Popular Zoo Mammals and Their Best Exhibits

[15399]

Hello ZooChat,

I've alluded in recent months that this is a thread I've been planning, and I am finally ready to start posting the actual content. While their have been plenty of threads in the past diving into different exhibits, I thought it would be interesting to make a thread looking into what the best exhibits are for various different species. Since it is the group of animals where information is easiest to find, I have decided to start off by only covering mammals, although in the future I could consider doing a bird and/or herp list if this thread is a success. I have selected a list of seventy different mammals I plan to include in this thread, however this list is not set in stone if there are other species people are particularly interested in hearing about. This thread also only covers zoos in the United States, since it's the continent I am most familiar with the zoos of.
Each post in this thread will be dedicated to a single species (or in a few cases multiple closely related species), and will define what criteria I used in determining their best exhibits before going through my picks for the top five exhibits for the species. I am in no way saying this is an objective guide: there are of course many factors that can play into determining what the best exhibits for a species is and like anyone there are certain factors that I may consider more important than others. On those lines, I encourage anyone to comment with what they view as the best exhibits for the animal in question as well.
One thing I quickly noticed when doing research is that many of the best exhibits for species are not at the zoos most frequently discussed on this forum. While Bronx, San Diego, and Omaha will all receive their fair share of mentions on this thread, expect to also see plenty of much more obscure, smaller zoos get covered as well.

Before I start with our first animal, a few general notes:

• While each post will give my top five picks for exhibits, these exhibits are not ranked. In other words, I am not choosing the best, second best, and third best exhibits, rather a collective list of the five best exhibits.
• While I tried my best to look holistically at US zoos, I am certain there are zoos or exhibits I missed when making this thread. Especially if an exhibit is not covered in the ZooChat Gallery, it may have been accidentally omitted from this thread. If there is a lesser known exhibit you feel meets the caliber of others for the species, I encourage you to comment and highlight that particular exhibit.
• Most of the exhibits in this thread are not necessarily exhibits I have seen in person. As such, in many cases I am judging them based on photos, reviews, and other information I find. If you feel I may have misjudged an exhibit, feel free to comment as well.

Without further ado, let's start with our first animal post of this thread. In honor of today being World Giraffe Day, we are going to start this thread on a high note, with Giraffes!

There are two separate giraffe populations found in US zoos, one of which is purebred Masai Giraffes and the other is hybridized, or "Generic" Giraffes. Depending on who you talk to, the number of giraffe species recognized will vary, however IUCN recognizes a one-species model for giraffes. Since this is not a taxonomy thread, I will leave it at that and not share my thoughts on this approach. Giraffes is a species I suspect all North American zoochatters have seen before, and despite their large size are one of the most common mammal species in US Zoos. While many smaller facilities do keep giraffes successfully, many of the best giraffe exhibits are at zoos able to dedicate large swaths of land to these animals. Before revealing my choices for the top five giraffe exhibits, I am going to list a few of the criteria I used when deciding which exhibits to feature:

• Size is one major criteria. While I will often argue that the way space is used matters more than the size of an exhibit, large ungulates are one group in which simplistic exhibits are often beneficial, making size the more important factor. More space is almost never a bad thing in an exhibit, especially for a species such as giraffes than roam large distances in the wild. While I am not saying the five exhibits selected are necessarily the five largest giraffe exhibits, all five do provide more than the minimum space required for their giraffes.
• Giraffes are herd animals by nature, and as such replicating this social dynamic is one key to a successful giraffe exhibit. While many zoos only keep two or three giraffes, all five zoos featured in this list have much larger herds on display.
• Natural substrate is a must for a successful exhibit, especially for animals such as giraffes that are prone to hoof problems. All five of the exhibits featured in this post will be at least partially covered in grass.
• While not a requirement or a factor used when deciding exhibits to include, many of the best giraffe exhibits happen to be mixed-species exhibits. These exhibits do provide an engaging display for visitors, and I am certainly in favor of zoos mixing giraffes with ostrich or other African ungulates. However, giraffes can just as successfully be housed in a single-species exhibit as well so this was not a factor in determining the best giraffe exhibits.

