Brookfield Zoo Brookfield Zoo News 2021

Gutting all the camels, Grevy’s zebras, and other hoofstock foe elephants would be the biggest sacrifice Lincoln Park would do in their future. While it’s true the entire loop on its own is big enough for elephants as it’s, it would need a huge donor to change almost everything to suit them. Trails, enrichments, watering hole, you name it. Never really thought of the ape house being tweaked. It is true the more I look at it the inside didn’t age well. Maybe make some room for the extra chimps they have, though it would take a lot of restructuring.

And whoops, never knew the hippo’s an old girl. That’s just me wanting the floors of the Tropic World to be more lively. She’s free to hang out in her current pachyderm exhibit as much as she wants for her final years.
LPZ will most definitely never exhibit Elephants anytime soon
 
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.

I wonder if the glass for the meerkats and the bat-eared foxes are because people kept dropping things in there or if it is Covid precautions for those species. I remember seeing in the past some items that had clearly been dropped.

One time when I was there a nursing home had taken their residents through Australia. One of them wanted a better look at the sleeping wombats (they had access to the middle enclosure at that time where the echidna are now) so she helped him stand to get a better look. While doing so, her nametag popped right off, flew through the air and landed with the needle pointing away from the wombat (thankfully). The wombat wasn't phased and continued on sleeping. There was a keeper nearby and I told him what had happened before the woman could jump in to retrieve her nametag. Said keeper leapt over the wall like an action hero, plucked the nametag off the belly of the sleeping wombat and returned it to the CNA. The wombat, to this day, still probably has no idea what happened.
 
Some good news on the pangolin front. I contacted the zoo myself and it was confirmed that the pangolins were all moved off exhibit for breeding purposes. There are plans to put the pangolins back on exhibit in the future, although I am not sure when exactly that will be. Regardless, its good to know they aren't gone for good.
 
Some good news on the pangolin front. I contacted the zoo myself and it was confirmed that the pangolins were all moved off exhibit for breeding purposes. There are plans to put the pangolins back on exhibit in the future, although I am not sure when exactly that will be. Regardless, its good to know they aren't gone for good.
This is honestly the best outcome we could hope for. The pangolin was removed to help with breeding, which is the main priority of the US pangolins. And the zoo seems to not have forgotten about keeping them on display. Hopefully we can see them on display again soon, after breeding success :)
 
That's saddening to hear. May she rest properly in another place.

That leaves the zoo with rhinos and tapirs are their only pachyderms left, for now that is knowing their future plans.
 
An article about Adelle's passing.

Adelle The Pygmy Hippo Dies At Brookfield Zoo

It will be interesting to see what the future holds for hippos at Brookfield. Given the current state of the pachyderm house, there are numerous options for what could be done. Most likely another pygmy will be brought in - perhaps in the old nile hippo exhibit - but the exhibits may remain empty in preparation for future demolition of the building. Perhaps even bringing back nile hippos could be an option (not likely, but a pipe dream of mine).
 
An article about Adelle's passing.

Adelle The Pygmy Hippo Dies At Brookfield Zoo

It will be interesting to see what the future holds for hippos at Brookfield. Given the current state of the pachyderm house, there are numerous options for what could be done. Most likely another pygmy will be brought in - perhaps in the old nile hippo exhibit - but the exhibits may remain empty in preparation for future demolition of the building. Perhaps even bringing back nile hippos could be an option (not likely, but a pipe dream of mine).

They can probably hold off on any hippos for a while if they already have plans to get rid of it. It would be cool to have a Nile hippo again, but again pipe dream when they have to clean out and refill the original pool for one.
 
There are several facilities that have young hippos that could be sent to Brookfield for temporary housing:
- Ptolemy from Franklin Park
- A female from Gladys Porter than I cannot find the name of
- Zemora from Jackson Zoo (I'm doubtful, tho.)
- Violet from Metro Richmond (Doubtful about this too.)
- A female from Montgomery that I cannot find the name of
- Silas from Omaha
- Akobi from San Diego
 
There are several facilities that have young hippos that could be sent to Brookfield for temporary housing:
- Ptolemy from Franklin Park
- A female from Gladys Porter than I cannot find the name of
- Zemora from Jackson Zoo (I'm doubtful, tho.)
- Violet from Metro Richmond (Doubtful about this too.)
- A female from Montgomery that I cannot find the name of
- Silas from Omaha
- Akobi from San Diego
Silas is already at Houston
 
There are several facilities that have young hippos that could be sent to Brookfield for temporary housing:
- Ptolemy from Franklin Park
- A female from Gladys Porter than I cannot find the name of
- Zemora from Jackson Zoo (I'm doubtful, tho.)
- Violet from Metro Richmond (Doubtful about this too.)
- A female from Montgomery that I cannot find the name of
- Silas from Omaha
- Akobi from San Diego


These are good options, minus Silas who was already moved.

