You clearly haven't witnessed Americans around dangerous wild animals, in particular in national parks...
Snowleopard's 2022 Road Trip: Denmark, Sweden & Norway
- Thread starter snowleopard
- Start date
Lota lota
Well-Known Member
Neither does he seem to have heard about romanian bears.
Thanks for the many great comments everyone...much appreciated! 
I liked reading the Danish Covid response via @Hvedekorn, as each nation in the world seems to have slight differences in dealing with the virus. Here in British Columbia, Canada, there have been more than 4,000 Covid-related deaths, which is a tragedy, although also many protests about masks and vaccine mandates and lockdowns. That's probably the same everywhere, but one item that is highlighted a lot in B.C. is that there have been 10,000 drug-related deaths in the Province in the past 6 years. It's an epidemic of overdoses that only now is getting a significant amount of traction in the news. While on one hand people shouldn't be idiotic and do illegal, risky drugs, on the other hand I have a number of ex-students who have all died from drug use and so it's frustrating that Covid has in many ways overshadowed other items in the world. The number of domestic violence charges skyrocketed in B.C. during the various lockdowns, another sad fact. And now, one issue is that many citizens don't want to drive back to their jobs, as they have enjoyed working from home. It's obviously not a problem for the unemployed, but Canada's unemployment rate hovers around 5%. That means 95% of the country is out there making money and working, but they would prefer to do it from home!
I have enjoyed visiting a number of zoos that not many ZooChatters have been to. It's always been the same for me, as I've sought out obscure zoos in U.S. states such as Arkansas, Michigan and Wisconsin with zero photos in the ZooChat gallery and I've felt like a bit of a modern-day explorer. Wherever there's a captive exotic animal, I'll show up and take some photos. Ha! The same was in 2019 when I visited almost a dozen different small European zoos (mainly in Germany) that had zero photos in the ZooChat gallery. I like mixing it up on my trips, as of course I'll see all the major zoos that I can, but also the intriguing, sometimes downright bizarre little places are just as interesting.
The other thing that I wanted to mention was the proliferation of mixed-species exhibits in Europe. I talked about this at great length on my 2019 road trip thread, but essentially in North American zoos it's extremely rare to have any other animals in with great apes. Then I went to Europe and saw gibbons, otters, tapirs, binturongs and other creatures in with orangutans, or even Meerkats in with Gorillas at Artis Amsterdam. There are zoos like Dierenrijk in the Netherlands that has an exhibit for Greater One-horned Rhino, Nilgai, Hog Deer and Visayan Warty Pigs all together. The same zoo has another exhibit with Asian Elephants, Red Deer, Chital and Crab-eating Macaques! There's also Red Pandas with Reeves's Muntjacs, and then Asiatic Black Bears with Corsac Foxes. That's just one zoo as an example and I don't know anywhere even remotely like that in North America.
A lot of the items that I've talked about in regards to European zoos (mixed-species exhibits, flamingos mostly in aviaries and not pinioned, walk-through exhibits, going inside animal houses everywhere, historic architecture, whole carcasses given to carnivores, massive bird of prey aviaries, more guidebooks in giftshops, etc.) makes me really want to consider coming back to Europe again. I'd still love a big Florida zoo trip, and maybe bang off 60 zoos in 20 days, but how much crap would I wade through to get to Miami, Jacksonville and a few others? There are still far too many roadside zoos throughout the USA and I've already seen enough corn-crib cages in my lifetime. I'll finish my reviews for this trip and then start planning the next one!