My choices for the top five giraffe exhibits are:

• Many safari park style zoos are able to take advantage of their large footprint to house ungulates in massive, spacious paddocks. Many of these institutions also utilize that space to house much larger breeding groups than what is often found in traditional zoos. One of the best examples of this is at Texas' Fossil Rim Wildlife Center, which as of 2022 had a herd of eleven generic giraffes. At Fossil Rim, these giraffes have access to a spacious grassland exhibit that could easily be mistaken for Africa. The following photos show how impressive Fossil Rim's giraffe exhibit is:
  
  Giraffe - ZooChat Photo taken by: @Ituri Roth-ticulated Giraffe - ZooChat
  
  Photo taken by: @jbnbsn99.
• Another impressive safari park to feature giraffes is the famed San Diego Zoo Safari Park. As of 2022, the safari park held six masai giraffes and seven generic giraffes. The field exhibits at SDZSP are highly regarded on this site, and for good reason. These spacious yards contain plenty of room for a multitude of ungulate species, including the giraffes to roam:
  
  Generic Giraffe Herd - East Africa Field Enclosure - ZooChat Photo taken by: @IndianRhino.
  
  Giraffe herd - ZooChat Photo taken by: @tigris115.
• For a third safari park that has an impressive giraffe exhibit, Ohio's The Wilds, affiliated with the Columbus Zoo. The Wilds dedicates over thirty acres to their giraffes, and as of 2022 held six masai giraffes and one generic giraffe. While the sprawling green pastures at The Wilds may not be as naturalistic or as varied a habitat as either other giraffe exhibit mentioned, their sheer size make them a worthy inclusion on this list:
  
  Sep. 2018 - 35 Acre Reticulated/Masai Giraffe + Fringe-eared Oryx Exhibit - ZooChat Photo taken by: @Moebelle.
  
  Sep. 2018 - Reticulated + Masai Giraffe Exhibit - ZooChat Photo taken by: @Moebelle.
• While not a safari park, another non-traditional zoo that dedicates substantial amounts of space to giraffes is Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge, which houses its giraffes as part of spacious mixed-species savannas. While Disney's budget certainly helps, this facility managed to create an exhibit that certainly replicates the view one might see outside of a Safari Lodge in Africa. As of 2022, Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge held six generic giraffes in its spacious savannas. One downside of the savannas is that they are not entirely visible to visitors, and have some awkward vantage points. This led me to believe they were much smaller than they actually are on my visit, but knowing their true size I am certain these savannas provide an excellent home for the giraffes: Giraffe, waterbuck, zebra, impala, wildebeest - Arusha savanna - ZooChat
  
  Photo taken by: @SwampDonkey. Sunset Savanna - Hartmanns Mountain Zebra and Reticulated Giraffe - ZooChat
  
  Photo taken by: @geomorph.
• When it comes to traditional zoos, giraffes remain a common exhibit animal. While they are easily overshadowed by the safari parks in regard to exhibitry, some of the larger zoos should not be underestimated. The African Grasslands exhibit at Omaha's Henry-Doorly Zoo provides a spacious home to nine generic giraffes, and is what I'd consider the best giraffe exhibit in a traditional zoo. Another area that Omaha greatly succeeds in is their giraffe's indoor area, which features natural substrate and a spacious area for the zoo's giraffe herd- unlike many other giraffe houses which tend to be fairly basic holdings designed to allow visitors the ability to see giraffes all year long:
  
  Giraffe House - ZooChat Photo taken by: @Pleistohorse.
  
  Giraffe Exhibit - ZooChat Photo taken by: @Pleistohorse.

 

[Coelacanth18]

Even though I knew this thread was in the pipeline, 70 species was bigger in scale than I was expecting! I also like your use of criteria specific to the animals being discussed; so many exhibit debates get boiled down to how big or green something is, when each type of animal really benefits from different things (even if there are core tenets that make exhibits great in general). Looking forward to reading more of this thread do you have a posting schedule in mind?

A quick suggestion: I'm not sure if this was purposeful or accidental, but it would be nice to have the photos embedded in the thread rather than just linked. It helps break up the continuity of text, and more people might be willing to weigh in if they can see what's being discussed without having to open and switch between a bunch of tabs. Food for thought!

