A couple of weekends ago I visited Taronga Zoo for the first time in 12 months and noticed a number of changes. I spent about three hours at the zoo and visited almost everything except Backyard to Bush, Great Southern Oceans, the Cassowary, and the Capybaras. As the title says, this is not a review of the zoo, but just some personal observations.
Outside the main entrance were barricades for people to queue, where everyone had to scan a QR code before presenting their tickets. Last year the gates were down by the Tree Kangaroos so members of the public could visit the shop and café without actually entering the zoo, but now nobody passes the entrance without a ticket. Down by the Tree ‘Roos the booths are still there but unmanned and everyone just walked straight through.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/admission-prices-june-2021.532739/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/zoo-map.532761/full
The first thing I noticed was all the Horseshoe Aviaries have been demolished and new Koala Encounters area has been built in it’s place. A bit of a shame as the Horseshoe Aviaries have been at the zoo for as long as I‘ve been visiting the zoo, which is 45 years.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/koala-encounters-mkii.532748/full
Heading up to the Alligator exhibit I found no alligators, and the reeds have been cut right down to improve viewing of the Squirrel Monkeys on the islands.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/squirrel-monkey-viewing.532756/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/squirrel-monkey.532798/full
Following the path down the hill to the Reptile House I passed a new display for Corroboree Frogs, I believe this is for the Northern species. However, like the other display, it’s difficult to see the frogs due to the humidity on the inside of the windows.
Nothing to report in the reptile house, except that despite the signs reminding everyone to remain 1.5 metres apart, pretty much everyone was pushing up against each other to get a better view as they passed the tanks.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/red-eyed-tree-frog.532754/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/red-bellied-black-snake.532794/full
The main Chimp yard was empty, with signs stating the chimps were in the fenced off second enclosure at the western end of the exhibit. The moat was virtually empty so I presume they are planning on doing some maintenance on the exhibit. Again, social distancing was non-existent in front of the chimps.
Following the road to the west of the chimps it led to the new lion exhibit. This is built on the site of the old Barbary Sheep and Bongo enclosures, and also includes an area that at different times housed Dromedaries, Ostrich and Scimitar-horned Oryx.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/lion-viewing.532749/full
The old Barbary Sheep exhibit was all bedrock and concrete, and on a steepish slope that suited this mountain dwelling species. The only vegetation was a large, mature fig tree which made cleaning the exhibit a time-consuming task when the tree was dropping fruit as we’d come in each morning and find the pulp squashed all over the rock from dozens of hooves trampling them. It’s also worth noting that a map of the zoo I have from the 1930’s shows the Barbary Sheep being in this enclosure at that time – 90 odd years ago. One morning I came in and found the tree had blown over in a storm the previous night and was completely horizontal on the ground, and the Barbs loved climbing on the horizontal branches. Surprisingly, the tree didn’t die but survived on its side and I was pleased to see it is still doing well in the new exhibit. And virtually all of the enclosure is grassed with only a few bits of bare rock and concrete remaining.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/lion-enclosure.532750/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/lion.532788/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/lioness.532789/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/lions.532790/full
This new enclosure has three different viewing locations, the first being the largest, the subsequent views being further along the path around where the Bongo’s used to be and towards the old Waterhole exhibit (which isn’t there anymore). Overall, this new lion enclosure looks to be a good one.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/lion-enclosure.532751/full
As a former employee and longtime Taronga visitor I also noticed things outside/behind the exhibit, but not accessible to the public: one of the old circular rondavels (or shelters) that was on the previous road around the Barbary Sheep – I think at was called Stephen’s Lookout, although I could be wrong – and further around was Tahr Mountain, devoid of Tahrs, and the elevated platform the keepers used to hose down the mountain as best they could.
