Put Me In The Zoo: Santa Barbara Zoo Review
Zoo visit date: December 7, 2011 (this is one of my local zoos and is visited frequently)
Does this zoo satisfy the reviewer’s Inner-3-Year-Old by featuring his lifelong favorite animals, giraffes and elephants?
Yes, the zoo has Masai giraffes and Asian elephants.
Does this zoo have any animals that would excite a zoo aficionado?
California condors and Channel Islands foxes. There may be other species. The zoo keeps an accurate list of its resident species on its website.
Does this zoo have any immersion exhibits that would impress a zoo aficionado?
The zoo overlooks the Pacific Ocean and is situated on a former estate (the mansion burned down in the 1960s). It is beautifully landscaped and has several theme gardens including South African plants, cactus, and California native plants. In this sense much of the zoo is an immersion experience. The zoo grounds have a colony of double-crested cormorants nesting and acorn woodpeckers zipping around the trees in the middle of the zoo. The zoo is adjacent to the a bird preserve which can best be seen from the train, but also from other points in the zoo. There are several species of native waterfowl on the preserve pond.
The California condor, bald eagle, and Channel Island fox exhibits are beautifully planted and very large. The desert tortoise exhibit is large and attractive.
The zoo has an exhibit called “Ewwwwwww” showcasing invertebrate, amphibian, and reptile species from around the world including a Burmese python, tiger salamander, walking stick insects, hissing cockroaches, tarantulas, and several others. The theme of the exhibit is that these species perform ecological services (pest control, decomposition, etc.) for humans and should be appreciated rather than feared. I think that this is immersive in the sense that they are trying to make people interested and appreciative of creatures that they would otherwise fear.
The white-handed gibbons have a wonderful habitat with several tall trees for climbing. I have seen a gibbon sitting in a 50+ foot tree and vocalizing. It made me appreciate what they must really be like in the wild.
Does this zoo have any good basic exhibits?
The gorilla exhibit is not naturalistic, but is large and green. It houses two silverback bachelor males at the time of this review.
The giraffe exhibit is smallish, but nice and also features spurred tortoises, crowned cranes, and ground hornbills.
The Magellianic penguin exhibit allows one to see the penguins up close and personal with both underwater and above ground viewing. There are frequent keeper talks and feedings. The adjacent Inca tern exhibit showcases its residents very well with occasional live fish for them to catch.
The African lion and adjacent black-footed cat exhibits are relatively new, spacious, and very good overall.
Does this zoo have any exhibits that should be bulldozed?
The Asian elephant exhibit houses two middle-aged females currently. It has a nice pond and several enrichment features, but is far too small by modern standards. The zoo has announced that there will be no more elephants kept here after these girls pass.
Does this zoo have any elements that make it particularly family friendly?
There is a great train loop around the zoo that kids of all ages can enjoy. There is a great playground with a hill covered in slick AstroTurf that makes for excellent sledding as I found out when I slid down it with my nephew several times.
Does this zoo have any interesting plans for the future?
The native California exhibit complex featuring the condors (2009) was the last major project at the Santa Barbara Zoo. They have not announced any new exhibit plans to my knowledge. There has been talk of a tiger exhibit at some point in the future (a species that the zoo used to feature). The zoo sent away its black and white and ring-tailed lemurs for unspecified reasons. These were popular species and the zoo mentioned that they would return in a new exhibit at some unknown point in the future.
Would a zoo aficionado like this zoo enough to go out of his or her way to visit it?
This zoo is smallish, but has a beautiful campus and an interesting collection. It is along the 101 Freeway, the major coastal freeway in California and is very easily accessible. I think that this zoo would be of interest to most zoo visitors for the view of the Pacific Ocean behind the giraffe exhibit, the chance to see California condors, and a for being a good basic zoo.
Zoo visit date: December 7, 2011 (this is one of my local zoos and is visited frequently)
Does this zoo satisfy the reviewer’s Inner-3-Year-Old by featuring his lifelong favorite animals, giraffes and elephants?
Yes, the zoo has Masai giraffes and Asian elephants.
Does this zoo have any animals that would excite a zoo aficionado?
California condors and Channel Islands foxes. There may be other species. The zoo keeps an accurate list of its resident species on its website.
Does this zoo have any immersion exhibits that would impress a zoo aficionado?
The zoo overlooks the Pacific Ocean and is situated on a former estate (the mansion burned down in the 1960s). It is beautifully landscaped and has several theme gardens including South African plants, cactus, and California native plants. In this sense much of the zoo is an immersion experience. The zoo grounds have a colony of double-crested cormorants nesting and acorn woodpeckers zipping around the trees in the middle of the zoo. The zoo is adjacent to the a bird preserve which can best be seen from the train, but also from other points in the zoo. There are several species of native waterfowl on the preserve pond.
The California condor, bald eagle, and Channel Island fox exhibits are beautifully planted and very large. The desert tortoise exhibit is large and attractive.
The zoo has an exhibit called “Ewwwwwww” showcasing invertebrate, amphibian, and reptile species from around the world including a Burmese python, tiger salamander, walking stick insects, hissing cockroaches, tarantulas, and several others. The theme of the exhibit is that these species perform ecological services (pest control, decomposition, etc.) for humans and should be appreciated rather than feared. I think that this is immersive in the sense that they are trying to make people interested and appreciative of creatures that they would otherwise fear.
The white-handed gibbons have a wonderful habitat with several tall trees for climbing. I have seen a gibbon sitting in a 50+ foot tree and vocalizing. It made me appreciate what they must really be like in the wild.
Does this zoo have any good basic exhibits?
The gorilla exhibit is not naturalistic, but is large and green. It houses two silverback bachelor males at the time of this review.
The giraffe exhibit is smallish, but nice and also features spurred tortoises, crowned cranes, and ground hornbills.
The Magellianic penguin exhibit allows one to see the penguins up close and personal with both underwater and above ground viewing. There are frequent keeper talks and feedings. The adjacent Inca tern exhibit showcases its residents very well with occasional live fish for them to catch.
The African lion and adjacent black-footed cat exhibits are relatively new, spacious, and very good overall.
Does this zoo have any exhibits that should be bulldozed?
The Asian elephant exhibit houses two middle-aged females currently. It has a nice pond and several enrichment features, but is far too small by modern standards. The zoo has announced that there will be no more elephants kept here after these girls pass.
Does this zoo have any elements that make it particularly family friendly?
There is a great train loop around the zoo that kids of all ages can enjoy. There is a great playground with a hill covered in slick AstroTurf that makes for excellent sledding as I found out when I slid down it with my nephew several times.
Does this zoo have any interesting plans for the future?
The native California exhibit complex featuring the condors (2009) was the last major project at the Santa Barbara Zoo. They have not announced any new exhibit plans to my knowledge. There has been talk of a tiger exhibit at some point in the future (a species that the zoo used to feature). The zoo sent away its black and white and ring-tailed lemurs for unspecified reasons. These were popular species and the zoo mentioned that they would return in a new exhibit at some unknown point in the future.
Would a zoo aficionado like this zoo enough to go out of his or her way to visit it?
This zoo is smallish, but has a beautiful campus and an interesting collection. It is along the 101 Freeway, the major coastal freeway in California and is very easily accessible. I think that this zoo would be of interest to most zoo visitors for the view of the Pacific Ocean behind the giraffe exhibit, the chance to see California condors, and a for being a good basic zoo.