-----------

Re:Giraffes - if size and large herds are criteria, I'm not surprised safari parks dominate the list. I tend to put less emphasis on exhibit size than a lot of people, but giraffes are quite large and heavy animals; I've seen small paddocks turned to dust bowls by just a pair of those animals having large herds also makes for a more engaging and memorable visitor experience.

Commenting on aesthetics: I've only seen the exhibits at Omaha and SDZSP, but going off photos Fossil Rim is the closest to an actual African savanna I've seen in a zoo setting, for those who care about immersion. SDZSP is a great place for hoofstock, but it looks like a golf course and everyone just has to swallow that pill (the DAK Lodge and Wilds give off similar vibes). Omaha is probably the ideal for a traditional urban zoo: it's a good size, has mature trees and healthy grass, good viewing angles and sightlines, other species mixed in.

FWIW this photo I think better shows how lush Omaha's exhibit it is in the summer months:

pc @pachyderm pro

 

[15399]

A quick suggestion: I'm not sure if this was purposeful or accidental, but it would be nice to have the photos embedded in the thread rather than just linked. It helps break up the continuity of text, and more people might be willing to weigh in if they can see what's being discussed without having to open and switch between a bunch of tabs. Food for thought!

I tried to embed them, but apparently it didn't work the way I tried. What do I try in order to embed the photos?

As for a posting schedule, my plan is to post every 1-3 days, depending on how busy my schedule is and how much traffic the thread is receiving. Posts will be in a semi-randomized order, with the biggest/most popular species arranged to be spread out throughout and posts selected such that there aren't two posts in a row of similar species (e.g. while there will be multiple posts dedicated to species of bears, there won't be two posts in a row dedicated to bear species).

 

[Coelacanth18]

I tried to embed them, but apparently it didn't work the way I tried. What do I try in order to embed the photos?

It's the "Share Image" URL, the second one to the right of the photo

 

[SwampDonkey]

Fantastic, I can't wait for this to flesh out over the time it takes! In regards to giraffe, I think all mentioned are worthy for the top 5, with Busch being a close competitor as well, IMO. The issue many people seem to have with Busch is the visible rides from the savannah, which is visibly unappealing, but not all angles have that view. The mixed savannah with plains and grevys zebra, giraffe (generic), white rhino, impala, and various gazelle and other species makes a nice show.

Disney Animal Kingdom Lodge is truly inspiring, and about as true to a real safari lodge as you can get in the USA. It is worth a stop at just to see the savannah exhibits, which anyone can do as it is not just for guests. You can actually get really good views from the emergency stairs on the lodges facing the yards....

 

[Aardwolf]

As popular of a species as they are, I feel like giraffe are very hard to do a truly "great" exhibit for. They don't climb, or swim, or readily use variable landscape features, and many facilities are reluctant to give them varied terrain due to fear of falling. Most giraffe yards are just... yards (often kinda dusty, at best kinda grassy. Sometimes it seems more like the giraffe exhibit serves to complement the feeding deck than the other way around. As you've said, the best thing you can really hope for is a big space.

Giraffes are one of those species which just tend to "do well" even in fairly bland habitats, which might be part of what discourages a lot of zoos from being more adventurous with them (that and the ease with which they seem to topple over, get stuck, and otherwise hurt themselves). I was amazed when I first went to Cheyenne Mountain about how basic their giraffe holding and yard was - and they're a giraffe factory. Besides the excellent facilities that you've mentioned, I'd give shout outs to White Oak, which has a truly beautiful habitat that is somewhat unique among giraffe exhibits in being partially forested, and Living Desert, which might have the most attractive giraffe habitat I've ever seen in a conventional zoo.

 

[amur leopard]

This thread also only covers zoos in the United States, since it's the continent I am most familiar with the zoos of.

Interesting idea for a thread! Some very impressive giraffe exhibits there too - just as a side note though for confirmation - this is just the US right, not the whole continent?

 

[PSO]

I also agree with @SwampDonkey about BG and would place it rather than Wilds. During the winter months they are in a barn while BG giraffes have the veldt year round.