I liked reading the Danish Covid response via @Hvedekorn, as each nation in the world seems to have slight differences in dealing with the virus. Here in British Columbia, Canada, there have been more than 4,000 Covid-related deaths, which is a tragedy, although also many protests about masks and vaccine mandates and lockdowns. That's probably the same everywhere, but one item that is highlighted a lot in B.C. is that there have been 10,000 drug-related deaths in the Province in the past 6 years. It's an epidemic of overdoses that only now is getting a significant amount of traction in the news. While on one hand people shouldn't be idiotic and do illegal, risky drugs, on the other hand I have a number of ex-students who have all died from drug use and so it's frustrating that Covid has in many ways overshadowed other items in the world. The number of domestic violence charges skyrocketed in B.C. during the various lockdowns, another sad fact. And now, one issue is that many citizens don't want to drive back to their jobs, as they have enjoyed working from home. It's obviously not a problem for the unemployed, but Canada's unemployment rate hovers around 5%. That means 95% of the country is out there making money and working, but they would prefer to do it from home!
I have enjoyed visiting a number of zoos that not many ZooChatters have been to. It's always been the same for me, as I've sought out obscure zoos in U.S. states such as Arkansas, Michigan and Wisconsin with zero photos in the ZooChat gallery and I've felt like a bit of a modern-day explorer. Wherever there's a captive exotic animal, I'll show up and take some photos. Ha! The same was in 2019 when I visited almost a dozen different small European zoos (mainly in Germany) that had zero photos in the ZooChat gallery. I like mixing it up on my trips, as of course I'll see all the major zoos that I can, but also the intriguing, sometimes downright bizarre little places are just as interesting.
The other thing that I wanted to mention was the proliferation of mixed-species exhibits in Europe. I talked about this at great length on my 2019 road trip thread, but essentially in North American zoos it's extremely rare to have any other animals in with great apes. Then I went to Europe and saw gibbons, otters, tapirs, binturongs and other creatures in with orangutans, or even Meerkats in with Gorillas at Artis Amsterdam. There are zoos like Dierenrijk in the Netherlands that has an exhibit for Greater One-horned Rhino, Nilgai, Hog Deer and Visayan Warty Pigs all together. The same zoo has another exhibit with Asian Elephants, Red Deer, Chital and Crab-eating Macaques! There's also Red Pandas with Reeves's Muntjacs, and then Asiatic Black Bears with Corsac Foxes. That's just one zoo as an example and I don't know anywhere even remotely like that in North America.
A lot of the items that I've talked about in regards to European zoos (mixed-species exhibits, flamingos mostly in aviaries and not pinioned, walk-through exhibits, going inside animal houses everywhere, historic architecture, whole carcasses given to carnivores, massive bird of prey aviaries, more guidebooks in giftshops, etc.) makes me really want to consider coming back to Europe again. I'd still love a big Florida zoo trip, and maybe bang off 60 zoos in 20 days, but how much crap would I wade through to get to Miami, Jacksonville and a few others? There are still far too many roadside zoos throughout the USA and I've already seen enough corn-crib cages in my lifetime. I'll finish my reviews for this trip and then start planning the next one!
They still only catch people who are speeding, though...
That said, there was a freedom of information request a few years ago that confirmed less than one in 10 of the speed cameras here in Derbyshire are actually functional at any one time (excluding the motorway average speed ones) - the rest won't catch you, they only act as a deterrent and might as well be an empty yellow box. They do switch round which ones are the working ones though, just to keep you on your toes.
This definitely is the way to go. Much cheaper and often nicer - particularly if you're staying in the same place a few days and are on your own.
When I did my own Florida trip (nearly a decade ago now - yikes!), I spent quite a long time going through the zoos of the relevant areas of the state (I was moving about but basically that meant within a hour or two's drive of Tampa, Miami, Cocoa Beach or Jacksonville) and trimming out the chaff. I wanted to get good coverage, and see as many new species as I could, but I really didn't want to get into spending time doing places just because they were there (particularly as I wanted to keep time for wildlifing as well). Central Florida Zoo and Palm Beach were notable victims of this and were dropped. There were any number of smaller or more generic places that dropped straight out of the running.
It was definitely the right call as it still felt jam-packed but I seldom had to properly rush.
