The Aviary recently re-opened, meaning that for the first time in two years, Henry Vilas Zoo is fully open. It's nice to hear of an aviary opening these days rather than closing.
Henry Vilas Zoo Henry Vilas Zoo News 2022
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Apparently, the zoo doesn't do mixed-species enclosures for their larger species, as they are "too dangerous." I was looking at the comments on one of the former keeper's Instagram posts, and I saw other keepers smack-talking on there.
I guess we won't see any mixed Savannah enclosures at Henry Vilas anytime soon.
I guess we won't see any mixed Savannah enclosures at Henry Vilas anytime soon.
I went to the zoo today and the aviary was not open. All of the other buildings were open, though.
Updates from 3/17/2022 Visit
- The Primate Building is open!
- Two Rock Hyrax are now on exhibit.
- The Aviary is still closed. Possibly due to Bird Flu?
- The Herpetarium is now open, but the Discovery Center is closed. The doors of the Discovery Center now have decals on them that completely cover the door and say: "Education session is in progress."
- There is a Timber Rattlesnake on exhibit again.
- There were no Chuckwalla on exhibit, but the sign was still there.
- The Golden Lion Tamarins are no longer on exhibit in the vet building.
- There was no female Von der Decken's Hornbill on exhibit and the male appeared to be extremely anxious.
- There were three Meerkats on exhibit. Two were missing sections of their tails.
- Aayla the Aardvark now has sand in half of her enclosure. (I don't remember if it was there before or not.)
- Eddie is the only Generic Giraffe on exhibit anymore. Wallie must have passed away or was transferred to another facility. (I didn't hear any news about a transfer, and it would be hard to travel with a giraffe that large.)
Yesterday I took a drive up to Madison to check out a potential choice for college, and with a zoo five minutes from the campus it only seemed natural that I should squeeze that as well, which I did.
This wasn't my first time at the zoo. I first visited Henry Vilas about seven years ago shortly after Arctic Passage opened, before I joined this site. I remember I had liked before hand, but I was much younger so I didn't analyze things like I do now. Upon yesterdays repeat visit, I still liked it but it wasn't quite as great as I remember it. The primate house is a traditional affair that lacks any real character or creativity. There was a rather funny moment that involved the pair of rock hyrax mixed with the black and white ruffed lemurs, with the male attempted to mount the female while on a ramp which made them slide down in the process.
The central portion of the zoo lacks any real direction with a mix of dusty ungulate yards and some big cat exhibits. The lion and tiger habitats are quite nice, but the rest of the area is a bit rough. The giraffe yard is sort of bad, and from what it sounds like they are down to a single individual which doesn't help. A huge highlight was an active Somali wild ass sprinting around between its two yards, although I distinctly remember there being an ostrich and Barbados sheep here in the past, but it appears they are no more. One last thing to note is the porcupine exhibit which is wonderful and unusually large. It appears the wooden platforms that were installed have been removed for some reason, anyone know why?
The Arctic Passage complex is what put this small zoo on the map, and considering the size and stature of the place is a very impressive development. The polar and grizzly bear yards are open and spacious and wouldn't look all that out of place at any major zoo. I've gone on in the past about how even some of the better polar bear exhibits in America are still far too small, and while the one here isn't an Arctic Ring of Life by any means, I found it to be a great deal larger than what can be found at Saint Louis, Lincoln Park, Como Park, Pittsburgh, Toledo, etc. I'm also a sucker for the restaurant with large windows viewing out into the polar bear yard. It's not all perfect. Mock rock covers up a large portion of the barrier, but they seemingly gave up halfway through the construction process and left huge cement walls in plain view of guests. The seals were also clearly an afterthought in this project and their exhibit is only a minor upgrade from their previous accommodation.
The absolute highlight of the visit was the Wisconsin Heritage exhibit which was the only semi-major addition since my 2015 visit. I've had negative luck with the lone badger at Milwaukee so the idea of seeing multiple active badgers excited me prior to my visit. The first time around was slightly disappointing as both of the badgers were sleeping in their nest box. I come back later to find both animals incredibly active, moving all around their exhibit both indoors and out. It was fantastic! I wasn't as keen on the adjacent sandhill crane exhibit which is rather small, but the badger exhibit alone makes this area a great success.