 

[15399]

Interesting idea for a thread! Some very impressive giraffe exhibits there too - just as a side note though for confirmation - this is just the US right, not the whole continent?

Yes, this list only covers zoos in the United States. Sorry for the typo.

@SwampDonkey and @PSO Busch Gardens Tampa was another facility strongly considered for this post. The facility will, however, get multiple mentions later on in this thread, including one only a few posts from now.

Moving on from giraffes, today's post will be dedicated to a very large species of monkey: the Mandrill! While in the eyes of the general public this species was popularized by "The Lion King", however the species has been present in US Zoos dating back to at least 1874. At least in terms of AZA zoos, the number of zoos to hold mandrills has declined slightly in recent years. However, this is not necessarily a bad thing- as much of that space has since been converted into habitats for monkeys of a more suitable size for the enclosures. At the same time, many of the zoos who are dedicated to mandrills have started to keep larger troop sizes, more closely resembling their wild social structure.

The criteria used for this post include:

• Enclosure Complexity: While size was not a major factor used in this post, complexity was a much bigger consideration. Mandrills, being primates, are intelligent creatures, making it of utmost important to design an enriching and complex home for them.
• Social Structure: Zoos with larger troops of mandrills, more closely replicating their wild social structure, were prioritized for inclusion on this list than zoos that only hold two or three mandrills. While no zoos keep mandrills in troops of 600-800 as sometimes seen in the wild, priority was still given to zoos with larger troops.
• Habitat Choice: In many cases, the best thing for animal welfare is to give the animals choice and control over their environment. In the case of mandrills, this criteria means giving a choice of both ample opportunities to climb and also ample space on the ground. While many exhibits succeed at one of these two things, this post primarily looked for exhibits that provide both climbing opportunities and space on the ground. Mandrills in the wild do spend most of their time on the ground, so given the choice ground access is more important, however they are still more than capable of climbing and should be given the opportunity to climb in an ideal exhibit.
• Plants and Shade: Mandrills are a tropical rainforest species. Given this, it is important that exhibits for the species tend to be shady in order to replicate their rainforest environment. Exhibits with live plants were also favored over exhibits to not feature live plants, however this isn't to say plants are an absolute necessity for an exhibit to be successful.
• Mixed Species Exhibits: Mandrills have successfully been mixed with other African monkey species, pygmy hippos, red river hogs, and more. Mixed species exhibits can be a great way to add complexity to an enclosure while also providing more space for the inhabitants than if they were in separate enclosures. Interacting with other species can be a very enriching opportunity for primates, and multiple of the exhibits highlighted in this post do house multiple species.

With that said, here are my choices for the five best mandrill exhibits in US Zoos:

• While the Bronx Zoo's Congo Gorilla Forest may be best known for its incredible gorilla habitats, it provides equally impressive homes to smaller African primates as well, including the mandrill. This exhibit does feature some areas with dense planting, and houses red river hogs along with the troop of eight mandrills (as of 2022). This spacious exhibit provides both real and artificial trees for the mandrills to climb on, and can often be seen above the ground due to the presence of red river hogs in the exhibit. The viewing windows to this area are also impressive, as they provide a wide area to view the exhibit from, paired with excellent interpretive displays:

Photo by: @TinoPup

Photo by: @red river hog.

• While the aesthetic of this exhibit is less naturalistic than the Bronx's, San Francisco Zoo is also home to an excellent mandrill exhibit. This exhibit provides ample climbing and terrestrial opportunities, and as of 2022 held six mandrills. While the exhibit does not have many tall trees, this is still a fairly green exhibit, featuring a grassy hillside:

Photo by: @Chimpangeek.

Photo by: @TheoV.

• Also in California, San Diego Zoo's Monkey Trails and Forest Tales provides an excellent home to mandrills and other primate species. San Diego's mandrill exhibit is fairly tall, providing excellent climbing opportunities as well as a spacious land area. Given the Southern California climate, San Diego Zoo is able to make excellent use of live plants- and this does not go unnoticed in the mandrill exhibit, which features multiple live trees. As of 2022, this exhibit held four mandrills:

Photo by: @IndianRhino.

Photo by: @Moebelle.

