GraysonDP
Well-Known Member
Columbus Zoo Review
Dates Visited: August 22, 2016 and October 9, 2016
I go to college around an hour away from the Columbus Zoo and have been on a couple of occasions. Without a doubt it is one of the largest and best zoos in the country. It stands out for its comprehensiveness (all regions exhibit South America are represented in robust quantities) and consistence in quality of exhibits (very few could be described as substandard or outdated.) While before people could argue there weren’t any state-of-the-art complexes at the zoo, the additions of Polar Frontier and Heart of Africa have surely silenced those critics. This is my second favorite zoo (after Bronx) and continues to hold up well after repeat visits.
Excellent
Heart of Africa- Talk about state-of-the-art complexes! Of all the savannas I’ve seen (and I’ve been to famous ones at Dallas, DAK, SDWAP, Busch Gardens, etc.), this one is probably my favorite because it literally feels like an expansive sea of grass with a beautiful forest backdrop and has excellent viewing. Masai and reticulated giraffes, Grant’s zebras, wildebeests, greater kudu, Thomson’s gazelle, impala, Addra gazelle and ostrich call this savanna home and live in large herds. When looking at it, I feel like I’m in Africa and am transported out of the Columbus Zoo. The occasional tree and termite mound dots the plains but mostly it is all grass and is very well maintained. The absence of any fence or visible barrier makes the habitat that much more immersive and one of the highlights is seeing a bunch of giraffes browsing together as they would in the wild. The lion exhibit is also very high quality and resides on a hill seemingly connected to the savanna. It’s my second favorite lion exhibit I’ve seen (just behind the famed Lion Camp at the San Diego Safari Park) because it has a lot of space and has a wonderful landscape that brilliantly blends grass, elevation and rocks. If the cats are at the right part of the habitat, it looks as if they are truly in the same exhibit as the hoofstock. Guests can get a closer view of the lions by going into a fake crashed plane where they often lay. I appreciate the amount of shade and hiding spaces for the lions to sleep and lie down. A few trees dot the habitat. A spacious watering hole habitat is mostly grassy with a pond in the middle. It rotates between spotted hyenas, warthogs, jackals, cheetahs, ostriches and aardvarks but hosted warthogs and hyenas on my visit. An excellent netted habitat features a troop of Vervet monkeys and is modeled to look as if they crashed a campsite. Rarely exhibited in America’s zoos, it was a treat to see these active, charismatic primates act naturally in such a good exhibit. Probably the biggest disappointment of Heart of Africa is the cheetah exhibit, which is grassy but on the small side. The camel exhibit at the front is ordinary as well. Overall Heart of Africa is one of the best zoo exhibits in the country and one of my all-time favorites.
Polar Frontier- Finally a polar bear exhibit that has a huge amount of grass and divorces itself completely from the mock rock, fake ice idea. I’d say this habitat is almost as good as Arctic Ring of Life at the Detroit Zoo and provides a wonderful, spacious home for the Arctic bears. The pool is enormous and deep and it really looks like part of a much larger body of water like you’d find in northern Canada and Alaska. The shore is brilliantly detailed and well designed with rocks for the polar bears to sit on. The rocks actually look natural and lack the artificiality polar bear exhibits are often notorious for. Above the rocky shore is a field of grass with northern trees in the background, providing tons of land area for the bears. Rocks and fallen over trees provide great opportunities for enrichment. Next door, is the largest grizzly bear habitat I’ve ever seen with an underwater viewing and tons of water. On the day I visited one of the bears completely submerged in the water and slammed much to the thrill of the visitors. The land area has ample enrichments and room for the grizzlies and they are viewed through a cave-like structure. The only weakness of this section is the disappointing Arctic fox enclosure.