Your current trip is fascinating to me as I've actually done very few zoos in this region, and none since 2003 - it's somewhere I need to get back to.
Monday, August 8th, 2022
Zoo/Aquarium # 16: Kolmarden Wildlife Park (Kolmarden, SE)
I have included 20 photos in this review, but I did upload a total of 140 photos into the gallery. Check them out for an extensive overview of the park.
Kolmarden Wildlife Park is the Disney’s Animal Kingdom of Scandinavia. For the one and only time on the trip, I felt a little awkward lining up at the entrance gate. There were all these families there awaiting Mickey and Goofy…errr..make that Bamses the Teddy Bear and Pelle the Cat. Out came the characters to greet everyone with hugs and smiles, in costumes that would be amazingly realistic if you were a little kid but inside there was probably a couple of sweating little Swedish teenagers cursing the heatwave. They skipped me in the lineup because they probably thought I was some kind of weirdo Swede, even though I prominently wore my Edmonton Valley Zoo hat. I wanted to yell, “I’m from Canada, eh!” but I gritted my teeth and quickly made my way into the park.
Kolmarden is a big, famous zoo that receives 750,000 visitors each year (plus another 130,000 for the separate Tropicarium attraction outside – more on that in the next zoo review) and it opened in the late 1960s. Sweden’s largest city, by far, is Stockholm and it’s about an hour and a half north of Kolmarden Wildlife Park. People come from near and far to visit this zoo, as it’s got some strong similarities to Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Both have lots of space, as Kolmarden is 150 hectares/371 acres in size, although not all the land is used. Both have ‘magical’ characters that walk around and put on shows. Both have one major ride to view animals that dominates a section of the park, and both have rollercoasters and captive animals on the same site. And lastly, both can be seen in a few hours if you are a zoo nerd that has zero inclination to ride a coaster or hang out in the kiddie amusement park area.
Let’s get the non-animal parts out of the way first.
I must be up front and admit that in some ways Kolmarden is not really my type of zoo. It’s a phenomenal zoo for a family and if I had my wife and 4 kids with me then it would likely have been a candidate to be the best zoo of the trip for them, even prompting us to stay multiple days as there is a popular hotel on site and I saw many groups of people walking from that direction first thing in the morning. Visitors are there to ride Wildfire, the second tallest wooden rollercoaster on the planet and it apparently reaches speeds of 115 km/hr. It opened in 2016 and looks amazing if you are into that sort of thing. Quite honestly, I would have to be paid a large sum of money to go on it as it looks truly terrifying. Nearby, there’s a mini rollercoaster, a boat swing thing, and other glitz and glamour items with no animals. There’s even a General Store that sells nothing but Coca-Cola products, which is cool but a little odd.
Wildlife rollercoaster:
Then there is 'Bamses World', which has all sorts of rides for young children. Anyone 10 or over would not be interested in this part of the park. I wandered through just to see what was there and it was crazy busy with kids galloping all over the place. It’s actually easy to get lost in there, because it is pure chaos and it is literally acres of rides, amusement activities and all sorts of crying and yelling toddlers. I struggled to find an exit and I’m sure that at least a few families were thinking: “Hey, isn’t that the Swedish weirdo who was alone at the entrance, and now he’s walking around in the kiddie zone. What’s up with that?” I dodged the giant Teddy Bear named Bamses, avoided Pelle the black-and-white Cat, pulled my cap down low and slunk my way out of the mayhem. Between the rollercoaster area and the Bamses World nonsense, there are acres of the zoo with zero animals and only the screams of disappointed zoo nerds.
I will say that Kolmarden Wildlife Park is better than Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Disney has the famous Kilimanjaro Safaris ride, and a world-class gorilla exhibit and some great African exhibits, and some nice ungulates at their lodge down the road, but everything else scattered across the park is simply average, with Asia, Affection Section, Oasis and Discovery Island full of typical, at times bland and smallish animal enclosures. Kolmarden is so much better. One massive factor is the setting, as the Swedish zoo has some steep trails, and one is plunged into a forest at various times throughout the grounds. There are clearings with animal exhibits, but then thick woodland and immense rocky areas that are amazing to walk around. Some of my old Geography teachers would have a blast analyzing the terrain.