We may have to wait and see how the zoo will handle the lack of hippos.
 
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.

Year 2019 just before everything went totally crazy in the world and in visiting Chicago. It took me cycling through african exhibit I'd say about 3x's to finely seeing a moving pangolin! My first attempts yes it was sleeping in the rolled up ball position. But later in the afternoon, maybe after 2pm or so when keeper finally feeding the one on display it awoke and was moving around the enclosure. Pretty cool to finally see one alive and moving. Personally I believe cause these are all wild caught specimens they have of course no history of captivity so captive adaptations aren't fluidly adjusted for this species (meaning they still very much still intune to their life cycle as would be in the wild). The glare on the glass made it enormously tricky to get anything of a decent photo. A temporary blind kind of helped, but then again not much help to cure any glare. I can kind of see displaying this wonderful animal much like the Aye-Aye. Adjust your eyes please it's going to be dark. The trick for me was cycling through building several times till I hit the jack pot. As far as a thunderstorm, well I visited the St. Louis one morning right on schedule of major thunderstorm. I ducked into herpitarium 1st thing. What a super treat! As not only was I the only sole in the entire exhibit hall, but as a keeper shared with me the atmospheric pressure of the storm on the building was affecting the snakes. An I mean alot of them were readily moving about it was totally awesome!!!
 
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Year 2019 just before everything went totally crazy in the world and in visiting Chicago. It took me cycling through african exhibit I'd say about 3x's to finely seeing a moving pangolin! My first attempts yes it was sleeping in the rolled up ball position. But later in the afternoon, maybe after 2pm or so when keeper finally feeding the one on display it awoke and was moving around the enclosure. Pretty cool to finally see one alive and moving. Personally I believe cause these are all wild caught specimens they have of course no history of captivity so captive adaptations aren't fluidly adjusted for this species (meaning they still very much still intune to their life cycle as would be in the wild). The glare on the glass made it enormously tricky to get anything of a decent photo. A temporary blind kind of helped, but then again not much help to cur any glare. I can kind of see displaying this wonderful animal much like the Aye-Aye. Adjust your eyes please it's going to be dark. The trick for me was cycling through building several times till I hit the jack pot. As far as a thunderstorm, well I visited the St. Louis one morning right on schedule of major thunderstorm. I ducked into herpitarium 1st thing. What a super treat! As not only was I the only sole in the entire exhibit hall, but as a keeper shared with me the atmospheric pressure of the storm on the building was affecting the snakes. An I mean alot of them were readily moving about it was totally awesome!!!
...and note that I was one of last few visitors to Brookfield just week or so before they shut the zoo for the pandemic. It was kind of erie vibe. Got in like last hurrah.. And also getting out of Midway airport was very tricky with canceling flights, I had to actually go directly to the airport to get a flight out it was that tricky.
 
Agreed.

There’s not much else Lincoln Park can do other than change up the Hoofstock section. It’s certainly Brookfield that needs more donors than ever if it means he’s y improvements.

While I’m glad that the pangolin is still around, I am curious if their breeding attempts of the species will be successful or not. Glad that the anteater is back where it truly belongs in its original exhibit. Now all we need is the Pygmy hippo back in the Tropic World once the African section fully reopens.

I personally think LPZ Grevy Zebra exhibit is one of the nations best, and great place to photograph them. Also had good experiences with the kangaroos, and takins. At one time one could actually go into the interior exhibits of hoofstock barn. It's been major years since that happened though.
 
They can probably hold off on any hippos for a while if they already have plans to get rid of it. It would be cool to have a Nile hippo again, but again pipe dream when they have to clean out and refill the original pool for one.
You I just reflecting on that pipe dream, and why not let those red river hogs have a field day in old hippo yard. Ya it's not pc geographicly, but hey they could help foster forward progress to remodeling former hippo yard for themselves. It's a win-win, and helping those hogs earn their keep!
 
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