Following the path down from the Lions I passed two new Meerkat enclosures, glass-fronted, and replicas of the other Meerkat enclosure next to the Gorillas. So the zoo now has three Meerkat displays, two of them side-by-side.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/meerkat-enclosure.532752/full
The path then brings you out at the bottom of the African Savannah with Giraffes and Zebra, and opposite them is a large glass-fronted cage with Fennecs. It’s a nice large exhibit for the foxes, but as it faces north it suffers badly from reflections, and on this sunny day it was difficult to clearly see the animals and harder still to get any half-decent photos.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/savannah-exhibit.532747/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/fennec-cage.532744/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/fennec.532782/full
Heading down past the gorillas I stopped at the other meerkat exhibit and decided to head back to the Tigers, but passing the exhibit opposite the Meerkats – Mary Gibbon Island (as I call it) – I noticed some movement in the fig tree and realised it was now home to half-a-dozen Cottontop Tamarins. They were quite at home in the tree and despite the size of the tree most were foraging amongst the leaves close to the visitor pathway and so I stopped to take a few dozen photos. The tree has been there for a long time, but it appears to have a lot more foliage these days, I presume from constant pruning.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/cottontop-tamarin-exhibit.532743/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/cottontop-tamarin.532777/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/cottontop-tamarin.532778/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/cottontop-tamarin.532779/full
While photographing the tamarins I was distracted by a Whipbird hopping around in the vegetation between the Gorillas and the Meerkats and managed a few photos of this generally secretive bird, if vocal, bird.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/eastern-whipbird-male-wild-bird.533835/full
Heading back towards the tigers I passed a long line of people who had started to queue up for the Seal Show. I kept going and alongside one wall was an area for strollers to be left, as they can’t be taken into the theatre. Along the wall from one end to the other was a long mesh net that could be placed over the strollers, I guessed at first as a feeble attempt at security, but then noticed the strollers that didn’t have the net over them had Indian Mynahs in the strollers looking for food. I noticed elsewhere in the zoo when an empty stroller was left while the family was three metres away (ten feet) looking through a glass window at the animals, the Indian Mynahs would immediately visit the stroller looking for food.
The Sumatran Tigers didn’t have nearly as many people as the Lions did, possibly because an announcement about the Seal Show had probably diverted them in the opposite direction. But there was still a couple of dozen people there and I noticed that nobody stopped in the “immersion” experience prior to the exhibits. This includes walking through the interior of a plane fuselage with moving pictures of a jungle canopy below showing in the planes windows, and monitor with a pilot giving you a commentary on where your plane is headed, followed by a replica village meant to represent somewhere in Sumatra. When the complex was originally opened visitors were forced to wait in the plane for five minutes watching the commentary, and when it was finished you were all released as a group, and then the next batch of 30 or so people (queuing up outside) would be permitted in. Thank goodness they are not doing that now. After the animal exhibits is a replica supermarket you walk through, originally with information about different foodstuffs that have ingredients sourced from the jungle, and I think food companies that contribute to conservation in someway. As I said, nobody stopped to take in the experience of these displays and I thought there was so much space here that could have been utilised to make an extra, large tiger enclosure. Or perhaps a walk-through aviary with South-east Asian birds.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/sumatran-village-entry-to-the-tiger-exhibits.532759/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/sumatran-village-entry-to-the-tiger-exhibits.532760/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/sumatran-tiger-enclosure.532758/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/sumatran-tiger-enclosure.532757/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/sumatran-tiger.532799/full
After heading down behind the elephants (Palm Aviary, Francois Langur, Bongo, Binturong, Gibbon, Otter & Fishing Cat) I headed back up through the centre of the zoo towards the top and found, behind the new Koala Encounters one of the old aviaries still intact and full of finches, with a few other birds like Forest Kingfisher, Rufous Whistler and Green Pygmy Goose. I’m guessing some of these birds were from the Horseshoe Aviaries.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/bongo-enclosure.532740/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/white-cheeked-gibbon-close-up.532802/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/gouldian-finch.532785/full
The Rainforest Aviary was very noisy and appeared to have more birds than I remember. Further along the road I discovered the Nocturnal House was closed for renovations, and I believe they are extensive and it won’t be open for some months.
A bigger shock came just around the corner – the Australian section is closed also for renovations – the kangaroo yard, quokka/echidnas, and Koala Encounters. The Platypus House has been demolished.
Passing the new platypus tanks next to the Wildlife Retreat (the name for the hotel in the zoo) the now empty but former Spider Monkey enclosure has had the back wall removed and looks quite a bit different without it.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/former-spider-monkey-enclosure.532755/full
The Wollemi walkthrough aviary – now called the Blue Mountains Bushwalk – was full of birds, and I guess some of the dispossessed birds from the Horseshoe Aviaries are now in here too. At the entrance, the Wollemi Pines that were planted there 20-25 years ago are now quite tall.
After exiting at the bottom end of the Wollemi (which was closed last time I was here) you come out into a kangaroo walkthrough behind the hotel. I counted only four Red Kangaroos in here.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/m...osure-behind-the-wildlife-retreat.532753/full
I decided not to visit Backyard to Bush – too many people in there – but I understand that’s where the quokkas have been moved. A little surprised to see Dromedaries in the old elephant enclosure, but I guess it's better than remaining empty.
I headed down past the Saltwater Crocodiles towards Great Southern Oceans, but due to Covid-19, GSO is now one way and I had arrived at the exit. After wandering down and around to the other side I decided not to bother with GSO and went down to the cablecar instead where, after waiting for around 25 minutes, I caught a ride to the top of the zoo and visited the gift shop before heading home.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/m...nd-skyline-view-from-the-cablecar.532741/full
As I said earlier, this is not a review, just some observations of recent changes at the zoo. As always I took lots of photos, sixty of which I've uploaded into the Taronga gallery, and some of which I have linked in this thread.
