Future of Zoos & Aquariums, Master Plans

Z

ZooBoy99

Well-Known Member
Hello everyone,

I couldn't find a thread discussing the following topic, so I apologize if it has been covered before.

With zoos like OKC and Brookfield recently releasing their master plans, I'd like to ask everyone what they hope to see from other zoos in the future as they release their master plans. Would you like to see zoos creating exhibits based on biodiversity hotspots or lesser known habitats? Or perhaps a bigger focus on educating visitors about the research and conservation work the zoo does, or bringing in lesser known species to their collection?

I'm personally excited to see zoos expressing in their master plans a desire to focus more on their local wildlife and I hope this becomes a common trend. Educating guests about native habitats, endangered species, and the reintroduction, rehabilitation, or research efforts they're conducting.

I am eager to hear about your hopes for future master plans of zoos. Please feel free to share what you like about the recent batch of master plans as well. I am very excited to learn and speak with all of you!
 
ZooBoy99 said:
Hello everyone,

I couldn't find a thread discussing the following topic, so I apologize if it has been covered before.

With zoos like OKC and Brookfield recently releasing their master plans, I'd like to ask everyone what they hope to see from other zoos in the future as they release their master plans. Would you like to see zoos creating exhibits based on biodiversity hotspots or lesser known habitats? Or perhaps a bigger focus on educating visitors about the research and conservation work the zoo does, or bringing in lesser known species to their collection?

I'm personally excited to see zoos expressing in their master plans a desire to focus more on their local wildlife and I hope this becomes a common trend. Educating guests about native habitats, endangered species, and the reintroduction, rehabilitation, or research efforts they're conducting.

I am eager to hear about your hopes for future master plans of zoos. Please feel free to share what you like about the recent batch of master plans as well. I am very excited to learn and speak with all of you!
Click to expand...
I hope Dublin goes through with their proposed Irish animal section with hare and red billed choughs being named species. The new director seems to want to expand the collection giving many interesting plans in an interview, including expanding the fish and invertebrate collections and adding an Australian section. I also hope the nocturnal house gets expanded since I think it has potential.

For Fota I hope they complete their Asian plan, which consists of bears, cranes, markhors and takins. I understand it may take some time of course.
 
Rohin said:
I hope Dublin goes through with their proposed Irish animal section with hare and red billed choughs being named species. The new director seems to want to expand the collection giving many interesting plans in an interview, including expanding the fish and invertebrate collections and adding an Australian section. I also hope the nocturnal house gets expanded since I think it has potential.

For Fota I hope they complete their Asian plan, which consists of bears, cranes, markhors and takins. I understand it may take some time of course.
Click to expand...

That's so cool! I didn't know Dublin proposed an Irish animal section, I hope it goes through as well! Also, I've never seen a markhor before, so that is very exciting to hear
 
I know this masterplan got revealed just over a year ago, but Colchester. I've been going there for as long as I can remember and each time I visit, it mostly never dissapoints me. The exciting thing is that the Masterplan is already underway with Dinosaur realm being part of it. Overall, I'm particularly pleased to see that current species such as the Orangutans and the animals in the Savanha paddocks are getting brand new enclosures, but also more excited for some of the new stuff such as a butterfly house, the cave walk for nocturnal species and the gorilla habitat!
 
JezP100 said:
I know this masterplan got revealed just over a year ago, but Colchester. I've been going there for as long as I can remember and each time I visit, it mostly never dissapoints me. The exciting thing is that the Masterplan is already underway with Dinosaur realm being part of it. Overall, I'm particularly pleased to see that current species such as the Orangutans and the animals in the Savanha paddocks are getting brand new enclosures, but also more excited for some of the new stuff such as a butterfly house, the cave walk for nocturnal species and the gorilla habitat!
Click to expand...

The cave walk sounds exciting, and with nocturnal species inside, I need to go visit the zoo when the habitat is finished. Also, great to hear existing animals are receiving better habitats in the future! Thanks for sharing!
 
Attached it there so you can take a look and see if i've missed anything significant
 

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Truthfully, I'd like to see less of the "mega-masterplans" that some zoos seem to love. Instead, I'd love to see more zoos focus on more tangible, five to ten year plans that might actually be more achievable, rather than masterplans that will inevitably change and become outdated. This is not to say there's no value to a long-term vision: I just don't think it needs to be the priority for all zoos when there can be lots of smaller improvements that add up over time instead.
 
I think the intent with the master plans is to drive up the maximum number of funds towards overall improvements, as opposed to getting a ton of people donating to your elephant fund but not your 'fixing the broken pipes in the basement' fund. Similar to how many conservation programs will use a keystone species to attract funding but spend a lot of those dollars on other species in the same habitat.
 
I don't get excited by zoo masterplans because they fall apart or change so much. Until a bulldozer starts pulling the ground, you never know what happens. The same with plans to import new animals - until the animal walks out of its transport cage, everything is uncertain.
 
In Beauval there are many ideas expressed by the director, but I don't know if all these ideas and projects will be actually applied, and probably the director himself doesn't know more.
In the last decade the zoo has really enlarged its collection and built world-class enclosures and complexes, but there were some projects that haven't been realized at all : a North American zone (as a sequel to the wolf/bear complex), the display of Pygmy Hippos along with the Nile (indeed there's a pair of Pygmies since 2020 but in the Tropical Dome), the presence of Lemurs and African monkeys was also planned in the Dome but never happened (however there are trapdoors between the outside and inside sections of the Giant Tortoise/Fruit Bat aviary that may be suitable for primates...). The arrival of Yellow-backed Duikers was planned since 2015 (it was announced in the pressbooks and advertisements in this time) but hasn't happened until 2022.
 
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