Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden Cincinnati Zoo News 2024

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Joseph G said:
Couple notes from yesterday:
  • The parking lot between Vine St. and Euclid Ave. is closed while they add the same shading with solar panels on top as the main Vine St. parking lot.
  • If you plan on attending any of the remaining penguin parades, get there early. If you are not able to get there early, head to the outdoor cockatoo tree between Birds of the World and the Outdoor Aviary, as no one seems to know this little nook exists.
  • Speaking of the Outdoor Aviary, the Kea encounters are up and running. Free and a very cool opportunity to be up close and personal with some special birds.
  • The (probable) blue duiker habitat in Jungle Trails has progressed significantly since my last visit:
    View attachment 683812
  • The area between Manatee Springs and Dragons! is closed for some plumbing work. It also looks like this closure might just also be for Elephant Trek plaza construction. View attachment 683813
  • Finally, earlier in this thread, I mentioned two Magellanics had moved from Birds of the World to Penguin Point. I did not see them in either exhibit.
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Thanks for the update. Have we heard any word on when Elephant Trek will be opening? I wish the zoo would give us a YouTube video update like they had been doing every month but have seemed to stop doing them over the last 3-4 months.
 
AndrewH100 said:
Thanks for the update. Have we heard any word on when Elephant Trek will be opening? I wish the zoo would give us a YouTube video update like they had been doing every month but have seemed to stop doing them over the last 3-4 months.
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Granted, I don’t know a lot about Cinci’s specific situation, but construction in general slows way down in winter in this part of the world. The really weird weather probably made January a loss if they were even trying to get things done.
 
AndrewH100 said:
Thanks for the update. Have we heard any word on when Elephant Trek will be opening? I wish the zoo would give us a YouTube video update like they had been doing every month but have seemed to stop doing them over the last 3-4 months.
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Summer 2024 is the last thing they've put in print. I believe most of the elephant exhibit itself is done. Concrete was being poured for the pools in October, and it generally seems like anything that would really be hindered by winter is done when it comes to the elephants. I'm sure there's a lot more to do on the interior of the group sales space, indoor viewing etc.

As for the rest of the area, I have absolutely no clue. I haven't seen any close up renderings of the siamang, Asian small-clawed otter, and rhinoceros hornbill habitats. You can see part of the climbing and rope structures for the siamangs in a few of them, but nothing else other than the recreational garden below the picnic shelters. With the entire area almost impossible to see right now, it's hard to track any more progress.

My guess is if they're working on plumbing by the entrance to it, that's one of the last steps before more of the guest areas start being built, paved and landscaped.
 
 
Ok, so I wasn't aware until now that Elephant Trek will be home to more than just elephants! Do we know if they'll be more than just small-clawed otters and siamangs? I'm not super familiar with the zoo's elephants, are there breeding plans with the Dublin arrivals?
 
Eletan888 said:
Ok, so I wasn't aware until now that Elephant Trek will be home to more than just elephants! Do we know if they'll be more than just small-clawed otters and siamangs? I'm not super familiar with the zoo's elephants, are there breeding plans with the Dublin arrivals?
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Rhinoceros hornbill. I don’t believe it was ever formally announced, but it was mentioned in one of the zoo’s construction update videos.
 
We finally got an update on YouTube of Elephant Trek! All I can say is WOW! This is going to be an amazing exhibit!!! It looks like they still have quite a bit of work to do, specifically in the otter / siamang area in Elephant Trek. Let's hope they can get in done in the next couple months but if I had to guess, it will be late summer before Elephant Trek opens. I hope I am wrong but its looking great!
 
AndrewH100 said:
Thanks for the update. Have we heard any word on when Elephant Trek will be opening? I wish the zoo would give us a YouTube video update like they had been doing every month but have seemed to stop doing them over the last 3-4 months.
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Elephant Trek construction is currently on track and the habitat will open to visitors late July to early August if everything continues to go to plan.

On another note the zoo has welcomed a new pair Fennec Foxes which can be seen in Night Hunters and the male Blue Duiker has arrived and is currently off-display with the female. The female kudu calf has now been introduced to the entire herd as well.
 
AndrewH100 said:
We finally got an update on YouTube of Elephant Trek! All I can say is WOW! This is going to be an amazing exhibit!!! It looks like they still have quite a bit of work to do, specifically in the otter / siamang area in Elephant Trek. Let's hope they can get in done in the next couple months but if I had to guess, it will be late summer before Elephant Trek opens. I hope I am wrong but its looking great!
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I had it in my head that Elephant Trek would be opening in earlier summer, so I suppose it makes sense why they're delaying Sabu returning from Columbus!
 