Hix
Outside the main entrance were barricades for people to queue, where everyone had to scan a QR code before presenting their tickets. Last year the gates were down by the Tree Kangaroos so members of the public could visit the shop and café without actually entering the zoo, but now nobody passes the entrance without a ticket. Down by the Tree ‘Roos the booths are still there but unmanned and everyone just walked straight through.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/admission-prices-june-2021.532739/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/zoo-map.532761/full
The first thing I noticed was all the Horseshoe Aviaries have been demolished and new Koala Encounters area has been built in it’s place. A bit of a shame as the Horseshoe Aviaries have been at the zoo for as long as I‘ve been visiting the zoo, which is 45 years.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/koala-encounters-mkii.532748/full
Heading up to the Alligator exhibit I found no alligators, and the reeds have been cut right down to improve viewing of the Squirrel Monkeys on the islands.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/squirrel-monkey-viewing.532756/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/squirrel-monkey.532798/full
Following the path down the hill to the Reptile House I passed a new display for Corroboree Frogs, I believe this is for the Northern species. However, like the other display, it’s difficult to see the frogs due to the humidity on the inside of the windows.
Nothing to report in the reptile house, except that despite the signs reminding everyone to remain 1.5 metres apart, pretty much everyone was pushing up against each other to get a better view as they passed the tanks.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/red-eyed-tree-frog.532754/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/red-bellied-black-snake.532794/full
The main Chimp yard was empty, with signs stating the chimps were in the fenced off second enclosure at the western end of the exhibit. The moat was virtually empty so I presume they are planning on doing some maintenance on the exhibit. Again, social distancing was non-existent in front of the chimps.
Following the road to the west of the chimps it led to the new lion exhibit. This is built on the site of the old Barbary Sheep and Bongo enclosures, and also includes an area that at different times housed Dromedaries, Ostrich and Scimitar-horned Oryx.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/lion-viewing.532749/full
The old Barbary Sheep exhibit was all bedrock and concrete, and on a steepish slope that suited this mountain dwelling species. The only vegetation was a large, mature fig tree which made cleaning the exhibit a time-consuming task when the tree was dropping fruit as we’d come in each morning and find the pulp squashed all over the rock from dozens of hooves trampling them. It’s also worth noting that a map of the zoo I have from the 1930’s shows the Barbary Sheep being in this enclosure at that time – 90 odd years ago. One morning I came in and found the tree had blown over in a storm the previous night and was completely horizontal on the ground, and the Barbs loved climbing on the horizontal branches. Surprisingly, the tree didn’t die but survived on its side and I was pleased to see it is still doing well in the new exhibit. And virtually all of the enclosure is grassed with only a few bits of bare rock and concrete remaining.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/lion-enclosure.532750/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/lion.532788/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/lioness.532789/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/lions.532790/full
This new enclosure has three different viewing locations, the first being the largest, the subsequent views being further along the path around where the Bongo’s used to be and towards the old Waterhole exhibit (which isn’t there anymore). Overall, this new lion enclosure looks to be a good one.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/lion-enclosure.532751/full
As a former employee and longtime Taronga visitor I also noticed things outside/behind the exhibit, but not accessible to the public: one of the old circular rondavels (or shelters) that was on the previous road around the Barbary Sheep – I think at was called Stephen’s Lookout, although I could be wrong – and further around was Tahr Mountain, devoid of Tahrs, and the elevated platform the keepers used to hose down the mountain as best they could.
Following the path down from the Lions I passed two new Meerkat enclosures, glass-fronted, and replicas of the other Meerkat enclosure next to the Gorillas. So the zoo now has three Meerkat displays, two of them side-by-side.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/meerkat-enclosure.532752/full
The path then brings you out at the bottom of the African Savannah with Giraffes and Zebra, and opposite them is a large glass-fronted cage with Fennecs. It’s a nice large exhibit for the foxes, but as it faces north it suffers badly from reflections, and on this sunny day it was difficult to clearly see the animals and harder still to get any half-decent photos.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/savannah-exhibit.532747/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/fennec-cage.532744/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/fennec.532782/full
Heading down past the gorillas I stopped at the other meerkat exhibit and decided to head back to the Tigers, but passing the exhibit opposite the Meerkats – Mary Gibbon Island (as I call it) – I noticed some movement in the fig tree and realised it was now home to half-a-dozen Cottontop Tamarins. They were quite at home in the tree and despite the size of the tree most were foraging amongst the leaves close to the visitor pathway and so I stopped to take a few dozen photos. The tree has been there for a long time, but it appears to have a lot more foliage these days, I presume from constant pruning.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/cottontop-tamarin-exhibit.532743/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/cottontop-tamarin.532777/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/cottontop-tamarin.532778/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/cottontop-tamarin.532779/full
While photographing the tamarins I was distracted by a Whipbird hopping around in the vegetation between the Gorillas and the Meerkats and managed a few photos of this generally secretive bird, if vocal, bird.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/eastern-whipbird-male-wild-bird.533835/full
Heading back towards the tigers I passed a long line of people who had started to queue up for the Seal Show. I kept going and alongside one wall was an area for strollers to be left, as they can’t be taken into the theatre. Along the wall from one end to the other was a long mesh net that could be placed over the strollers, I guessed at first as a feeble attempt at security, but then noticed the strollers that didn’t have the net over them had Indian Mynahs in the strollers looking for food. I noticed elsewhere in the zoo when an empty stroller was left while the family was three metres away (ten feet) looking through a glass window at the animals, the Indian Mynahs would immediately visit the stroller looking for food.