• Another zoo able to take advantage of plants due to their climate is Jacksonville Zoo, which houses a troop of eight mandrills on its Africa Loop. This may not be the most densely planted exhibit, and is slightly short on climbing space, but it is a large size and the plants it does have are aesthetically pleasing:

Photo by: @GraysonDP.

Photo by: @Maguari.

• Denver Zoo's Primate Panorama houses a troop of six mandrills. This mandrill exhibit features large, live trees which provide a nice shade covering to a large, spacious exhibit. While many visitors may not be a fan of the mesh fencing, that is not a critique of the exhibit's design from an animal welfare perspective:

Photo by: @Milwaukee Man.

Photo by: @snowleopard.

 

[birdsandbats]

Could you use the larger image imbed? It's hard to get a sense of these exhibits from these smaller image sizes.

 

[15399]

Could you use the larger image imbed? It's hard to get a sense of these exhibits from these smaller image sizes.

It should be fixed now. This is my first time trying a thread like this, so I apologize for any formatting issues like this over the first few posts.

 

[pachyderm pro]

There have been countless threads in the past discussing what the best exhibits are for x species, but many of these have often lacked depth and/or solid criteria behind the exhibits chosen. Based on these first two posts I can tell a lot of work has been put into this project by comparison. Looking forward to it @Neil chace, this will be a fun read!

Living Desert, which might have the most attractive giraffe habitat I've ever seen in a conventional zoo.

Not sure if I'd call The Living Desert a conventional zoo per se, but I absolutely agree its giraffe exhibit is phenomenal. The stunning backdrop combined with the rolling hills and year-round gorgeous weather adds up to a genuinely wonderful experience. I'd probably bump off the Wilds for this one; Fossil Rim fills that niche well. This does make me wonder how much the climate of any given facility will impact the choices for this thread. Will exhibits in nicer climates be given an edge even if they aren't designed as well? We will see...

Yes, this list only covers zoos in the United States. Sorry for the typo.

@SwampDonkey and @PSO Busch Gardens Tampa was another facility strongly considered for this post. The facility will, however, get multiple mentions later on in this thread, including one only a few posts from now.

Moving on from giraffes, today's post will be dedicated to a very large species of monkey: the Mandrill! While in the eyes of the general public this species was popularized by "The Lion King", however the species has been present in US Zoos dating back to at least 1874. At least in terms of AZA zoos, the number of zoos to hold mandrills has declined slightly in recent years. However, this is not necessarily a bad thing- as much of that space has since been converted into habitats for monkeys of a more suitable size for the enclosures. At the same time, many of the zoos who are dedicated to mandrills have started to keep larger troop sizes, more closely resembling their wild social structure.

The criteria used for this post include:

• Enclosure Complexity: While size was not a major factor used in this post, complexity was a much bigger consideration. Mandrills, being primates, are intelligent creatures, making it of utmost important to design an enriching and complex home for them.
• Social Structure: Zoos with larger troops of mandrills, more closely replicating their wild social structure, were prioritized for inclusion on this list than zoos that only hold two or three mandrills. While no zoos keep mandrills in troops of 600-800 as sometimes seen in the wild, priority was still given to zoos with larger troops.
• Habitat Choice: In many cases, the best thing for animal welfare is to give the animals choice and control over their environment. In the case of mandrills, this criteria means giving a choice of both ample opportunities to climb and also ample space on the ground. While many exhibits succeed at one of these two things, this post primarily looked for exhibits that provide both climbing opportunities and space on the ground. Mandrills in the wild do spend most of their time on the ground, so given the choice ground access is more important, however they are still more than capable of climbing and should be given the opportunity to climb in an ideal exhibit.
• Plants and Shade: Mandrills are a tropical rainforest species. Given this, it is important that exhibits for the species tend to be shady in order to replicate their rainforest environment. Exhibits with live plants were also favored over exhibits to not feature live plants, however this isn't to say plants are an absolute necessity for an exhibit to be successful.
• Mixed Species Exhibits: Mandrills have successfully been mixed with other African monkey species, pygmy hippos, red river hogs, and more. Mixed species exhibits can be a great way to add complexity to an enclosure while also providing more space for the inhabitants than if they were in separate enclosures. Interacting with other species can be a very enriching opportunity for primates, and multiple of the exhibits highlighted in this post do house multiple species.