Kolmarden has zero fish, insects, reptiles or amphibians, and only three on-show bird species (Ostrich, Rhea and Southern Ground Hornbill). This is yet another Scandinavian zoo that focuses almost exclusively on mammals. There are around 50 mammal species and once you strip away all the gloss from the rollercoasters and Disney-esque characters, this is a zoo filled with superb exhibits. There are animal habitats here that are world-class. Tiger World is an amazing enclosure, with a rocky backdrop and loads of viewing angles. I saw 5 Amur Tigers all together in the exhibit, which is across from a beautiful Chinese Dhole habitat that is just as impressive. Tiger World actually lists 8 tigers on the sign, but perhaps they rotate a few on and off exhibit. The park used to have a big pack of wolves and allow the public in with them for special tours, but after the death of a staff member by the wolves, and another attack on a TV presenter, that all halted and there are no more captive wolves in Kolmarden. Now that huge space, several acres in size, has been changed to a Wolverine habitat.
I saw 5 Amur Tigers in the one large exhibit:
Tiger World:
A Chinese Dhole in the center of this photo illustrates the vast size of the exhibit:
Wolverine exhibit (old wolf enclosure):
There’s a Snow Leopard exhibit that rivals Zurich (which I saw in 2003) for the best I’ve seen. An enormous mountain is in the enclosure and a lot of people were looking out from the round wall that circles the habitat. At first, it took a minute to adjust one’s eyes to the terrain, but when the two Snow Leopards moved the crowd hummed with delight. Wonderful. The Red Panda exhibit is spacious and nice, with Small-clawed Otters in with the pandas. Bush Dogs have a big space to roam, Bactrian Camels and Mishmi Takins (together) have a nice paddock, with a secondary exhibit for yet more Takins. The Brown Bear habitat is like a slice of the wild, echoing the Snow Leopard exhibit by having a gargantuan mountain as the main focus, with a waterfall to drink from. It’s dazzling, especially when chunks of frozen food was tossed into the exhibit by a keeper. Farther along is a terrifically vast South American Pampas, with Lowland Tapir, Vicuna, Capybara, Mara and Rhea wandering around. At Kolmarden, you can pay extra to go behind the scenes and pet Capybaras, and there’s also a similar option to pet and feed Meerkats. A very tall aviary, probably designed for eagles, is home to a single Southern Ground Hornbill.
If you zoom in then you will see two Snow Leopards in this photo (in an enclosure which held Polar Bears for decades):
Brown Bear exhibit:
Bush Dog exhibit:
South American Pampas:
The African Savanna is acres in size, with a lot of animals milling about in all directions. I would be at Boras Zoo the next day and the similarities are eerie in terms of the size, aesthetics and rocky wall of the Kolmarden savanna. Which one was first? Here the species list includes the following: White Rhino, Giraffe, Grevy’s Zebra, Blesbok, Addra Gazelle, Addax, Sable Antelope, Nile Lechwe, Red River Hog and Ostrich. It’s interesting to compare some of the African Savannas I’ve seen with something like Woodland Park Zoo’s example. That Seattle zoo won an AZA award for its African Savanna 40 years ago, but when I was there last (2019) there was a grand total of 8 animals on the savanna. Scandinavian zoos like Ree Park and Kolmarden don’t have 8 animals on their African Savannas, but instead EIGHTY animals and the experience of viewing them is a thousand times better. Suddenly, Woodland Park’s savanna seems quaint and old-fashioned, still pleasant but a shadow of its Nordic peers. One peril of visiting hundreds of different zoos is that some of the exhibits that I used to love are suddenly, rather sharply, put into perspective as being a bit outdated and small.