Asia Quest- While not as breathtaking as Heart of Africa and Polar Frontier, one of the best Asian exhibits in the country. Sun bears and sloth bears rotate in a habitat complete with tons of trees and logs, lush vegetation, changing levels of elevation for them to climb and a pool for them to swim in. It’s definitely one of the best of its kind and has plenty to keep the bears entertained. Red pandas live in an immersive, green and highly vegetated habitat with lots of opportunities for climbing and hiding. An Asian bird aviary is solid while markhors live in a rocky, drier exhibit. Pallas cats live in an enclosure that is too small but beter than most of its kind. Langurs have an excellent habitat with lots of vertical space, trees and ropes. The highlight of Asia Quest is the Amur tiger exhibit, which is quite rocky and full of grass. The tigers have a nice cave for them to get rest and a variety of terrain for them to explore. Definitely one of the best tiger exhibits around. The theming in Asia Quest is also very well-done and I feel transported to Asia while walking around it. I like that it stays consistent with its focus on animals from temperate Asia since I always like it when zoos recreate as specific a habitat as possible.
North America- The oldest section of the zoo which got a moderate renovation this year. Bison and pronghorn live in a large grassy yard on a hill that can make viewing hard while gray wolves inhabit a spacious woods setting. Moose (a rarity in America’s zoos) live in a medium sized- habitat across water that lets them swim. Prairie dogs live in a standard habitat while bobcats occupy an exhibit significantly larger and better than you’d exhibit to find them in. Black bears have an excellent enclosure in a naturalistic setting complete with a pool and enrichments. An otter exhibit would greatly benefit from the addition of an underwater viewing while wolverines can be viewed through a log cabin. The cougar habitat is surprisingly spacious and well-done, making it one of the best in the country. A songbird aviary is brilliant and bald eagles have a good exhibit while a beaver one is average at best.
Manatee Springs- An excellent all-indoor habitat for this rare species is one of the most popular at the zoo.
Australia- While not huge, one of the better Australian exhibits in America complete with a walkthrough kangaroo exhibit, koalas and a roadhouse including animals such as wombats and quolls.
Average
African Forest- A large complex that is amazing at parts and underwhelming at others. Bonobos live in a state-of-the-art exhibit with ample trees, grass, ropes, shade and space. It is a thrill to see so many of humans’ closest relatives in such a naturalistic habitat. Red river hogs live in a habitat at the end of the bonobo one. An okapi/duiker exhibit is also quite spacious and a netted mandrill exhibit is solid. Habitats for leopards and colobus monkeys are more standard. However, two disappointments somewhat diminish the experience of this complex. One is the gorilla exhibit. While it is great to see such a large bang of gorillas with an amazing breeding program and it’s wonderful their exhibit has so many enrichments for them to play with, it is disappointing their habitat is a bit on the small size and enclosed in a Howlett’s style glorified cage. This exhibit might be good in the eyes of some people and there are many that are far worse but for one of my favorite animals I expect a better exhibit at such an excellent zoo. The other is the indoor area for the apes. Both the gorilla house and the bonobo holding areas are quite disappointing and a bit outdated.
Pachyderms- One of the largest pachyderm buildings in America is one of very few traditional pachyderm areas left in the United States since most have either been replaced with state-of-the-art elephant exhibits or have phased out elephants. The elephant exhibit is decently large and grassy but lacks the level of naturalism and detail I would like. Also, it is not quite as large as some modern day elephant exhibits. However, it is ultimately good, has some enrichments and a watering hole area provides a great visitor experience. The black rhinoceros exhibit on the other side is less impressive - it seems very reminiscent of the Milwaukee style of exhibitry with tons of mock rock and little space. Sometimes certain elephants are put in these yards, which is way to small for them. The interior is quite large and recently adding sand, making the surface much better for the pachyderms.
Reptile House- Smaller than what is usually expected for a herpetarium. An average alligator exhibit is found outside.
Penguin Exhibit- Quite disappointing and subpar for a zoo of this caliber. It is small and not very well designed. By no means terrible though.
Poot
Islands- I know it might seem harsh to put a fairly new complex (2003) in this category but one habitat breaks this exhibit for me. Gibbons, siamangs, Komodo dragons and otters are good but the orangutan one is quite weak. A prominent brick wall is present in the background and there simply is not enough done to recreate the habitat of the red ape. There are some climbing structures but they are poorly designed and a lot more trees and enrichments are needed.
I love the Columbus Zoo and marvel the level of exhibitry and completeness of taxedermic/geographic diversity found there. Every time I’ve visited it I’ve liked it more, which is a good sign. It is definitely one of the most modern zoos in America. Hopefully, the zoo will continue its record of frequent improvements.