With that said, here are my choices for the five best mandrill exhibits in US Zoos:

• While the Bronx Zoo's Congo Gorilla Forest may be best known for its incredible gorilla habitats, it provides equally impressive homes to smaller African primates as well, including the mandrill. This exhibit does feature some areas with dense planting, and houses red river hogs along with the troop of eight mandrills (as of 2022). This spacious exhibit provides both real and artificial trees for the mandrills to climb on, and can often be seen above the ground due to the presence of red river hogs in the exhibit. The viewing windows to this area are also impressive, as they provide a wide area to view the exhibit from, paired with excellent interpretive displays:

Photo by: @TinoPup

Photo by: @red river hog.

• While the aesthetic of this exhibit is less naturalistic than the Bronx's, San Francisco Zoo is also home to an excellent mandrill exhibit. This exhibit provides ample climbing and terrestrial opportunities, and as of 2022 held six mandrills. While the exhibit does not have many tall trees, this is still a fairly green exhibit, featuring a grassy hillside:

Photo by: @Chimpangeek.

Photo by: @TheoV.

• Also in California, San Diego Zoo's Monkey Trails and Forest Tales provides an excellent home to mandrills and other primate species. San Diego's mandrill exhibit is fairly tall, providing excellent climbing opportunities as well as a spacious land area. Given the Southern California climate, San Diego Zoo is able to make excellent use of live plants- and this does not go unnoticed in the mandrill exhibit, which features multiple live trees. As of 2022, this exhibit held four mandrills:

Photo by: @IndianRhino.

Photo by: @Moebelle.

• Another zoo able to take advantage of plants due to their climate is Jacksonville Zoo, which houses a troop of eight mandrills on its Africa Loop. This may not be the most densely planted exhibit, and is slightly short on climbing space, but it is a large size and the plants it does have are aesthetically pleasing:

Photo by: @GraysonDP.

Photo by: @Maguari.

• Denver Zoo's Primate Panorama houses a troop of six mandrills. This mandrill exhibit features large, live trees which provide a nice shade covering to a large, spacious exhibit. While many visitors may not be a fan of the mesh fencing, that is not a critique of the exhibit's design from an animal welfare perspective:

Photo by: @Milwaukee Man.

Photo by: @snowleopard.

Mandrills are one of those species that rarely seem to get exhibits that do them justice. You've cited some nice ones, but one big omission is the enclosure at Disney's Animal Kingdom which is quite large and filled with mature trees. From my understanding there's also a larger than usual number of individuals held instead of just a pair or trio which is rarely done. I'd still say Bronx reigns supreme though from an overall animal and visitor perspective. Denver's exhibit looks quite impressive however and is one I wasn't familiar with before this post.

 

[birdsandbats]

You've cited some nice ones, but one big omission is the enclosure at Disney's Animal Kingdom which is quite large and filled with mature trees. From my understanding there's also a larger than usual number of individuals held instead of just a pair or trio which is rarely done.

It's also hard to say it's great exhibit when it's only visible for about 10 seconds though. They usually don't even stop for it.

 

[Aardwolf]

Excellent point about the importance of social group size for mandrills - it's always blown my mind to read about how huge their social groups can be in the wild. There are few things more impressive to me than seeing a large social group of animals interacting, and I'd rather see a troop of twenty primates of the same species in one dynamic exhibit than five exhibits of four individuals each in smaller, blander exhibits.

And @pachyderm pro , I certainly see what you mean about Living Desert not being conventional per se - perhaps "not a safari park" or C2S2 would have been a better way to sum it up!

 

[15399]

This does make me wonder how much the climate of any given facility will impact the choices for this thread. Will exhibits in nicer climates be given an edge even if they aren't designed as well? We will see...

Climate is definitely an interesting criteria, and you do bring up a good point. While I don't think I ever explicitly used climate to choose which exhibits are to be included, that is not to say climate isn't part of the selection process at all. There's no denying climate can impact animal welfare, however in many cases zoos have already accounted for this. For example, I wouldn't be inclined to include an excellent snow leopard exhibit in Florida- however that's a moot point as many of the zoos focusing on snow leopards are already in much more suitable climates.

