San Diego Zoo San Diego Zoo News 2017

there looks to be a lot of heavy mesh in the enclosures. Not saying this is bad or good, but the effect (from that video) is very much one of cages along a themed path.
 
Chlidonias said:
there looks to be a lot of heavy mesh in the enclosures. Not saying this is bad or good, but the effect (from that video) is very much one of cages along a themed path.
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Yes, I noticed this as well. If the zoo is trying for immersion here, it did a pretty poor job. If not... it's still kind of ugly.
 
The exhibits have an extensive amount of mesh. Glass would have been a much better choice in the viewing areas. Once the plants grow in, hopefully the exhibits will look a little nicer. Though space wise, the exhibits look pretty nice in my opinion.
 
jayjds2 said:
Yes, I noticed this as well. If the zoo is trying for immersion here, it did a pretty poor job. If not... it's still kind of ugly.
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Agreed. So far, save for the penguin exhibit, AR as a whole is just not seeming attractive. I don't like the look of the dwarf crocodile exhibit at all, and Rady Falls is an eyesore. The Tiger Trail waterfall cave at the Safari Park is a much better example of a very similar concept. In fact Tiger Trail is the exact level of immersion I'd started to expect from the Zoo/Safari Park as a whole. Even something like the LA Zoo's Rainforest would have been nice. I'm still hoping for the Highlands and Acacia Woodlands to turn out great, since those species hopefully won't need giant mesh big top tents, but at this time, I'd say this is only better than Elephant Odyssey for the impressive species list and scale.
 
What's wrong with the crocodile exhibit? There are a few changes I'd make to the visitor area (from the photos I've seen) but the exhibit itself seems large and well-done. I see no flaw with the Falls either. Comparing this to most people's perception of Elephant Odyssey (which isn't that terrible) is not justified.
 
pachyderm pro said:
The exhibits have an extensive amount of mesh. Glass would have been a much better choice in the viewing areas. Once the plants grow in, hopefully the exhibits will look a little nicer. Though space wise, the exhibits look pretty nice in my opinion.
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Neither of us have seen the exhibits in person, but I completely disagree. Huge glass walls around primate exhibits are very unattractive and really cut down on the usable space for the inhabitants. I actually quite like the overarching 'big top' mesh roof as well, though I agree it would, and indeed may very well, look better covered on creepers.
 
I thought the dwarf crocodile tank looked good in the photo I've seen in the gallery, although I suspect there is meant to be an awning above it for shade (where the beams are, otherwise they do look pretty ugly).

I don't like the heavy mesh in the cages in the video. I don't know how else they could have done it, because I have never been there, but it doesn't look attractive at all. I considered glass fronts to the exhibits but you'd get the glare issue then. While watching the video I thought why do they not have a lemur walk-through, and that then extended to why not follow Singapore Zoo - given their climate and size they could easily have any number of primates free-range - but then I figured that must surely be due to the litigious nature of the USA. It wouldn't take long before some numpty would sue the zoo because a squirrel monkey took her ice-cream or a lemur passed wind in her general direction.
 
jayjds2 said:
What's wrong with the crocodile exhibit? There are a few changes I'd make to the visitor area (from the photos I've seen) but the exhibit itself seems large and well-done. I see no flaw with the Falls either. Comparing this to most people's perception of Elephant Odyssey (which isn't that terrible) is not justified.
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There are no flaws with the Falls per se (water flowing isn't something anybody can mess up ;)) I just don't think that it's at all aesthetically pleasing, especially as compared to the concept art. Same with the crocodile exhibit, though I do think in some angles it's not so bad, there is a terrible glare to the point that it seems as though seeing into the exhibit will be a challenge. I will of course make my own fuller judgement when I see it all in person, but I'm not impressed.

I would like to point out that I'm not comparing Africa Rocks to most people's perception of Elephant Odyssey, (lord knows I'm one of the only people on this site who wouldn't tear it down in an instant given the opportunity :p), I'm comparing it to my own personal perception, as I've seen EO in person many times, and I feel Elephant Odyssey is average, and I did note that I still think this is better than Elephant Odyssey, mind you. It's just they've hyped this a lot as their centennial project, and it simply doesn't live up to the expectations, even despite the scaled down plans. I was expecting the slight reduction of the species exhibited to equate to an excellent quality of remaining exhibits, again, much like Tiger Trail (I think it can be deduced that I really love Tiger Trail). Again, I still have high hopes for the Acacia Woodlands and Ethiopian Highlands, and I'm curious to see what the "new" Kopje is like, and we've all seen that vegetation growth can do everything for a new exhibit, so who knows? In a few years the big top mesh may be obscured, and the glare on the West African Forest may be a thing of the past.

