Ranking the Classes

[Kurt Berry]

I'm certain zoos (at least good ones) would say all animals are equally important but how do you think the general public ranks the various classes of animals in importance/desire to see in the zoo? Also, how relatively important do you think the public sees the classes? For example, as a whole zoo visitors may consider mammals as more interesting and have higher desire to see them at the zoo than birds but is the difference huge, just a little or something in the middle?

I'm thinking about the following classes but feel free to add to the list: mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish and sharks, insects and spiders, and other invertebrates. Also, might want to consider domestic animals. (I know domestic animals aren't a unique class.)

 

[Gondwana]

I think there are four obvious tiers of public interest:
1. Mammals - contains the majority of ultra-popular species, and zoos without mammals aren't even perceived as "normal" zoos.
2. Birds and Reptiles - each has some popular species (penguins, parrots, crocodilians, large pythons, etc.) and each is expected, but most other species are seen more as filler and zoos themselves often don't even bother to have updated signage.
3. Fish and Sharks - similar overall to Birds/Reptiles in having some popular species (especially sharks), but I don't think the public expects a "typical" zoo to exhibit fishes.
4. Amphibians and Invertebrates - most zoos usually have the same handful of species (dartfrog, tarantula, moon jelly, etc) and the small vivaria/aquaria that typically house these groups might hold a person's attention for 20 seconds.