Climate control is also very much possible. In zoos with non-ideal climates, I will be more inclined to feature exhibits that demonstrate an awareness of this, either through heated/cooling elements of the exhibit or large indoor components. There will certainly be northern zoos featured for tropical species, and there will certainly be southern zoos featured for more cold-loving species, however most of those exhibits demonstrate that climate is not the end-all-be-all of animal welfare/exhibit design.

Mandrills are one of those species that rarely seem to get exhibits that do them justice. You've cited some nice ones, but one big omission is the enclosure at Disney's Animal Kingdom which is quite large and filled with mature trees. From my understanding there's also a larger than usual number of individuals held instead of just a pair or trio which is rarely done. I'd still say Bronx reigns supreme though from an overall animal and visitor perspective. Denver's exhibit looks quite impressive however and is one I wasn't familiar with before this post.

I was very conflicted over whether or not I'd include Disney's exhibit. @birdsandbats hit the nail on the head in that one of the main criticisms of Disney's exhibit is the lack of viewing opportunities. It's hard to judge an exhibit when it can only be seen for less than a minute, and there also weren't many impressive images of the Disney exhibit in the Zoochat Gallery (perhaps as a result of the lack of viewing). This isn't to say that Disney's Kilimanjaro Safaris, Bronx's Asia Monorail, and other similar exhibits won't be featured at all on this list- in fact there are at least two species for which this list would be incomplete if Kilimanjaro Safaris wasn't mentioned.

Mandrills are definitely a species that exhibits rarely do justice. One common theme in this thread will be that it's often difficult to determine the five best exhibits. Sometimes, this will be due to more than five excellent exhibits (i.e. giraffes), and other times it will be that it's difficult to find five that do a species justice (i.e. mandrills).

Excellent point about the importance of social group size for mandrills - it's always blown my mind to read about how huge their social groups can be in the wild. There are few things more impressive to me than seeing a large social group of animals interacting, and I'd rather see a troop of twenty primates of the same species in one dynamic exhibit than five exhibits of four individuals each in smaller, blander exhibits.

And @pachyderm pro , I certainly see what you mean about Living Desert not being conventional per se - perhaps "not a safari park" or C2S2 would have been a better way to sum it up!

Social groups are very important for this species, and it's unfortunate that no zoos have featured troops of twenty or more mandrills. It would be great to see zoos exhibit mandrills similarly to the way some zoos manage baboons- with spacious habitats housing a massive troop. Unfortunately, I suspect there may not be much interest in dedicating large exhibits for mandrills since at that point they are competing for space with other large African tropical primates (i.e. gorillas and chimps), which zoos may be more inclined to feature.

 

[TNT]

Unfortunately, I suspect there may not be much interest in dedicating large exhibits for mandrills since at that point they are competing for space with other large African tropical primates (i.e. gorillas and chimps), which zoos may be more inclined to feature.

You might also want to consider that even if zoos did want to house larger groups of mandrill, the number of institutional holders would need to drop considerably in the US to accommodate this. I would suspect that breeding potential (maximising the number of pairs) is currently being favoured over housing larger groups like we have been seeing in Europe for a number of years now in collections such as Chester or Colchester.

 

[SwampDonkey]

It really highlights how bad ZooTampa's mandrill habitat is at this point.

 

[15399]

You might also want to consider that even if zoos did want to house larger groups of mandrill, the number of institutional holders would need to drop considerably in the US to accommodate this. I would suspect that breeding potential (maximising the number of pairs) is currently being favoured over housing larger groups like we have been seeing in Europe for a number of years now in collections such as Chester or Colchester.

I understand where you are coming from with this, however I'm not sure breeding potential is higher in the current system. Many zoos do breed multiple pairs from the same troop, so it would be feasible to have less holders, larger troops, and the same amount of breeding. In fact, some other programs (e.g. schmidt's red-tailed guenons) have actually been more successful when the number of holders dropped, but group sizes became larger. This also means animals don't need to be moved around as often, which would similarly be beneficial to welfare.