The Sumatran Tigers didn’t have nearly as many people as the Lions did, possibly because an announcement about the Seal Show had probably diverted them in the opposite direction. But there was still a couple of dozen people there and I noticed that nobody stopped in the “immersion” experience prior to the exhibits. This includes walking through the interior of a plane fuselage with moving pictures of a jungle canopy below showing in the planes windows, and monitor with a pilot giving you a commentary on where your plane is headed, followed by a replica village meant to represent somewhere in Sumatra. When the complex was originally opened visitors were forced to wait in the plane for five minutes watching the commentary, and when it was finished you were all released as a group, and then the next batch of 30 or so people (queuing up outside) would be permitted in. Thank goodness they are not doing that now. After the animal exhibits is a replica supermarket you walk through, originally with information about different foodstuffs that have ingredients sourced from the jungle, and I think food companies that contribute to conservation in someway. As I said, nobody stopped to take in the experience of these displays and I thought there was so much space here that could have been utilised to make an extra, large tiger enclosure. Or perhaps a walk-through aviary with South-east Asian birds.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/sumatran-village-entry-to-the-tiger-exhibits.532759/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/sumatran-village-entry-to-the-tiger-exhibits.532760/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/sumatran-tiger-enclosure.532758/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/sumatran-tiger-enclosure.532757/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/sumatran-tiger.532799/full
After heading down behind the elephants (Palm Aviary, Francois Langur, Bongo, Binturong, Gibbon, Otter & Fishing Cat) I headed back up through the centre of the zoo towards the top and found, behind the new Koala Encounters one of the old aviaries still intact and full of finches, with a few other birds like Forest Kingfisher, Rufous Whistler and Green Pygmy Goose. I’m guessing some of these birds were from the Horseshoe Aviaries.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/bongo-enclosure.532740/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/white-cheeked-gibbon-close-up.532802/full
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/gouldian-finch.532785/full
The Rainforest Aviary was very noisy and appeared to have more birds than I remember. Further along the road I discovered the Nocturnal House was closed for renovations, and I believe they are extensive and it won’t be open for some months.
A bigger shock came just around the corner – the Australian section is closed also for renovations – the kangaroo yard, quokka/echidnas, and Koala Encounters. The Platypus House has been demolished.
Passing the new platypus tanks next to the Wildlife Retreat (the name for the hotel in the zoo) the now empty but former Spider Monkey enclosure has had the back wall removed and looks quite a bit different without it.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/former-spider-monkey-enclosure.532755/full
The Wollemi walkthrough aviary – now called the Blue Mountains Bushwalk – was full of birds, and I guess some of the dispossessed birds from the Horseshoe Aviaries are now in here too. At the entrance, the Wollemi Pines that were planted there 20-25 years ago are now quite tall.
After exiting at the bottom end of the Wollemi (which was closed last time I was here) you come out into a kangaroo walkthrough behind the hotel. I counted only four Red Kangaroos in here.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/m...osure-behind-the-wildlife-retreat.532753/full
I decided not to visit Backyard to Bush – too many people in there – but I understand that’s where the quokkas have been moved. A little surprised to see Dromedaries in the old elephant enclosure, but I guess it's better than remaining empty.
I headed down past the Saltwater Crocodiles towards Great Southern Oceans, but due to Covid-19, GSO is now one way and I had arrived at the exit. After wandering down and around to the other side I decided not to bother with GSO and went down to the cablecar instead where, after waiting for around 25 minutes, I caught a ride to the top of the zoo and visited the gift shop before heading home.
https://www.zoochat.com/community/m...nd-skyline-view-from-the-cablecar.532741/full
As I said earlier, this is not a review, just some observations of recent changes at the zoo. As always I took lots of photos, sixty of which I've uploaded into the Taronga gallery, and some of which I have linked in this thread.
Hix
Last edited:
