Brookfield Zoo Visit Report: 06/12/21
Im currently on my phone typing this so please excuse any typos.
This was a bizarre visit. The first two hours were normal enough until It began to thunderstorm which led me to retreat to the African Forest house where I was trapped for about 40 minutes with no pangolin to keep me entertained. A tragedy. After a while I had gotten sick of waiting and decided to book it to the entrance. One of the ladies who were among those stuck in the forest house had trash bags thst she was gebrous enough to give to everyone to keep us dry. I shoved my camera under the trash bag after popping my head through the top. It was then when I began the long perilous trek towards the North Gate. The various hoofstock I passed were all a lot smarter then I was as they all retreated to cover. But while running out I realized I hadn’t seen Deserts Edge yet. With the North American challenge under way I needed to see the coati and ocelot to add to my total. So I decided to run over that way before leaving. I know I could have just gone next time I was there, but I am unnecessarily stubborn so I had different plans. I think at that point it really hit me what I was doing. There I was wearing a trash bag running through the Brookfield zoo in a thunderstorm to see a coati. This is the life I have chosen, it’s too late to turn back now.
Anyway, let’s address the most recent topic of conversation on this thread.
The Pangolin Predicament: During my extended time in the African forest house I witnessed an empty pangolin exhibit and it definitely stung seeing one of the coolest animals at the zoo gone. Luckily, there were two keepers around that were able to give me an explanation, well sort of. Apparently they are just off exhibit for breeding purposes, but this still confuses me. The zoo has at least a dozen animals behind the scenes for that purpose. They only displayed one at a time, so why are they all off exhibit? The zoo has made a pretty big deal out of them up to this point so I feel like they wouldn’t pull them off display unless they had a very serious reason. The keeper was unaware if this is a temporary or permanent move. I suppose all we can do is wait and see. And this wasn’t the only shake up in Habitat Africa...
Misc. Updates:
-The gaboon viper was also removed and has been replaced by a Madagascar tree boa.
-The red river hogs are no longer on exhibit in the yard with the nyala and crowned crane.
-The klipspringers are no longer signed in the yard with the gerenuk.
-The giant anteater is back on exhibit in Tropic World. Still no indication of the one in the pachyderm house.
-New glass has been installed in the meerkat and bat-eared fox exhibits. It’s now almost floor to ceiling.
-The small tortoise yard in the formal pool seems to be a goner as well. All of the signs are gone and several mounds of dirt filled the small exhibit.
-There was some construction going on between The Swamp and the Wildlife Trading Post Gift shop, probably just general repairs.
-Saw some mating behavior with the giraffes and okapis. Hoping for another calf for both species.
I’m glad the anteater is still around, bit otherwise it really seems like things just keep getting more and more empty. Here. This has to be like the 93rd time I’m reiterating myself at this point, but man the zoo is looking more and more like a shell of its former self with every passing visit. With the pangolins MIA from public view, that’s another huge highlight gone. I’m sure the zoo must have a valid reason as again I doubt they would remove a species they made a real thing out of unless they a had a very good reason why. Regardless, I look forward to seeing new management coming in soon, hopefully with a more ambitious vision for the zoo.