Brookfield Zoo Brookfield Zoo news 2008-2011

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snowleopard

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Chicago Zoological Society - Zoo Home

Brookfield Zoo is located about 25 minutes outside of the central business district of the massive city of Chicago, in the suburb of Brookfield, and was opened to the public in 1934. It covers an area of 216 acres, and was at one time the first and only zoo in the United States to exhibit giant pandas. Now it is famous for its highly rated children's zoo, the indoor rain forest "Tropic World", and a large and diverse animal collection.

Featured Exhibits

Tropic World

This rain forest building opened in 1980 and contains areas devoted to South American, Asian and African wildlife. To some individuals it is a fantastic representation of a jungle-like atmosphere, while others concede that it is an aging structure well past its due date.

Habitat Africa! The Savanna

A large section of the zoo that is devoted to African wildlife. Giraffe, klipspringer, african wild dog, dwarf mongoose, lizards, birds, pancake tortoise, waterbuck, ostrich, warthog and aardvark are the most prominent animal species in this area of the zoo.

Habitat Africa! The Forest

The Congo's Ituri Forest is recreated here, with okapi, yellow-backed duiker, dwarf crocodile, congo peafowl, blue duiker, chameleons, tortoises, congo buffalo and red river hog are some of the species in this African section.

Seven Seas Panorama

A 2,000-seat Dolphinarium allows for scheduled dolphin shows each day, and "Pinniped Point" is home to harbour seals, sea lions and a gray seal.

The Living Coast

The many exhibits that make up this section of the zoo include habitats for bonnethead sharks, green sea turtles, many species of fish, leopard sharks, humboldt penguins, moray eels, inca terns, chinchillas, vampire bats, boas, degus and andean condors.

Regenstein Wolf Woods

Mexican gray wolves in a 2-acre, heavily wooded exhibit.

The Fragile Kingdom

A three part exhibit: "The Fragile Desert" with bat-eared foxes, meerkats, naked-mole rats, rock hyraxes, caracals, fennec foxes, dwarf mongooses, sand cats, elephant shrews and african porcupines. "The Fragile Rain Forest" has asian small-clawed otters, binturongs, clouded leopards, fishing cats, and a python. "The Fragile Hunters" has lions, snow leopards, amur tigers, sloth bears and amur leopards.

Other exhibits around the zoo include an "Australian House", "The Swamp" with North American wetland animals, the "Pachyderm House", "Perching Birds" and "Feathers and Scales". There are also the standard bear grottoes, baboon island, and butterflies habitat.

Future Exhibits

Great Bear Wilderness

Scheduled to open in 2009, this series of exhibits will have polar bears, grizzly bears, bald eagles and bison.

Children's Experience

Scheduled for May, 2010. An expanded children's area.

Elephant Trails

A 5-acre elephant, antelope and rhino area that does not have a scheduled start date.
 
I visited this zoo around 1995. I remember I really enjoyed the Fragile Kingdom exhibits. They were much nicer than the much-touted Tropic World. Habitat Africa! Savannah was pretty neat too. This was at a time when I lived in the southwest US and the concept of having so many indoor exhibits was really foreign to me.
 
For those of you who adore the photo gallery here at ZooBeat, I've been uploading a ton of shots from the Brookfield Zoo. There are now almost 150 photos from that Chicago zoo, and about 70 of them are from inside the massive "Tropic World" building. That rainforest environment has been controversial because of the lack of substrate, as it is essentially a concrete jungle. At times it is spectacular but seriously flawed, and both the Bronx Zoo's "Jungle World" and Omaha's "Lied Jungle" would be ranked higher by myself.
 
A serious design flaw with Tropic World.

It faces the wrong way for the northern hemisphere sun! It was designes by a Australian!
 
It's Disgusting. It looks like big concrete collection site that has animals running all over it. I like Bronx's way better (although i've only seen photoes) and i would like to know which cost more because i know what i would rather spend my money on.
 