Cincinnati Zoo Updates Week of March 11, 2024
The zoo has moved a breeding pair of Potto's into the Aye-Aye enclosure in Jungle Trails, these species now inhabit the space together providing for quite the unusual mixed species exhibition.

The spring season has officially begun as of last Saturday and so animals will come out back on display that were absent for the off-season. This includes the Little Blue Penguin colony and the chicks born earlier this year which can now be seen in Roo Valley. The most notable loss due to the changing of seasons is the Kea walk-through aviary will be closed until the temperatures cool off again while the more tropical species use the space so for anyone interested in visiting I would highly recommend you do so soon!

The bird house is undergoing renovations, still open however. The sea bird rookery enclosure has been redone and second seabird aviary along with the walk-through South America aviary are currently both under construction. A very exiting addition to the zoo occurred recently as the park welcomed back Raggiana Bird-of-Paradise, a species absent for the last couple years which can be seen just outside of the Indonesia Walk-Through Aviary. Last update from the bird house is the loss of the Thick-Billed Parrot. Their former habitat now has a Tawny Frogmouth, a species the zoo seems to have a surplus of these days between Night Hunters, the Animal Ambassador Team, and now the Bird house.

Sabu the bull Asian elephant will arrive later this spring from Columbus once Cincinnati finishes the second elephant yard. From there introductions will occur between him and the Dublin arrivals hoping for a very early stage of pregnancy in one of the girls around the time the habitat opens in the late summer.
 
Jonathan Petersson said:
Cincinnati Zoo Updates Week of March 11, 2024
The zoo has moved a breeding pair of Potto's into the Aye-Aye enclosure in Jungle Trails, these species now inhabit the space together providing for quite the unusual mixed species exhibition.

The spring season has officially begun as of last Saturday and so animals will come out back on display that were absent for the off-season. This includes the Little Blue Penguin colony and the chicks born earlier this year which can now be seen in Roo Valley. The most notable loss due to the changing of seasons is the Kea walk-through aviary will be closed until the temperatures cool off again while the more tropical species use the space so for anyone interested in visiting I would highly recommend you do so soon!

The bird house is undergoing renovations, still open however. The sea bird rookery enclosure has been redone and second seabird aviary along with the walk-through South America aviary are currently both under construction. A very exiting addition to the zoo occurred recently as the park welcomed back Raggiana Bird-of-Paradise, a species absent for the last couple years which can be seen just outside of the Indonesia Walk-Through Aviary. Last update from the bird house is the loss of the Thick-Billed Parrot. Their former habitat now has a Tawny Frogmouth, a species the zoo seems to have a surplus of these days between Night Hunters, the Animal Ambassador Team, and now the Bird house.

Sabu the bull Asian elephant will arrive later this spring from Columbus once Cincinnati finishes the second elephant yard. From there introductions will occur between him and the Dublin arrivals hoping for a very early stage of pregnancy in one of the girls around the time the habitat opens in the late summer.
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Thanks for the update, while I know it will at least be a couple years before we (hopefully) see a baby elephant (or a couple) I am very excited! This will be awesome for my home zoo. Elephant Trek looks amazing and very well planned and looks to be a massive upgrade for the zoo's elephants. Exciting times for the Cincinnati Zoo and especially the zoo's elephants!
 

A video highlighting further progress on Elephant Trek + some interesting highlights. It seems as if the otter exhibit would be open-topped, and would be a separate exhibit from the siamang exhibit. (Maybe they'll do overhead passages for the siamangs to get from their indoor quarters to their outdoor habitat based on the fact that the habitat's separated from the building?)
 
StoppableSan said:

A video highlighting further progress on Elephant Trek + some interesting highlights. It seems as if the otter exhibit would be open-topped, and would be a separate exhibit from the siamang exhibit. (Maybe they'll do overhead passages for the siamangs to get from their indoor quarters to their outdoor habitat based on the fact that the habitat's separated from the building?)
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I did not expect underwater viewing for otters! Imagine it'll feel like Miami's exhibit.
 
Sometime over the last year the zoo moved it's female Arctic Fox who was formerly on display in Jungle Trails and before that Lords of the Arctic to the off-site facility. The Steller Sea Eagle chick born in 2022 is also currently at the facility along with African Painted Dogs, Cheetahs, and male Okapi.

The two male Magellanic Penguins, Ben and Jerry, have also left the collection leaving just the female Maggie left in the Bird House.
 
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