Masterplan of my "absolute" zoo

[Rayane]

Thank you for this thread. It has been an interesting read so far.
A few remarks:
- Reptiles, amphibians and arthropods do not really appear to be your focus of interest, do they
- Which French caves currently keep olms? I'm just aware of the Hermannshöhle in Germany as well as Zagreb Zoo and one Slovenian institute keeping the species.

Unfortunately, and please don't get this the wrong way, I'm getting the impression that you're heading into the same direction most of these fantasy zoos take at ZooChat: that your "absolute zoo" would be a financially implausible, vast megazoo, mainly dedicated to zoo nerds and species collectors. Filled to the brink with a plethora of exclusive animals (including their already fictional, individually named offspring), which seem to be mainly chosen based on a) their nonexistence or rarity in European zoos and b) your personal preference. I doubt that normal visitors, in particular families with children, would appreciate your vision.

I knew I had heard Olms were present in France but I couldn't remember where.
From what's written on Wikipedia, they were introduced in Moulis (southwestern France) in 1952 in specially made bassins, similar to the ones they live in in Croatia. They now have more than 400 olms and claim to be the only succesful breeding program.

I found this interesting article.

 

[Haliaeetus]

An amazing thread so far! Have you considered doing exhibits for the other Penguin species?

Hello,
I may plan another penguin exhibit in the Oceanian Zone, designed for South Australian or Neo-Zealander species.
Changes may also happen in the species range of the Antarctic exhibit.
It will depend of the species list chosen in the future version of my zoo, that will be released by early 2022.

 

[Batto]

I knew I had heard Olms were present in France but I couldn't remember where.
From what's written on Wikipedia, they were introduced in Moulis (southwestern France) in 1952 in specially made bassins, similar to the ones they live in in Croatia. They now have more than 400 olms and claim to be the only succesful breeding program.

I found this interesting article.

Thank you for sharing the article; I'm surprised that they weigh so little.

 

[Haliaeetus]

Thank you for this thread. It has been an interesting read so far.
A few remarks:
- Reptiles, amphibians and arthropods do not really appear to be your focus of interest, do they
- Which French caves currently keep olms? I'm just aware of the Hermannshöhle in Germany as well as Zagreb Zoo and one Slovenian institute keeping the species.

Unfortunately, and please don't get this the wrong way, I'm getting the impression that you're heading into the same direction most of these fantasy zoos take at ZooChat: that your "absolute zoo" would be a financially implausible, vast megazoo, mainly dedicated to zoo nerds and species collectors. Filled to the brink with a plethora of exclusive animals (including their already fictional, individually named offspring), which seem to be mainly chosen based on a) their nonexistence or rarity in European zoos and b) your personal preference. I doubt that normal visitors, in particular families with children, would appreciate your vision.

Hello,

your post is very interesting, I need sometimes critic points of view.

I try to answer to your questions :

1) About the herps and arthropods : you may have noticed that an entire zone of my zoo (Vivarium) is dedicated to them, and the collection of species isn't anecdotical at all. I'll describe it during the month of December.
Additionnally there are few reptile species in other zones of my Zoo : indigenous turtle, snake and lizard species in the European Zone, crocodilians in the Asian Zone and sea turtles in the Aquarium, snakes, turtles and iguana in the South American one.

2) About the Olms : they have been introduced at least in 3 landlocked places in France, for scientific purposes : Moulis cave, described earlier, Choranche cave, in the Alps, and Clamouse cave in the Hérault (South of country). So we can imagine the presence of a few individuals directly imported from these French sites in our zoos.
Several webpages exist about them, but mostly (if not only) in French language, as this one : Protée anguillard — Wikipédia

3) About the whole collection : zoos of similar sizes exist in France, e.g. the Zooparc de Beauval where I go frequently (OK it's the biggest zoo of the country...) and that have unique or very rare species like Red-shanked Douc, Tasmanian Devil, Harpy Eagle and many others...
OK there are many unique species in Europe, that I purposely selected for their curiosity or conservation interest (OK I admit some species aren't realistic in current conditions, like the Cuban Solenodon or the Honey Possum for example).
Concerning your doubts about the interest of the zoo for "average" visitors, I add that my collection mixes common and rarer species, the latter being often quite difficult to see and interesting mainly the specialists, but that's offset by the presence of numerous charismatic species loved by the public (that probably will attract it, more than a lot of rarer species). There are Lions, Tigers, Giraffes, Elephants, Gorillas, Chimpanzees, Orang-utans, Sea Lions, Humboldt Penguins, 2 species of Bears, Kangaroos...
So this collection isn't only dedicated to "zoo nerds" or "collectors", even if the presence of rare species has been a criterion of my choice.