Tropic World Impressions

I am wondering how many people who feel so strongly about Tropic World at Brookfield zoo have actually seen it in person. I must admit that I am a sentimental fan, as I was raised in Chicago but moved away many years ago. I just visited again yesterday and while I found lots that need work, there was a lot to like too especially considering a few things - Lets try to remember that Tropic World Africa opened in 1982 -ground was broken about 10 years earlier but construction was delayed for several years - I seem to recall at least part of it was financial ( followed over the next couple of years with Asia and South America ) and was revolutionary in its massive mixed species exhibits with swinging bridges and indoor thunderstorms under a giant climate controlled roof. The diversity of species in one indoor exhibit was breathtaking- with Africa housing pygmy hippo, talapoins, colobus, mandrills, sooty mangabey - all in one space with free flying birds. There are many things about Tropic World that need improvement, and it looks as if the long range Master Plan will include extensive renovation and expansion of the building ( and from what I have seen possibly an outdoor gorilla yard added ). While the Asian section really needs some improvement, the South American section ( yes, the trees are certainly artificial, the moss is painted on, and there is a lack of real vegetation ) but it provides a rather massive, and still impressive by any standard, indoor space - both in square footage, and amount of vertical height - trees, vines, ledges to scamper up and around - for its mix of inhabitants which still include 2 types of spider monkeys, tufted capuchin, giant anteater, and Lowland tapir-with callimico ( Goeldi's ) and two-toed sloth on 1 island, and cotton-top on another island with free ranging access above and across from visitor area.
In my zoo travels I have been to hundreds of zoos, aquarium, and nature parks over the years, most recently back to Henry Doorly, San Diego, Cincinnati, Atlanta, Lowry Park, and 8 zoos in Germany.
I am surprised at how well, considering its age and size , that this exhibit has held up. I have been to many zoos who have built exhibits much more recently that have not aged as well.
In my opinion, Tropic World is just an aged gem, that needs a really good polishing. Ah, opinions.....thanks for letting me share mine.
 
I've seen it in person, and despite all of the plusses you list, I can't get past the concrete and lack of natural plants and substrates. That trumps everything else in my opinion.
 
Ahhh, good old Tropic World seems to get bashed on this website quite frequently. Having seen it in person this summer, and subsequently posted many photos of it, I think that on first impression it is absolutely spectacular. Only by spending over an hour inside the building does one realize just how absolutely fake everything is. I agree that the space for the primates far supercedes anything that is at just about other zoo on the planet, as there is an awful lot of room to roam and move around for the animals. But the gorillas and orangutans are too big for their enclosures, and the gorillas in particular are horrendously crowded and at times completely surrounded by a gawking public. I personally think that the Brookfield Zoo should build outdoor/indoor exhibits for the gorillas and orangs, and then plant some real vegetation amongst the concrete and steel inside the enormous building.
 
I belive there are pland for the construction of a outdoor exhibit for gorillas. No idea if it is real or just hopefull. Visited in 2007 and was told by the keeper.
 
PAT said:
It's Disgusting. It looks like big concrete collection site that has animals running all over it. I like Bronx's way better (although i've only seen photoes) and i would like to know which cost more because i know what i would rather spend my money on.
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They were built years apart, so a financial comparison would be of little value.

Basically, Brookfield pioneered the idea, and the Bronx Zoo got to see all of what worked and all of what didn't work before building theirs.

It's only logical that Bronx's would be better when you take that into consideration.

No one talks about the Model T as a piece of trash just because a Ferrari is a nicer ride. :p
 
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Okay--some credit must go to Brookfield for their attempt--but the venture was doomed from the start by the curatorial decision that no live plants or natural substrate would work with primates--thus the entirely concrete/metal/epoxy nature of all of the habitats.

The Bronx planning--which started before Tragic World opened--did not make such assumptions, and as a result the gibbons (to a huge degree), the Silvered Langurs (to a lesser degree) and Ebony Langurs (formerly Proboscis Monkeys) are all in habitats with living vegetation.

Jungleworld is many, many evolutionary steps beyond Tropic World. Among other things, the artificial vines and trees in Jungleworld actually look real. Tropic World's look like something out of a bad Star Trek set.....and it cost more.
 
I agree with reduakari, even though I've never seen Jungleworld and Tragic World. I've seen many pics posted by Snowleopard of both exhibits and Jungleworld destroys Tragic World. We call Tropic world "Tragic World" mainly because of how fake the whole building is.

I know what you mean monomach in giving the zoo credit for being the first, but the zoo should have updated the building after seeing what the bronx zoo had built. I know Jungle world has some downsides like the leopard exhibit being too small, but at least the leopards have live plants on exhibit.
 
