Visited yesterday and haven't for a few years, and so was interested in a few of the developments.
The Crested Porcupines are currently in the outdoor Meerkat enclosure. Not sure how long this has been the case.
Only saw a single Waterbuck, which towered over the Nyala; i'm assuming this may have been a male? Unfortunately couldn't see the young rhino calf as Inkosi was out on display, but I have to say this exhibit has came far, with a lot of new additional shaded areas which the antelope were congregated under.
The flamingo enclosure is definitely looking older; it's a real shame they're not considering a free flight aviary to replace the elephants across the path.
Saw eight baboons, including the young baby. Two obvious adult males were present; i'm assuming Yafeu and Badi? The other six would then be Naaemah, Zala, Mali, Aiysha/Kito and then the youngest two offspring.
The Seal enclosure is looking very depleted; with only the single fur seal remaining. Penguins may be a nice replacement, but they have a decent home as it is. Also, they've took away the shade at the viewing window which now means there's a glare due to the sun.
The new South East Asian area is looking phenomenal. The arboreal ropes are absolutely amazing, and it was awesome to watch Charlie cross right over the top of me at one point. The Saimangs were incredibly vocal; but it seems the plantation in their enclosure has been removed from when the complex initially opened. I was also extremely lucky to catch Bahmi; although Melur was hiding him really well. I had thought Auckland had constructed three enclosures, and the complex is smaller than I had initially thought (with two enclosures) but is still decently sized. The new enclosures have provided the Orangs and Saimangs with much more arboreal space - something the orangs (and saimangs) previously lacked at the zoo.
The Tiger/Otter area is really nice. The otter enclosures are very simple but serve their purpose well. The otters still haven't moved in unfortunately though. The tiger enclosures are well planted, and give the tigers a lot of privacy. I was disappointed to see the enclosures were rather small though; especially compared to Auckland's previous enclosures. Once Auckland receive Ramah and Zayana down the line; their tiger complex will be rather packed.
The new Cafe is also amazing; the architecture is quite plain, but it's spacious and well designed, with a lookout over the lake towards the Orangutans. It's definitely an upgrade from Darwins.
Continuing on, Emperor Tamarins were on the former Golden Lion Tamarin island. Saw a decent seven or eight of them, so Auckland do have quite a lot. On the subject of Tamarins, their Cotton Tops are doing incredibly well; the tree has grown up and they can climb all the way to the top which is phenomenal. There was a young baby too (not sure if it's been mentioned on here); they had at least 10+ individuals too; i'd assume the breeding pair and all of their offspring.
The Squirrel Monkey enclosure has also become heavily overgrown; I struggled to see any!
It's a shame they phased out their Capybaras which were always quite an addition to that enclosure.
The Saimang enclosure has been demolished which I was especially sad to see. The Spider Monkey enclosure is also looking better than ever; I noticed more arboreal ropes have been installed, and the Spider Monkeys were making the most of these too.
I discovered the former Macaw cages had been demolished in favour of a new Macaw presentation area. I wasn't entirely disappointed, but the cages were of course heritage, constructed in the zoo's very early days.
The Australian area is looking great. I did notice though that they had constructed a Brolga enclosure opposite the Wallaby/Emu walkthrough, in a part which I believe was part of the walkthrough initially. There were also no Wallabies! Not sure why, but it did look like they were doing some sort of construction. The two emus were the only inhabitants of the walkthrough.
Not sure who decided it; but putting the Lemurs in the former Tiger enclosure was a terrible choice. Not only does the glare permit you from getting a good look in through the glass; the heavy plantation also makes it almost impossible to spot them. I certainly didn't manage to see any.
Auckland also only had about five otters on display. I thought they had eight males (I could be wrong though). It's possible some may have been moved into the off display enclosure (opposite the Orangs).
Overall, it was a nice visit and within the past three years Auckland has definitely changed in a huge way. The amount of progress is phenomenal and the zoo is definitely improving in the right direction. All of the enclosures are well sized, and also incredibly natural (some too well planted imo
); and I do love the easy flow the zoo has (allowing you to continue on a single route around the zoo passing through the many different geographical zones on the way). Quite a worldclass zoo.
I believe the plan is for a walkthrough Lemur enclosure to be built on the place of their current exhibit down the line. I think Auckland are down to only two or three girls now too, which obviously makes viewing them more complicated.