As a side question to anyone who can answer, I'm assuming the plans for a walk-through aviary in Africa Rocks are gone? I haven't seen anything that would indicate its inclusion in the project anymore.
 
Shellheart said:
There are no flaws with the Falls per se (water flowing isn't something anybody can mess up ;)) I just don't think that it's at all aesthetically pleasing, especially as compared to the concept art. Same with the crocodile exhibit, though I do think in some angles it's not so bad, there is a terrible glare to the point that it seems as though seeing into the exhibit will be a challenge. I will of course make my own fuller judgement when I see it all in person, but I'm not impressed.

I would like to point out that I'm not comparing Africa Rocks to most people's perception of Elephant Odyssey, (lord knows I'm one of the only people on this site who wouldn't tear it down in an instant given the opportunity :p), I'm comparing it to my own personal perception, as I've seen EO in person many times, and I feel Elephant Odyssey is average, and I did note that I still think this is better than Elephant Odyssey, mind you. It's just they've hyped this a lot as their centennial project, and it simply doesn't live up to the expectations, even despite the scaled down plans. I was expecting the slight reduction of the species exhibited to equate to an excellent quality of remaining exhibits, again, much like Tiger Trail (I think it can be deduced that I really love Tiger Trail). Again, I still have high hopes for the Acacia Woodlands and Ethiopian Highlands, and I'm curious to see what the "new" Kopje is like, and we've all seen that vegetation growth can do everything for a new exhibit, so who knows? In a few years the big top mesh may be obscured, and the glare on the West African Forest may be a thing of the past.

As a side question to anyone who can answer, I'm assuming the plans for a walk-through aviary in Africa Rocks are gone? I haven't seen anything that would indicate its inclusion in the project anymore.
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I haven't seen anything that would indicate its exclusion. Status quo should therefore be maintained.
 
Chlidonias said:
I thought the dwarf crocodile tank looked good in the photo I've seen in the gallery, although I suspect there is meant to be an awning above it for shade (where the beams are, otherwise they do look pretty ugly).

I don't like the heavy mesh in the cages in the video. I don't know how else they could have done it, because I have never been there, but it doesn't look attractive at all. I considered glass fronts to the exhibits but you'd get the glare issue then. While watching the video I thought why do they not have a lemur walk-through, and that then extended to why not follow Singapore Zoo - given their climate and size they could easily have any number of primates free-range - but then I figured that must surely be due to the litigious nature of the USA. It wouldn't take long before some numpty would sue the zoo because a squirrel monkey took her ice-cream or a lemur passed wind in her general direction.
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Other than aviaries and the petting zoo, I don't see the zoo doing anything in the way of walkthrough exhibits as that is the safari park's domain.
 
The_UltimateBea said:
I haven't seen anything that would indicate its exclusion. Status quo should therefore be maintained.
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While I'm still not fully certain, the May 2017 ZOONOOZ issue mentioning the full AR species list includes a number of birds, so I will actually assume the aviary is still in place and will be going into the Acacia Woodlands.
 
Shellheart said:
While I'm still not fully certain, the May 2017 ZOONOOZ issue mentioning the full AR species list includes a number of birds, so I will actually assume the aviary is still in place and will be going into the Acacia Woodlands.
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I assume we will be able to peek into AW and see progress once MF opens.
 
There are still plans for a large walkthrough aviary in Acacia Woodlands.

@FunkyGibbon I understand your point about the glass, and its a good one. I don't think any of us can give are full opinions until photos are uploaded to the gallery, or until we see it in person.
I noticed in the concept art for Africa Rocks, the dwarf croc exhibit had little stick like structures above the visitor area, hopefully these will be added in the future.

Something I'm concerned about though is the upcoming leopard exhibits. Its split in 2 and according the map doesn't look to be any larger then the new opened fossa or ratel exhibits. Hopefully it turns out good, and do the zoos history with awesome aviary's, I have very high expectations for both that and the vervet monkey exhibits.
 
According to September member magazine, the zoo is in planning stages for a major project in children's zoo called Animal House. This will be a new home for the ambassador animals, with both indoor and outdoor housing and interaction areas for guests.
 
Arizona Docent said:
According to September member magazine, the zoo is in planning stages for a major project in children's zoo called Animal House. This will be a new home for the ambassador animals, with both indoor and outdoor housing and interaction areas for guests.
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I hope this isn't the children's zoo makeover thats been stated as in the works. That whole pace definitely needs to change.
 
Arizona Docent said:
According to September member magazine, the zoo is in planning stages for a major project in children's zoo called Animal House. This will be a new home for the ambassador animals, with both indoor and outdoor housing and interaction areas for guests.
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Would you mind posting a photo of the page to the gallery?
 
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