Dates Visited: August 22, 2016 and October 9, 2016
I go to college around an hour away from the Columbus Zoo and have been on a couple of occasions. Without a doubt it is one of the largest and best zoos in the country. It stands out for its comprehensiveness (all regions exhibit South America are represented in robust quantities) and consistence in quality of exhibits (very few could be described as substandard or outdated.) While before people could argue there weren’t any state-of-the-art complexes at the zoo, the additions of Polar Frontier and Heart of Africa have surely silenced those critics. This is my second favorite zoo (after Bronx) and continues to hold up well after repeat visits.
Excellent
Heart of Africa- Talk about state-of-the-art complexes! Of all the savannas I’ve seen (and I’ve been to famous ones at Dallas, DAK, SDWAP, Busch Gardens, etc.), this one is probably my favorite because it literally feels like an expansive sea of grass with a beautiful forest backdrop and has excellent viewing. Masai and reticulated giraffes, Grant’s zebras, wildebeests, greater kudu, Thomson’s gazelle, impala, Addra gazelle and ostrich call this savanna home and live in large herds. When looking at it, I feel like I’m in Africa and am transported out of the Columbus Zoo. The occasional tree and termite mound dots the plains but mostly it is all grass and is very well maintained. The absence of any fence or visible barrier makes the habitat that much more immersive and one of the highlights is seeing a bunch of giraffes browsing together as they would in the wild. The lion exhibit is also very high quality and resides on a hill seemingly connected to the savanna. It’s my second favorite lion exhibit I’ve seen (just behind the famed Lion Camp at the San Diego Safari Park) because it has a lot of space and has a wonderful landscape that brilliantly blends grass, elevation and rocks. If the cats are at the right part of the habitat, it looks as if they are truly in the same exhibit as the hoofstock. Guests can get a closer view of the lions by going into a fake crashed plane where they often lay. I appreciate the amount of shade and hiding spaces for the lions to sleep and lie down. A few trees dot the habitat. A spacious watering hole habitat is mostly grassy with a pond in the middle. It rotates between spotted hyenas, warthogs, jackals, cheetahs, ostriches and aardvarks but hosted warthogs and hyenas on my visit. An excellent netted habitat features a troop of Vervet monkeys and is modeled to look as if they crashed a campsite. Rarely exhibited in America’s zoos, it was a treat to see these active, charismatic primates act naturally in such a good exhibit. Probably the biggest disappointment of Heart of Africa is the cheetah exhibit, which is grassy but on the small side. The camel exhibit at the front is ordinary as well. Overall Heart of Africa is one of the best zoo exhibits in the country and one of my all-time favorites.
Polar Frontier- Finally a polar bear exhibit that has a huge amount of grass and divorces itself completely from the mock rock, fake ice idea. I’d say this habitat is almost as good as Arctic Ring of Life at the Detroit Zoo and provides a wonderful, spacious home for the Arctic bears. The pool is enormous and deep and it really looks like part of a much larger body of water like you’d find in northern Canada and Alaska. The shore is brilliantly detailed and well designed with rocks for the polar bears to sit on. The rocks actually look natural and lack the artificiality polar bear exhibits are often notorious for. Above the rocky shore is a field of grass with northern trees in the background, providing tons of land area for the bears. Rocks and fallen over trees provide great opportunities for enrichment. Next door, is the largest grizzly bear habitat I’ve ever seen with an underwater viewing and tons of water. On the day I visited one of the bears completely submerged in the water and slammed much to the thrill of the visitors. The land area has ample enrichments and room for the grizzlies and they are viewed through a cave-like structure. The only weakness of this section is the disappointing Arctic fox enclosure.