 

[Ebirah766]

In response to Batto, I've been following this thread for a while and I believe this is the most realistic zoo design thread out there. It has a mixture of obscure and charismatic species, exhibited in such a way that average visitors could find it interesting.

 

[Batto]

@Haliaeetus Thank you for your reply.

I did notice that you have mentioned some reptiles, amphibians and the odd invertebrate in your scenario so far. However, in comparison to the great variety of mammals and birds, they tend to go under and get the short end of the stick. Similar to real zoos...

We should definitely add the French olm caves to ZTL for the sake of completeness.

Yes, there are vast zoos with extensive collections and rare species (even outside of France ). However, as you correctly pointed out yourself, you might have overdone it a bit in terms of unrealistic rarities and the sheer mass of species.

It's not just the mix of charismatic megafauna and rare zoological wallflowers. What kind of non-animal attractions and exclusive visitor amenities would your zoo offer that would make the average zoo visitor (= the kind of person who does not appreciate a dozen species of rare pheasants) wish to stay longer (and spend more money, so that you can afford those pricey sea otters, elephants, giant filtration systems etc)?

 

[Batto]

In response to Batto, I've been following this thread for a while and I believe this is the most realistic zoo design thread out there. It has a mixture of obscure and charismatic species, exhibited in such a way that average visitors could find it interesting.

As mentioned in my previous reply: Just mixing common popular species with rare peculiar ones doesn't make a concept automatically more realistic.

 

[Haliaeetus]

@Haliaeetus Thank you for your reply.

I did notice that you have mentioned some reptiles, amphibians and the odd invertebrate in your scenario so far. However, in comparison to the great variety of mammals and birds, they tend to go under and get the short end of the stick. Similar to real zoos...

Wait a few days...

@Haliaeetus
It's not just the mix of charismatic megafauna and rare zoological wallflowers. What kind of non-animal attractions and exclusive visitor amenities would your zoo offer that would make the average zoo visitor (= the kind of person who does not appreciate a dozen species of rare pheasants) wish to stay longer (and spend more money, so that you can afford those pricey sea otters, elephants, giant filtration systems etc)?

I don't believe that the pheasants are the most expensive species one can find.
About the global cost, I would explain the experience of Beauval Zoo in France, a very large park similar in size and in number of species (plus the Pandas and Koalas). It supports tens of conservation and research programs around the world.
This zoo has became a major touristical attraction in the middle of a touristical region (the Val de Loire, prized for its castles, but also for oenology, bike trails and other forms of tourism). It has built several hotels around the zoo, with exotic themes. Some people sleep in the hotels without even visiting the zoo.
I don't know how work similar zoos in neighbouring countries (I think to Pairi Daiza in Belgium, a recent and huge park, with an exponential growth, maybe even stronger than Beauval), but these two examples show that zoos of this type can exist and work.
I add finally that I describe a purely fictional zoo, even if some zones and exhibits could exist in real parks and may even inspire them.

 

[Batto]

Depends on the pheasants in question... But I wasn't actually referring to pheasants.
Isn't the concept of a vivarium or an aquarium with its focus on special "taxonomic" animal groups a digression from your general zoogeographic concept (even when internally arranged according to zoogeographic aspects)?
And to be honest: isn't the zoogeographic concept in most zoos all too conservative, beat-up and restrictive?
What would be your USPs to distinguish your zoo from Beauval or PD? Just by the amount and variety of zoological rarities?
I do understand that this concept is an (entertaining) piece of fiction. However, when it comes to zoo concepts, I'm notorious for striving for realism as much as possible. Therefore, sorry for my inconvenience.

 

[Haliaeetus]

Isn't the concept of a vivarium or an aquarium with its focus on special animal groups a digression from your general zoogeographic concept (even when internally arranged according to zoogeographic aspects)?

The vivarium (as the aquarium previously described) doesn't follow the general zoogeographical plan of my Zoo. But it will be divided in several sub-sections that I will describe later (the aquarium was divided in freshwater and marine sections, each including a temperate and a tropical sub-section ; the plan of the vivarium will be slightly different).
It seemed more interesting to gather most reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates in a large building (with few exceptions) than creating many little vivariums for each biozone.

And to be honest: isn't the zoogeographic concept in most zoos all too conservative, beat-up and restrictive?

I don't understand why, if the concept is properly done. It's more interesting than making multiple exhibits with miscellaneous animals, without logic (I remember an enclosure where there were Emus, Sitatungas, Griffon Vultures and Marabou Storks in the early 2010's in Beauval, and nearly everybody here can remember such strange exhibits).