Overall, Henry Vilas is quite good. It would be nice if they could fix up the middle portion of the grounds a bit more, but with the Arctic Passage and Wisconsin Heritage exhibits the east portion of the zoo is a great time. It also didn't help that it had been raining and lightly snowing the entire morning of my trip which meant a lot of exhibits looked a bit rough compared to how they usually would, which may impact my perception of the place just a tad.
This wasn't my first time at the zoo. I first visited Henry Vilas about seven years ago shortly after Arctic Passage opened, before I joined this site. I remember I had liked before hand, but I was much younger so I didn't analyze things like I do now. Upon yesterdays repeat visit, I still liked it but it wasn't quite as great as I remember it. The primate house is a traditional affair that lacks any real character or creativity. There was a rather funny moment that involved the pair of rock hyrax mixed with the black and white ruffed lemurs, with the male attempted to mount the female while on a ramp which made them slide down in the process.
The central portion of the zoo lacks any real direction with a mix of dusty ungulate yards and some big cat exhibits. The lion and tiger habitats are quite nice, but the rest of the area is a bit rough. The giraffe yard is sort of bad, and from what it sounds like they are down to a single individual which doesn't help. A huge highlight was an active Somali wild ass sprinting around between its two yards, although I distinctly remember there being an ostrich and Barbados sheep here in the past, but it appears they are no more. One last thing to note is the porcupine exhibit which is wonderful and unusually large. It appears the wooden platforms that were installed have been removed for some reason, anyone know why?
The Arctic Passage complex is what put this small zoo on the map, and considering the size and stature of the place is a very impressive development. The polar and grizzly bear yards are open and spacious and wouldn't look all that out of place at any major zoo. I've gone on in the past about how even some of the better polar bear exhibits in America are still far too small, and while the one here isn't an Arctic Ring of Life by any means, I found it to be a great deal larger than what can be found at Saint Louis, Lincoln Park, Como Park, Pittsburgh, Toledo, etc. I'm also a sucker for the restaurant with large windows viewing out into the polar bear yard. It's not all perfect. Mock rock covers up a large portion of the barrier, but they seemingly gave up halfway through the construction process and left huge cement walls in plain view of guests. The seals were also clearly an afterthought in this project and their exhibit is only a minor upgrade from their previous accommodation.
The absolute highlight of the visit was the Wisconsin Heritage exhibit which was the only semi-major addition since my 2015 visit. I've had negative luck with the lone badger at Milwaukee so the idea of seeing multiple active badgers excited me prior to my visit. The first time around was slightly disappointing as both of the badgers were sleeping in their nest box. I come back later to find both animals incredibly active, moving all around their exhibit both indoors and out. It was fantastic! I wasn't as keen on the adjacent sandhill crane exhibit which is rather small, but the badger exhibit alone makes this area a great success.
Overall, Henry Vilas is quite good. It would be nice if they could fix up the middle portion of the grounds a bit more, but with the Arctic Passage and Wisconsin Heritage exhibits the east portion of the zoo is a great time. It also didn't help that it had been raining and lightly snowing the entire morning of my trip which meant a lot of exhibits looked a bit rough compared to how they usually would, which may impact my perception of the place just a tad.
There was a chuckwalla on exhibit today.
Henry Vilas' original plans for Arctic Passage were themed to the nth degree, basically being like Hannover's Yukon Bay (even complete with a sunken ship to view the bears underwater). What was eventually built was done by WDM Architects, and from what I can see, they did a pretty good job of maximizing the amount of available space and maximizing the collection (two bear species and a pinniped). That said, I have a gut feeling it fell down the trap of *value engineering*, something that other zoos are certainly no stranger to.
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Wow, that first plan looks just ridiculous and I mean that in both good and bad ways. If I'm interpreting this right it looks like it would have taken up the current bison yard as well as the old grottos the exhibit already replaced. The second plan actually looks very similar to the final product, just missing those two "future animal" exhibits. It suppose it would have been nice to have a few supporting animals like arctic fox or snowy owl, but I digress.