Master Plan

I met with Dr. Stuart Strahl, president of Brookfield Zoo last August and he shared the Master Plan with me. The plan includes a number of changes, and sets a course for the next 10-15 years. Obviously, plans often change along the way, but for the moment, the elephants will move to the north west corner of the zoo, taking over the old okapi barn and current yards for addax and Grevy's zebra. Following the current trend, there will be several inner-connected yards spaced out over several acres. It should open no earlier than 2011, more likely in 2012 or later. Great Bear Wilderness, with new enclosures for polar and grizzly bears, bison, and bald eagles will open Memorial Day 2009, with a revamped Children's Zoo in 2010. The zoo already has a children's area - Hamill Family Play Zoo - but the old Children's Zoo was much more traditional, and will be transformed into an Illinois Farm. There are plans for outdoor spaces for gorillas and mandrills and a few other surprises. Actually, there isn't much of the current zoo that will remain the same. The zoo just opened a new area called The Pavilions - a multi functional space which can be used for catered events including weddings, picnics, and corporate outings. I suppose these events will help the zoo raise money for the $100+ million renovations that will occur over the next 15 years.
 
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The statement from Budorcas that "there isn't much of the current zoo that will stay the same" just goes to show how outdated many of the exhibits are at the Brookfield Zoo. The collection is vast and quite complete, and it does take most of a full day to tour the grounds, but overall there aren't a lot of outstanding habitats. I still say that the 2-acre mexican gray wolf exhibit is the premier enclosure at the zoo.
 
The other day, I got a good peek through a small crack in the privacy fence of the Great Bear Wilderness.

What little I could see around the construction equipment looks promising. The outline is obvious, as it's below ground level. It's exponentially larger than the current Bear grottoes, and they appear to be using some real trees in it.
 
Introduction

okapikpr - sorry for the delayed response, can't make it on ZooBeat everyday at the moment. My name is Jon Wassner, I'm one of the co-authors of America's Best Zoos, which came out earlier this year and many of you own. Thanks for all the positive comments, it's good to know that it has been useful and enjoyed by many participants on this Forum. I've been watching responses to threads for a few months now, but enjoyed watching from the outside compared to participating myself. But I felt compelled to respond about Brookfield Zoo since I consider it my home zoo despite living in Indianapolis. I've been to Brookfield over 300 times in my life, so I know it extremely well.

There have been several different designs for Great Bear Wilderness. Some have shown trees in the exhibits, others show a lack there of. It would be a shame if there wasn't trees, especially since the area it's being built (west side of zoo, taking over Ibex Island and pushing back toward Indian Lake and Wolf Woods) is currently a forest. From what I've seen, there should be 3 bear habitats, 1 for polar bears, 1 for grizzly bears, and an extra which can be used for either. Considering they have polar bear cubs every 2 years, it's likely that the additional habitat will almost always have polar bears. The bison habitat has also gone through several designs. One, which I believe is what they are going with, has a tunnel passing underneath the bison paddock. They have placed importance on making a better than average exhibit for bison, since it is the symbol of the zoo.

mstickmanp - the outdoor gorilla + mandrill habitats are not planned for the near future. There is no specific timeline, but Tropic World is in good shape compared to other places in the zoo.

To expand on what both snowleopard and myself have already said - Australia, Fragile Kingdom, Pinneped Point, Birds, Reptiles, Tropic World, Pachyderm House, Bears, Children's Zoo, and African animals will all have varying degrees of renovations and improvements over the course of the next 15 years. This does not include the other necessary minor improvements expected on existing structures and additional public friendly attractions which will also take place.

There are many reasons for Brookfield having so many improvements at hand, some are needed ASAP, others they are looking toward the future and addressing those needs now. Despite the desperate need to fix a few exhibits, I'm glad they are taking their time in renovating the zoo. They are acquiring appropriate funds, through both self and private sources, so that the changes will exceed requirements. Additionally, they have a huge committee, composed of 50 or so people from varying backgrounds that have come together to plan each of the upcoming projects. The future is definitely bright - at least on the surface - for Brookfield.
 
Storm forces Brookfield Zoo to close early for 1st time since opening in 1934 -- chicagotribune.com
No calls for carpenters went out from Brookfield Zoo to build an ark during the weekend's record-breaking storm, but all that rainwater did cause the zoo to close its gates to the public much earlier than scheduled for the first time since it opened in 1934.

So much rain had fallen on the zoo by early Sunday that water was rising in the deep moats surrounding the outdoor habitats of large carnivores such as lions and bears. A full moat would allow those animals to swim out, so they have been kept in their indoor habitats since Saturday.

Brookfield reopened Monday but did not charge for admission or parking because several exhibits and buildings remained closed as water was pumped out.

Stuart Strahl, CEO and president of the zoo, decided shortly after the 9:30 a.m. opening time Sunday to close, even though nine stalwart visitors were waiting to enter.

The zoo also had flooded roads, flooded viewing galleries for the dolphin, seal and sea lion pools, and flooded basements in some buildings. In some cases animals had to be moved, particularly small mammals in the "Fragile Kingdom" exhibit.
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