What would be your USPs to distinguish your zoo from Beauval or PD? Just by the amount and variety of zoological rarities?

This zoo is fictive, it hasn't the purpose to "distinguish" to Beauval, PD or any other zoo, nor to copy them, just to describe an ideal of collection with a consistent masterplan (based on zoogeography). I started from the French context because it's my country, I may have acted differently if I was Japanese, Brazilian or Norwegian.
I avoided for now some emblematic species as Rhinos, Hippos, Pandas, Koalas or Manatees (the three latest are emblematic to Beauval for many years), but I assume that the collection could change with the years, with the departure of some species and the arrival of others.

 

[Batto]

I don't understand why, if the concept is properly done

There have been several discussions on the shortcomings of the zoogeographic concept on ZooChat in the past. Among others, it is usually not properly executed (like species from all regions of a continent mixed together ...), focuses on only a few standard scenarios and limits the flexibility of zoos to react to changes in population numbers, species availability and husbandry standards. It speaks for itself that even Tierpark Hellabrunn, as the original founder of this concept, has so far failed to implement it properly.
The alternative(s) to the zoogeographic concept isn't limited to a random species assembly, but to a great variety of concepts, like arrangements according to biomes, taxonomy, conservation, aspects of biology, culture...
If you don't want to distinguish your concept from Beauval or PD, you shouldn't have referred to them in the first place.

 

[Haliaeetus]

There have been several discussions on the shortcomings of the zoogeographic concept on ZooChat in the past. Among others, it is usually not properly executed (South African species mixed together with East or North African ones...), focuses on only a few standards and limits the flexibility of zoos to react to changes in population numbers, species availability and husbandry standards.

I'm aware about bad zoogeographical designs.
It's the reason because I try to be consistent in my plan, justifying the disposition of my enclosures and displayed animals using "sub-zones" for each large zone, even in the cases when this disposition is flawed.
For example in my African Zone there's a row of aviaries for ground hornbills, vultures, secretary birds, bustards... but also Eastern Imperial Eagles and Northern Bald Ibises.
I explained this incoherence has been justified by : 1) works in the European aviaries that justified temporary displacements of the birds ; 2) their presence in tropical Africa as wintering birds (at least in the past for the Ibises since the virtual extinction of the Eastern subpopulation) even if they aren't true tropical African breeders.
Another example is the Amazonian Ark that displays not only "true" Amazonian species but also animals of the Atlantic forest of South-Eastern Brazil, Central American tropical forests or even the Caribbean Isles ; that has been explained as this building presents species of the Neotropical Jungles, many taxa encompassing the whole area, as well as the similarity in conservation issues.

If you don't want to distinguish your concept from Beauval or PD, you shouldn't have referred to them in the first place.

I don't "refer" especially to Beauval or Pairi Daiza (I haven't never been to the latter) in the design of my zoo, but to many generalist large zoos, past or current. Nonetheless I illustrate my thread with many pictures I've taken in Beauval because I go there frequently, that doesn't mean it's my only source of inspiration.
I've also other sources of inspiration (not only restricted to zoos and sometimes nearly unconscious), but I would unveil them later, probably by early 2022.

 

[Batto]

I'm aware about bad zoogeographical designs.
It's the reason because I try to be consistent in my plan, justifying the disposition of my enclosures and displayed animals using "sub-zones" for each large zone, even in the cases when this disposition is flawed.
For example in my African Zone there's a row of aviaries for ground hornbills, vultures, secretary birds, bustards... but also Eastern Imperial Eagles and Northern Bald Ibises.
I explained this incoherence has been justified by : 1) works in the European aviaries that justified temporary displacements of the birds ; 2) their presence in tropical Africa as wintering birds (at least in the past for the Ibises since the virtual extinction of the Eastern subpopulation) even if they aren't true tropical African breeders.
Another example is the Amazonian Ark that displays not only "true" Amazonian species but also animals of the Atlantic forest of South-Eastern Brazil, Central American tropical forests or even the Caribbean Isles ; that has been explained as this building presents species of the Neotropical Jungles, many taxa encompassing the whole area, as well as the similarity in conservation issues.



I don't "refer" especially to Beauval or Pairi Daiza (I haven't never been to the latter) in the design of my zoo, but to many generalist large zoos, past or current. Nonetheless I illustrate my thread with many pictures I've taken in Beauval because I go there frequently, that doesn't mean it's my only source of inspiration.
I've also other sources of inspiration (not only restricted to zoos and sometimes nearly unconscious), but I would unveil them later, probably by early 2022.