Tonight there will not be a new species covered, however tomorrow there will be. Tomorrow's post will include the first non-AZA facilities to be featured on this thread, with two separate non-AZA zoos receiving a mention.

 

[15399]

Today's post will be the first one to feature a native species, the Bobcat. Bobcats are not commonly bred in U.S. zoos, with most individuals being rescued individuals. They are the smallest of the lynx species. Bobcats can be found across most of the United States (and parts of Canada and Mexico), and can be found in a diverse array of habitats- ranging from deserts to forests. As such, many of the exhibits for bobcats look quite distinct from each other, as they can be found in naturalistic exhibits designed to replicate a wide variety of habitat types.

Some of the main criteria used for the bobcat was:

• Climbing Opportunities: Like most felid species, bobcats benefit from the ability to choose between various heights of their exhibit. While they can be a primarily ground-dwelling species, they will also readily climb trees, rock structures, and other habitat features. While the type of climbing structure may vary based on the type of habitat (i.e. I'd expect different climbing structures in one representing a deciduous forest than one representing the Sonoran desert), it is still important to ensure the bobcats have adequate climbing opportunities in any style of exhibit.
• Exhibit Size: Small carnivores have historically been kept in small exhibits, oftentimes of an inadequate size. While size of an exhibit is not everything, I did prioritize exhibits that are larger when other design factors are equivalent.
• Hiding Opportunities: Bobcats can be shy animals, like many felids. Exhibits that provide opportunities for the bobcats to hide, while not necessarily ideal for the public, were prioritized since hiding opportunities do improve the welfare of animals involved.

My choices for the top five bobcat exhibits in a US Zoo are:

• It would be impossible to discuss a native species of cat without mentioning the exhibits at Northwest Trek Wildlife Park in Washington. This facility has excellent, naturalistic exhibits designed for all three native cat species, with each featuring a dense plant cover, which allows plenty of opportunities for the cats to climb and hide:

Photo by: @snowleopard.

Photo by: @snowleopard.

• An excellent bobcat exhibit, albeit very distinct from the Northwest Trek exhibit is the exhibit at California's The Living Desert. While this exhibit does feature some live plants, it more so utilizes rock ledges and other rock work to create excellent climbing and hiding opportunities, providing a look at a very different part of the bobcat's native habitat:

Photo by: @Coelacanth18.

Photo by: @snowleopard.

• One common trend when native species are discussed is that many of the best exhibits are located at non-AZA specialist collections focusing on native species, oftentimes with names such as "wildlife center" instead of "zoo". One of these facilities is Georgia's Oatland Island Wildlife Center, which features a spacious yard for bobcats, including a nice shade covering from native trees. The elevated viewing platforms are also a nice feature from a visitor perspective, as they allow a view of the exhibit unimpeded by the chain link fencing:

Photo by: @Pleistohorse.

Photo by: @Pleistohorse.

• As far as traditional zoos are concerned, North Carolina Zoo stands out as having a particularly impressive bobcat exhibit. While many of the other exhibits on this thread do a nice job with featuring either rock ledges or plants as a climbing and hiding opportunity, the North Carolina Zoo's exhibit does an excellent job featuring both rock ledges and native trees in their spacious bobcat exhibit:

Photo by: @Moebelle.

Photo by: @Moebelle.

• As I mentioned yesterday, this post would feature two non-AZA facilities. The first was Oatland Island Wildlife Center, and the second one is Illinois' Wildlife Prairie Park. This facility is seldom talked about on this site, however when scrolling through the gallery in researching this thread I was impressed to find multiple exhibits that might very well be the best of their kind in any US Zoo. One of these is the bobcat exhibit, which features a dense plant cover across a very large area. While it unfortunately appears as though many of the trees cannot be climbed by the bobcats, it is an impressive exhibit regardless:

Photo by: @snowleopard.

Photo by: @snowleopard.

 

[birdsandbats]

My favorite Bobcat exhibit can be found at the NEW Zoo, a little-known AZA collection in Suamico, Wisconsin:

Photo by @snowleopard

The Bobcat has access to the entire canopy and can be regularly seen high up in the spruce trees, gazing down at visitors:

(I took this one )