Are common animals are boring ?

Z

Zebraduiker

Well-Known Member
This is a special question to all international members of zoochat, because I can answer this question for a lot of german zoofriends, of course not for all, but for many.

I know a lot of zoofriends in germany, which are don't like to see some animal species, because they are now to common in zoos. Some examples are merkats, coatis, small clawed otters,ring tailed lemures. In the past 10 to 15 years, these species became very popular in german zoos, a few zoos has start to breed them sucessfully and send the offspring to other zoos They are easy to keep and they are very popular to the visitors, so where is the problem, that a lot of zoos are keeping them now ? These are animals like all others and there is no reason, not to keep them. But they are now not anymore rare to seen in zoos, so they are to boring for some so called zoofriends. Hey, every zoo is keeping pygmy goats, camels or donkeys, and I like all these animals also, altough they are"just" domestic animals. No animal is boring or not interesting, because they are kept in to many zoos. Of course I like to see also animals, which are not being kept that often in zoos, I visit often zoos, with the last survivors of one species, so my main raeson to visit Brownsville was to see the jentink duikers and the Hunter Hartebeest, but like ALL animals, and I can do great watchings with common species also.

What would be happen, if more sumatran rhinos would come to the zoos, if they would start breeding unbelivable sucessful and every zoo would keep them now and they would become a common species also ?

Hey, we have more tigers , zebras and elephants in german zoos than merkats or small clawed otters, but nobody is saying, these are to boring animals....I know a guy in a german zooforum with a nickname, which means translated"versus merkats"That's disgusting, that means, these guy is not really interested in animals, because he makes diffrences between"good"animals(rare species)and"bad"animals(common species)

What is your opinion ?
 
I totally agree with your comment "I like ALL animals" me too. I Think in my coutry it´s the opposite that you comment, people like a lot more see "common" animals (big mammals mainly) that no others uncommon (at least in spanish zoos) that lemurs species or all kind of birds,or, at Bioparc Valencia, people generally, prefer to see elephants before aardvark (they are the only ones in Spain) i can to be in a mistake, but it´s my perception.
 
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I like all animals as well, and don't get bored with any of them. I can see how people that go to zoos very frequently might become bored with some animals that are commonly found in zoos. But I don't think semi-regular visitors would become bored with any animal, because they don't see them as often.
 
I don't mean zoovistors in general, I talk about zoofans, zoofriends, so I mean US, and I know to many zooenthusiasts which are not interrested in"common"or domestic animals.
 
Being honest it's not that I think domesticated animals are "boring"- more along the lines of if I have limited time to spend at a zoo, that I'd go for the animals/exhibits that the zoo is well-reputed for. I've been a member and volunteered at the Toronto Zoo for several years- and because of that I'm more comfortable spending more time in the Kid's Zoo with their pygmy goats and alpacas (which I think are absolutely adorable- and the complete opposite of boring!). Would I do the same at another zoo? Most likely not- if you're on a limited budget like me and are probably only going to visit that zoo once in your lifetime- you have to prioritize :)
 
I find domestic animals boring. If I wanted to see sheep and pigs and goats etc, I'd go to a farm. When I go to a zoo, I want to see wild animals. And my interest has always been in endangered species, and domesticated species obviously don't fall into that category.

Having said that, I've grown tired of Meerkats and Asian Small-clawed Otters. Every zoo seems to have a group, and they all seem to be exhibited the same in each zoo. This is not a criticism - it's just that every Meerkat exhibit seems to be a desert environment with sand for digging and a few rocks or logs for them to climb on and stand lookout; after seeing more than a dozen, all variations on the one theme, I find this about as exciting as a free-ranging peacock.

:)

Hix
 
I think we had this discussion before, among others with patrick...

Hix said:
I And my interest has always been in endangered species, and domesticated species obviously don't fall into that category.
Click to expand...
Ever heard of rare breeds?
Welcome to the Rare Breeds Survival Trust | RBST

Hix said:
and they all seem to be exhibited the same in each zoo.
Click to expand...