I think this is a recent change. They had two in October.
I remember reading that the Somali Wild Ass would be leaving the zoo, but the information that I heard this from no longer exists, so I could not confirm this.
I couldn't agree more. From what it sounds like, the current management at Henry Vilas Zoo would not allow them to build a mixed hoofstock exhibit or anything, but renovating the middle portion to having modern African exhibits would be nice to see.
A new African Penguin exhibit wouldn't hurt either.
Regarding the former design of the Arctic Passage, I believe that the Bison and Prairie Dog exhibits were going to remain the same. I believe that the Caribou were going to be where the Wisconsin Heritage exhibit currently is.
AnonGibbon
Active Member
Wally was moved in summer 2020 - not sure where to. It has been just Eddie for quite a while now
Now that you mention it, my photos are only of Eddie.
I wonder why they transferred Eddie. The two have been together for years, and neither is genetically valuable. (I believe they both may be neutered, even.)
Do you know if they plan on bringing in another companion for Eddie? I wouldn't think they'd want to have him be alone for too long.
AnonGibbon
Active Member
I think it was because Wally was being aggressive towards Eddie. Not aware of any plans to bring in another because that central part of the zoo (rhino, giraffe, wild ass, and camels) is likely to be renovated in the near-ish future. No place for giraffes to go during renovation, so Eddie may need to be relocated as well.
I hadn’t realized they actually planned on redeveloping this area so soon. Any details on what this could entail?
I am curious about this as well. I remember seeing plans for the Somali Wild Ass to be transferred as well, but the source no longer exists, so I cannot double-check.
I wonder if they could temporarily house the Bactrian Camels in the Children's Zoo Barn?
It would be a shame if they transferred Harmon the rhinoceros. He is quite a personable individual.
AnonGibbon
Active Member
Not sure how public this info is supposed to be yet, but since I found it online, I suppose it's okay to share.
The giraffe, rhino, wild ass, and camel areas make up the first part of the zoo's next project. They will be entirely redone, and we can expect the addition of new species, including zebras and Przewalski's horse. Additionally, the penguins will get a new exhibit in this area
Bids have been submitted and a construction company will probably be chosen sometime this year. Construction beginning in 2023 possibly?
Unfortunately, I expect most animals currently in this area would need to be transferred during construction. Hopefully many could come back to the new exhibits
Edit: seems like I can't add any of the concept pictures I have
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Could you post links to the images?Not sure how public this info is supposed to be yet, but since I found it online, I suppose it's okay to share.
The giraffe, rhino, wild ass, and camel areas make up the first part of the zoo's next project. They will be entirely redone, and we can expect the addition of new species, including zebras and Przewalski's horse. Additionally, the penguins will get a new exhibit in this area
Bids have been submitted and a construction company will probably be chosen sometime this year. Construction beginning in 2023 possibly?
Unfortunately, I expect most animals currently in this area would need to be transferred during construction. Hopefully many could come back to the new exhibits
Edit: seems like I can't add any of the concept pictures I have
AnonGibbon
Active Member
Would guests be able to enter the building next to the orangutans?
I would love to see the other expansion. Not a huge fan of the zebras, but everything else would be interesting.
It looks like it. There is a visitor lobby and a section labeled small exhibits which could probably be for herps.
Thank you for these site plans @AnonGibbon. The savanna area doesn't look particularly unique but seems like it will be much needed upgrade, although I think I speak on behalf of everyone when I say I would much rather see the Somali wild ass stick around in favor of the zebras. The small Asian ungulate section is at least a bit more unique and the wild horses will be a good addition.
Where exactly does it show plans for a new penguin exhibit? I can't seem to find it on the concept art.
I'd be fine with zebras if it meant Grevy's, Hartmann's seems to be the norm nowadays.
AnonGibbon
Active Member
Sent you a message
Also, one more update: Ansel, the remaining former lion cub, has received an SSP recommendation and will be leaving or has left (not sure which) this spring.