So, Beauval / PD reference or not, what would be the USPs of your zoo for the average zoo visitor?

 

[Haliaeetus]

So, Beauval / PD reference or not, what would be the USPs of your zoo for the average zoo visitor?

Hello,
the main feature of my masterplan is that it allows the visitor to make a real world tour in a single day. The cultural aspects of every culture and civilization, and the symbolics of animals in them, are highlighted.
I would create short and longer trails across my zoo to make easier the visits, adapted for different types of visits.
I haven't yet reflected to hotels or other facilities for visitors.
Now, as this masterplan is a fictive scenario, and as I'm not an expert of business models, I propose to close any argument about the commercial attractiveness of my Zoo for "average" visitors (the success of such a park depends of contingent factors, I cited Beauval or Pairi Daiza only to explain that parks of this size with very large species collections are feasible, of course there are other models like the Berlin ZooS in a significantly different political, economical and even historical context.
Thank you for your understanding.

 

[Batto]

Now, as this masterplan is a fictive scenario

I'm aware of that. But as mentioned before, I do appreciate realism.
I'm not really convinced by your reasoning, but I respect your wish not to continue with my grouse.

 

[Haliaeetus]

Hello,

it's time now to present the last zone of my Zoo, the Vivarium, dedicated to reptiles, amphibians and land invertebrates.

It's a large circular building, with only one half-buried level and melliferous vegetation on the "roof".
Most exhibits and paths are lighted with natural light ("skylights") except for the venomous snakes (for safety reasons if they escape) and in the darkest days of winter, in order to reduce the energy consumption.

You can see that there are many exhibits (and so many species, you can guess it), each colour representing a section :

• light blue (1-8) : freshwater invertebrates
• yellowish green (9-13) : European land insects
• dark green (14) : arachnids
• medium green (15-19) : tropical land invertebrates
• light green (20-28) : European amphibians and reptiles
• turquoise (29-38) : exotic amphibians
• emerald green (39-45) : tropical forest reptiles
• dark blue (46-54) : aquatic and marine reptiles
• orange-yellow (55-64) : savanna and desert reptiles
• pale green (65) : giant turtles
• red (66-77) : the venom gallery, venomous snakes
• purple (78-79) : crocodilians.

There are also outdoor enclosures for some species but I'll present them at the very end.

You will discover here a large array of species, and many reproductive successes.
For most invertebrates species I wouldn't specify the sex of the animals, as it is often very difficult to determinate (without counting the numerous cases of hermaphrodism).

But let's start the visit.

Entering the building, the visitor comes in a lobby with many small tanks at the left (1-4) and at the right (5-8), dedicated to freshwater invertebrates, mostly from Europe. Some of them are very small, no bigger than a few litres.
The smallest species can be seen behing magnifying glass, as it has been historically the case in the Micro-Zoo (Jardin des Plantes, Paris).

For now (as by the 31/12/2020) the following species are displayed here :

• 1) European Medicinal Leech Hirudo medicinalis (0.0.34)
• 2) Lesser Water Boatman Corixa punctata (0.0.88)
• 3) Aquatic Bug Ranatra linearis (0.0.2)
• 4) Diving Beetle Cybister chinensis (0.0.8)
• 5) Brine Shrimp Artemia salina (0.0.112)
• 6) Pond Slater Asellus aquaticus (0.0.102)
• 7) Freshwater Copepod Cyclops sp. (0.0.980)
• 8) Water Flea Daphnia pulex (0.0.156)

The Zoo has seen, anecdotically, the "hatching" of 40 Water Flee in 2020.

Medicinal Leech :

(Credits : Maguari)

Pond Slater :

(Credits : vogelcommando)

The pedagogy of this section is centered on the adaptations of these species (obviously not glamorous at all !), and their ecological importance (for example Brine Shrimps are among the only creatures to thrive in salty lakes, and the main food for Flamingos), also their interest for human activities, as Freshwater Leeches in the historical medicine.

In the next days I'll describe the next insect and invertebrate exhibits.

Stay in touch !

 

[CrashMegaraptor]

Welp, thanks for letting me know where the arachnids are - staying the hell away from there unless there's a massive surprise further down the line.

 

[TeaLovingDave]

- Which French caves currently keep olms? I'm just aware of the Hermannshöhle in Germany as well as Zagreb Zoo and one Slovenian institute keeping the species.

2) About the Olms : they have been introduced at least in 3 landlocked places in France, for scientific purposes : Moulis cave, described earlier, Choranche cave, in the Alps, and Clamouse cave in the Hérault (South of country). So we can imagine the presence of a few individuals directly imported from these French sites in our zoos.