That's what I have an issue with - not with the animals. Instead of trying to deal with local conditions in an imaginative way, some zoos become more and more uniform in their presentation. Especially the management often tries to put through standard concepts, even if they don't fit. So in the end, you feel like walking through different, yet identical stores of a supermarket chain: walk-through ringed tailed lemur exhibit on the right, "Africa" aka meerkats and African ungulate "savannah" in the middle, "Australia" aka Bennett's wallaby and emu on the left, etc. etc.. And if the zoo has enough money, that all is "iced" with some fake rocks/trees/jeeps. Reminds me of the ranting by the Michael Palin character in "Fierce Creatures"...;)

<Sigh> A bit more originality, creativity and courage to be different - that would be nice. Even and especially if it involves "common" animals...

@Zebraduiker: That dude you're talking about suggested lightening nocturnal exhibits with real candles-that pretty much says everything...
 
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When I visit a new zoo I look for new species I've never seen or are non common. These visits are always focused on taking photographs of animals that are difficult to see, that are not in my local zoo or those which I don't have photographed before.
This doesn't mean that I find the other species boring! But when I'm traveling and I visit a new zoo, I always try to see/photograph the animals that are "new" for me because maybe I will not find another opportunity to see/photograph these animals in other zoos (or in the same zoo in the future).
In my local zoo I don't consider any species boring... for me all the species of my local zoo are common because I see all of them every time I go to the zoo (I have an anual pass since 1998). Meerkats or Humboldt penguins are very common but I have a lot of photos of them and I visit them every time I go to the zoo.
 
I don't think that any species are boring but I think it matters how they are exhibited. I can look at meerkats for a very long time if they have an interesting exhibit that encourages them to perform natural behaviour.

Having said that, I will admit that i also "prioritize" during my zoo visits. For instance, when visiting Duisburg Zoo, I spend my time watching the boto, the giant otters and the clouded leopards, simply because I have the chance to observe meerkats and short-clawed otters when I am home in Denmark (which I then do).
 
I definately like all animals, and have no problems: In any zoo, you could watch that common group of coatis and short-claws, yet their behaviour and antics engage you every time. Like others though, I will avoid if on a time limit.

And you can find original exhibits for commons: For example, Marwell's short-clawed otters are viewed from a recreated longhouse and are one of the few zoos that give a huge long strech of water occupying the enclosure rather than just a pool in the corner, and Cricket St Thomas give their coatis actual woodland rather than just climbing poles. But it can be the opposite; A prime example is London's Mappin Terraces, a huge, magnificent exhibit that has held bears and hoofstock throughout it's history. But now home to emus and wallabies. ><
 
There is a reason why some of these animals are common - they are active. Visitors like to see active animals so coatis, lemurs, penguins, otters etc. give them what they want. In this way, I don't find these animals boring as there is more to watch than if I were to see a clouded leopard for the first time (hopefully this easter, incedentally). Both ranges of animals - common and uncommon - have their merits

However, as has already said, if the exhibits are always the same and lack any innovation, you do begin to get bored (it seems that more designers need to read Bill Conway's "How to exhibit a Cane Toad").
 
Some of my favorites are commons. I suppose there's nothing too rare about a spotted hyena, but they're the first animal I look for when I go to a new zoo. Same with river hippos.

This thread makes me think of the newport Aquarium's rainforest exhibit that opened five or so years back. It was supposed to represent an Australasian rainforest, one of my favorite biomes, so I was excited about the possibility of seeing gharials, tree kangaroos or maybe some interesting primates. What I got was a publicity campaign over small-clawed otters, a burmese python and lories. It was the most disappointing exhibit opening ever. Kind of like a petting zoo with otters(which are cool) and a big snake that you can see in the pet store across the street.
 
Badly housed and poorly displayed animals can be very boring. Common species are not always housed as well as they might be (but of course that can also be true of uncommon species too).
Of course I try to see the less familiar animals when I visit a zoo, but I do enjoy seeing (and photographing) meerkats and ring-tailed lemurs if they are healthy, active and exhibited well.

Alan
 
Sun Wukong said:
Ever heard of rare breeds?
Click to expand...

Yes. But they are still a version of a domesticated species. I have no interest in them at all.

I understand that many people find them fascinating, and I'm not knocking them, I just expressing a different point of view.

:)

Hix
 
I don't think common species are boring; many of my favorite zoos are regarded as common in captvity; lions, tigers, wolves, etc. Badly exhibited animals can be boring, common or otherwise. For as popular as the Orangutans are at the Toronto Zoo, for example, I spend more time observing the antelope in their much more natural enclosure.
 
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