Brookfield Zoo Visit Report, 12/03/22
Paid a visit today during the Holiday Magic event. Very nice time and it was also a unique opportunity to see the zoo at night. The African and marine exhibits were all blocked off, but I covered everything else open. Only one semi-major update, but a lot of active animals which was a real treat.
The Parrot Predicament: Construction on the new macaw perches continues to progress. The foundation has been laid for both of the artificial trees and as much as I'd like to be excited about these displays, I just can't get behind this style of exhibitry. I've already covered why I'm not a fan of these exhibits so I won't get into it again, but I can't help but be disappointed this is the route the zoo chose to take when they could have done something far better for their macaws. However, those outdoor perches aren't the only thing being added for the birds. The former peacock cafe is in the process of being turned into an indoor macaw pavilion. It's essentially just a room with additional perches above sand so they can be viewed during the winter months. The former dining area has already been revamped into a space for the birds, while the other half of the building is still a work in progress.
As an aside, the Peacock Cafe and Grill has to be one of the shortest lived zoo restaurants I've ever seen. It opened in September 2019 and has been closed off since before the pandemic started. I think it had a total of two or three months of operation during that time.
The Missing Piece of the "Puzzle": Despite being at the zoo for some time now, there has yet to be an official announcement regarding the arrival of Puzzle of the Matschie's tree kangaroo. Still nothing has changed in the Australia House or any other part of the zoo. The pessimist in me began to grow concerned she was only at the zoo temporarily and would be held off exhibit until she moved elsewhere, so I decided to contact the zoo myself over this past week. I received a relatively vague response, but it was enough to give me peace of mind about her status in the collection so I'll share what I was told verbatim.
"We have added the tree kangaroo to the collection but it will remain off exhibit at this time. Apologies that more cannot be shared with you, but we are anticipating some upcoming exhibit changes over the next few years and are currently preparing for these. We are hoping our tree kangaroo will be on exhibit in the future."
So what I gathered from that is that she won't be on exhibit in the extremely near future, but it's at least nice to know she will be put on exhibit at some point. This is estimated guess, but I'd anticipate she may not be on exhibit until the spring or summer season at the earliest.
Animal Highlights:
- The wolves were very fun to watch night. They were all running around marking their territory on the large trees and this is the first time I saw the three-legged one moving which was fascinating.
- The cats were very active in the evening. The ocelot was gnawing on a bone near the top of its exhibit and I saw the fishing cat out and about for the first time in years. I rarely get a good look at either of these species so this was wonderful.
- The aviary in Reptiles and Birds was blocked off and the free-flight birds in the Rainforest Aviary at Feathers and Scales weren't able to enter the guest area like usual. Not sure why this is, as the zoo never blocked off these exhibits even when bird flu was running rampant. Either way, the birds were extremely vocal and active today especially in Feathers and Scales.
- Not a highlight, but a question. I only saw one capybara in the pachyderm house today. Does anyone know what happened to the other two? I saw two on my last visit, but I haven't seen the third one in a while now. Did they both pass at some point?
Hopefully next time I'm at the zoo construction will be in full swing for all of the upcoming projects. The first half of the year is going to be full of development with six new exhibits, the dolphinarium renovation, and all of the much needed pathway replacements and entry repairs. We really are in the calm before the storm period of the development cycle, which is both exciting and a little agonizing for someone who's impatient like me. No matter, I'm confident what's in store is worth the wait.
