Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo Henry Doorly Zoo News 2019

I added some images of Asian Highlands phase 2 to the media section.











 
I added some images of Asian Highlands phase 2 to the media section.












I was able to see this exhibit just a few days after opening to the public. Photos cannot express how fantastic it really is.

~Thylo
 
Omaha is really something else. In the past five years I ca't think of another zoo that has invested so much money into new projects as Omaha in such a short period of time. The African Grasslands, Asian Highlands, Children's Adventure Trails for new animal habitats, all multi million dollar exhibit complexes that all appear to be excellent. Not to mention the Alaskan Adventure Waterpark and the Glacier Bay Landing plaza for guests. With the upcoming sea lion exhibit (which looks breathtaking) and the renovated Scott Aquarium, it looks Omaha will continue to dominate in the zoological world for years to come. At the rate their going there may not be a single outdated exhibit in the whole zoo once the African Forest exhibit opens. I am itching to get here as soon as possible.
 
Omaha is really something else. In the past five years I ca't think of another zoo that has invested so much money into new projects as Omaha in such a short period of time. The African Grasslands, Asian Highlands, Children's Adventure Trails for new animal habitats, all multi million dollar exhibit complexes that all appear to be excellent. Not to mention the Alaskan Adventure Waterpark and the Glacier Bay Landing plaza for guests. With the upcoming sea lion exhibit (which looks breathtaking) and the renovated Scott Aquarium, it looks Omaha will continue to dominate in the zoological world for years to come. At the rate their going there may not be a single outdated exhibit in the whole zoo once the African Forest exhibit opens. I am itching to get here as soon as possible.

Without a doubt, Omaha is now very close to being the best zoo in America in the eyes of many ZooChatters. Every experienced zoo nerd who has visited in the past few years, from myself to @ThylacineAlive to @jayjds2 to many others, all find the zoo simply spectacular. The upcoming California Sea Lion habitat is going to have a wave machine like Hannover in Germany, further guaranteeing that the now $27.5 million project will be amazing. The article even mentions Polar Bears, Brown Bears, Sea Otters and Canadian Lynx in the Alaskan-themed part of the zoo in future exhibits. The sea lion exhibit will likely be up there with Saint Louis (love that tunnel!) and Fresno Chaffee as one of the best pinniped exhibits in the country. The only complaint that I sometimes see on news articles (scroll down on some of the Omaha news releases to read the comments) is that for locals the zoo has been a major construction site for what seems like forever. However, I would point out that since there are 160 acres, any sections under maintenance would only represent a minor chunk of the overall site. Plus, the zoo has improved tremendously in the past decade and close to 50 acres of the property has been overhauled in a very short period of time. Will this zoo ever stop? Wow.
 
The upcoming California Sea Lion habitat is going to have a wave machine like Hannover in Germany, further guaranteeing that the now $27.5 million project will be amazing.

I did not realize this! I loved Hannover's pinniped exhibit and the wave pool really cemented it as the best I've seen yet. It's too bad inhabitant species isn't a bit more exciting but that's nitpicky I suppose.

~Thylo
 
Two recent stories which I hadn't seen posted yet.

Construction of Omaha zoo's new sea lion exhibit hits 'milestone' as huge windows installed


"The Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium’s new sea lion habitat got one step closer to completion on Monday with the installation of two massive pieces of acrylic.

The panels, one 43 feet long and the other 14 feet long, will serve as underwater viewing windows for guests visiting the sea lions in the new Owen Sea Lion Shores exhibit.

“What I love about this window is people will get to see the grace of these animals as they move through the water,” said zoo director Dennis Pate.

Visitors will have 360-degree views to watch seven to 10 sea lions swim around a 275,000-gallon seasonally heated and chilled saltwater pool.

Pate, who watched as a crane lifted the 17,000-pound piece of acrylic into place, said he considers it a “milestone” of the building process.
The $27.5 million Owen Sea Lion Shores exhibit is being constructed at the site of the former Durham Bear Canyon and is projected to open in September 2020.

Pate said the habitat will capture the environment of the Pacific Northwest with details like a saltwater filtration system and evergreen trees.

“The details just add to the learning experience,” Pate said.

The new sea lion pool replaces the Owen Sea Lion Pavilion, which will close next summer. The exhibit opened in 1972 after the zoo unearthed and modified a buried public pool that had closed amid a polio epidemic in the 1940s."

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And unfortunately some sad news from the African Grasslands

21-year-old female white rhino euthanized at Omaha zoo

"The Omaha Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium on Tuesday announced the death of a female white rhino.

Marina, a 21-year-old white rhino, was euthanized Monday after the discovery of an inoperable colonic obstruction, zoo officials said in a statement.

Marina was being treated for symptoms similar to colic after zoo staff noticed that she appeared lethargic last Wednesday, a zoo spokeswoman told The World-Herald. When she didn’t respond appropriately to medical treatment, she underwent a surgical procedure, and doctors discovered the obstruction.

Marina lived in the African Grasslands habitat and came to the Omaha zoo in 1999.

Omaha’s staff previously had collaborated with rhino specialists at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden to inseminate Marina, but she didn’t become pregnant.

Currently, one male and one female live in the zoo.

White rhinos are listed as near threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List."
 
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