As @amur leopard discovered a year or so ago, La Grotte de Clamouse actually has a captive display of olms!

Olm Signage - ZooChat

Olm, Grotte de Clamouse, France - ZooChat

 

[Haliaeetus]

Hello,

today, I describe the next steps of the Vivarium, with a lot of exhibits dedicated to invertebrates.

After the aquatic species, the following section displays land species of native insects (9-13).
Most species (except one) are really common. They live mainly in small terraria, except the main attraction of the section, a very large Ant colony.

The displayed species are :

• 9) Predatory Bush Cricket Saga pedo (0.7), this is the rarest species to be displayed here, it's also an exclusively parthenogenetic species ;
• 10) European Mantis Mantis religiosa (0.0.5) ;
  
• 11) Silverfish Lepisma sp. (0.0.58) ; Bottle Fly Calliphora sp. (0.0.224) ; Bumblebee Bombus sp. (0.0.80) in three different exhibits (Bumblebees can go outside, by a small window) ;
• 12) Red Wood Ant Formica rufa (0.0.39000)
• 13) Carpenter Ant Camponotus sp. (0.0.21000)

Here there's plenty of humoristical information about the ecological role and adaptations of the numerous insect species represented across the world, from the most secretive dwellers of forests and bushes, to the widespread commensals and Silverfish and Flies. The displaying of other under-appreciated species, such as cockroaches, is also considered in the near future.

The breeding of diverse species has happened in 2020, with the hatching of European Mantis (0.0.39) that can be seen in the Nursery (see the North Asian Zone), and enormous numbers of Red Wood Ants (estimated to near 130.000 individuals in the year, obviously impossible to number precisely).

Possible look of Cricket and Mantis exhibits :

(Credits : Moebelle)

European Mantis :

(Credits : nikola)

Silverfish (small) exhibit (without the Japanese texts) :

(Credits : FunkyGibbon)

Bottle Fly :

(Credits : Kakapo)

Bumblebees :

(Credits : TheoV)

Colony of Carpenter Ants :

(Credits : FunkyGibbon)

The next complex of exhibits (14) is called Arachnophilia : Into the Web.
It's in reality composed of many terrariums, each containing 1 to 3 spiders of one species, belonging to three indigenous or exotic species of spiders :

• Jorō spider Trichonephila clavata (2.1)
• European Garden Spider Araneus diadematus (4.3)
• Mediterranean Black Widow Latrodectus tredecimguttatus (4.3)

This sector aims to highlight the beauty of the spiders and their webs, and their place in the folklore of all the countries and times.

In 2020, the Zoo has attended the hatching of Mediterranean Black Widows (0.0.54). Some of these young spiders can be seen in mini-terraria in the Nursery.

The Zoo plans to display other spider species in the near future, the acclimatization of Diving Bell Spiders is waited and can happen from next year.

European Garden Spider :

(Credits : Kakapo)

Possible look of the spider exhibits :

(Credits : akasha)

The next (and last) part of the Invertebrate sector is a complex of terraria designed for exotic species of invertebrates (15-19).

The species displayed in this sector are :

• 15) Desert Locust Schistocerca gregaria (0.0.843)
• 16) Atlas Moth Attacus atlas (0.0.35)
• 17) Domestic Silk Moth Bombyx mori (0.0.95)
• 18) Velvet Worm Peripatus sp. (0.0.9)
• 19) Centipede Scolopendra sp. (0.0.9)

In this sector there's information about the relationship between humans and insects, some species seen as an universal pest (as the Locusts, synonym of curse in the Bible for example), other being remarkably usefu as the Domestic Silk Moth, that's entirely domesticated (this species no longer exists in the wild and has even lost its ability to fly, an unique case among the insects).

The two moth species displayed here allow to see all the life stages of these species, there's also information about the different types of metamorphosis among the insect species.

Huge numbers of Domestic Silk Moths (0.0.88) have also hatched in the Zoo in 2020.

Desert Locusts :

(Credits : AdrianW1963)

Locust Terrarium :

(Credits : KevinB)

Atlas Moth and cocoons :

(Credits : geomorph)

Silk Moth caterpillars :

(Credits : Kakapo)

Velvet Worm :

(Credits : ronnienl)

Centipede :

(Credits : birdsandbats)

Possible look of Centipede terrarium :

(Credits : Yi Qi)

The invertebrate section is over. Now you can comment it, give me some suggestions about the species, the exhibits, the pedagogy...

In the next days of the week, I'll show you the first herp and amphibian exhibits, beginning with the European native species.

See you later !

 

[CrashMegaraptor]

Ah, no tarantulas. I commend you. ^^