Asia Quest- While not as breathtaking as Heart of Africa and Polar Frontier, one of the best Asian exhibits in the country. Sun bears and sloth bears rotate in a habitat complete with tons of trees and logs, lush vegetation, changing levels of elevation for them to climb and a pool for them to swim in. It’s definitely one of the best of its kind and has plenty to keep the bears entertained. Red pandas live in an immersive, green and highly vegetated habitat with lots of opportunities for climbing and hiding. An Asian bird aviary is solid while markhors live in a rocky, drier exhibit. Pallas cats live in an enclosure that is too small but beter than most of its kind. Langurs have an excellent habitat with lots of vertical space, trees and ropes. The highlight of Asia Quest is the Amur tiger exhibit, which is quite rocky and full of grass. The tigers have a nice cave for them to get rest and a variety of terrain for them to explore. Definitely one of the best tiger exhibits around. The theming in Asia Quest is also very well-done and I feel transported to Asia while walking around it. I like that it stays consistent with its focus on animals from temperate Asia since I always like it when zoos recreate as specific a habitat as possible.
North America- The oldest section of the zoo which got a moderate renovation this year. Bison and pronghorn live in a large grassy yard on a hill that can make viewing hard while gray wolves inhabit a spacious woods setting. Moose (a rarity in America’s zoos) live in a medium sized- habitat across water that lets them swim. Prairie dogs live in a standard habitat while bobcats occupy an exhibit significantly larger and better than you’d exhibit to find them in. Black bears have an excellent enclosure in a naturalistic setting complete with a pool and enrichments. An otter exhibit would greatly benefit from the addition of an underwater viewing while wolverines can be viewed through a log cabin. The cougar habitat is surprisingly spacious and well-done, making it one of the best in the country. A songbird aviary is brilliant and bald eagles have a good exhibit while a beaver one is average at best.
Manatee Springs- An excellent all-indoor habitat for this rare species is one of the most popular at the zoo.
Australia- While not huge, one of the better Australian exhibits in America complete with a walkthrough kangaroo exhibit, koalas and a roadhouse including animals such as wombats and quolls.
Average
African Forest- A large complex that is amazing at parts and underwhelming at others. Bonobos live in a state-of-the-art exhibit with ample trees, grass, ropes, shade and space. It is a thrill to see so many of humans’ closest relatives in such a naturalistic habitat. Red river hogs live in a habitat at the end of the bonobo one. An okapi/duiker exhibit is also quite spacious and a netted mandrill exhibit is solid. Habitats for leopards and colobus monkeys are more standard. However, two disappointments somewhat diminish the experience of this complex. One is the gorilla exhibit. While it is great to see such a large bang of gorillas with an amazing breeding program and it’s wonderful their exhibit has so many enrichments for them to play with, it is disappointing their habitat is a bit on the small size and enclosed in a Howlett’s style glorified cage. This exhibit might be good in the eyes of some people and there are many that are far worse but for one of my favorite animals I expect a better exhibit at such an excellent zoo. The other is the indoor area for the apes. Both the gorilla house and the bonobo holding areas are quite disappointing and a bit outdated.
Pachyderms- One of the largest pachyderm buildings in America is one of very few traditional pachyderm areas left in the United States since most have either been replaced with state-of-the-art elephant exhibits or have phased out elephants. The elephant exhibit is decently large and grassy but lacks the level of naturalism and detail I would like. Also, it is not quite as large as some modern day elephant exhibits. However, it is ultimately good, has some enrichments and a watering hole area provides a great visitor experience. The black rhinoceros exhibit on the other side is less impressive - it seems very reminiscent of the Milwaukee style of exhibitry with tons of mock rock and little space. Sometimes certain elephants are put in these yards, which is way to small for them. The interior is quite large and recently adding sand, making the surface much better for the pachyderms.
Reptile House- Smaller than what is usually expected for a herpetarium. An average alligator exhibit is found outside.
Penguin Exhibit- Quite disappointing and subpar for a zoo of this caliber. It is small and not very well designed. By no means terrible though.
Poot
Islands- I know it might seem harsh to put a fairly new complex (2003) in this category but one habitat breaks this exhibit for me. Gibbons, siamangs, Komodo dragons and otters are good but the orangutan one is quite weak. A prominent brick wall is present in the background and there simply is not enough done to recreate the habitat of the red ape. There are some climbing structures but they are poorly designed and a lot more trees and enrichments are needed.
I love the Columbus Zoo and marvel the level of exhibitry and completeness of taxedermic/geographic diversity found there. Every time I’ve visited it I’ve liked it more, which is a good sign. It is definitely one of the most modern zoos in America. Hopefully, the zoo will continue its record of frequent improvements.