African Savanna:
Next door is an Asian Savanna, with perhaps 10 Bactrian Camels, 10 Yak and 10 Kulan all together in a large space with rocky walls around the perimeter. The African and Asian Savannas complement each other well, with the same basic layout and probably over 100 ungulates in one spot. It’s beautiful to sit and watch the herd animals and sure beats a rollercoaster any day of the week.
Asian Savanna:
There’s an ‘Aparium’, with Gorillas and Chimpanzees in exhibits that I thought could have been bigger. Renovating the space to hold only one species would be the way forward in my opinion, especially because the Gorillas recently had twins and the big Chimpanzee troop must be at least 15 animals. I didn't go inside the Great Ape House as it was closed during my visit. The White-handed Gibbons next door have a lush island that is well designed.
Chimpanzee exhibit (larger than the Gorilla space):
Kolmarden even has elephants, with a trio of Asian Elephants off to the side and down a long lane. Many visitors stopped at the top of the path and watched the elephants from a distance, but I would strongly advise zoo nerds to take the walk. There are close-up views of the zoo’s three Asian Elephants near their pool at the bottom of the winding exhibit, plus a very nice Meerkat exhibit is situated there as well. There is also access to the Pachyderm House, showcasing the indoor areas for the White Rhinos and Asian Elephants. The elephant complex isn’t the greatest, but it's probably adequate and it connects to the African Savanna side yard. The elephants are 25, 26 and 27 years old and so they still have a long life ahead of them.
Asian Elephant exhibit:
There are also Atlantic Bottle-nosed Dolphins here at Kolmarden Wildlife Park. The big Marine World complex is surrounded by shops selling food and souvenirs, plus there is Sweden’s only Dolphinarium (called ‘Hope’) and the 10-12 dolphins can be seen at any time during the day. It’s an indoor pool, surprisingly deep and with a really pretty rock backdrop. However, those rocks cut into the available space for the cetaceans and the zoo has already announced that they are phasing out the dolphins. Where they will end up is anyone’s guess, but outside of Spain it would seem that the era of European Dolphinariums is on its last legs. If Kolmarden could somehow get some Walruses as replacements then that would be fantastic. Across from the dolphin arena is a splendid pinniped pool for Cape Fur Seals, Grey Seals and Harbour Seals. The view from the top of the visitor area, with a mountainous forest backdrop, is marvelous and the pool has an incredible depth to it. Very few pinniped exhibits have such a natural look as this one.
Dolphin pool:
Pinniped pool:
The unique attraction at Kolmarden is the Safari Ride (‘Safaribanan’). It was once a drive-through safari park, but the gondolas were built instead and opened in 2011. There is a long, almost 30-minute gondola tour that takes visitors over several different habitats. There are signs stating that this is a unique attraction, but doesn’t Cabarceno Zoo in Spain have something quite similar? Oakland Zoo also has a gondola system, but in that case it is only 4 minutes up to a different part of the zoo and not quite the same thing as at Kolmarden. The Safari Gondola ride takes visitors directly over the heads of Reticulated Giraffes, Grevy’s Zebras, Common Eland, Ankole Cattle, Gemsbok, Blackbuck, Blue Wildebeest, Fallow Deer, Pere David’s Deer, Axis Deer, Alpine Ibex, American Bison, Moose, Ostriches, Brown Bears, Lions and several other species in vast, gargantuan paddocks. It’s a bit disconcerting to see a herd of Blackbuck in with the giraffes and other African animals, or some Alpine Ibex mingling with ostriches (!!), but I’m sure that the Muggles in the gondolas won’t care. Unfortunately, it is only possible to see all those species on the gondola ride.
Safari Gondola ride entrance:
The gondola is naturally like all kinds of rides in zoos. I saw a couple of Brown Bears in their vast forest of an enclosure, but just when it seemed as if they were doing something interesting I had moved on. I was above a half-dozen Moose in their huge, multi-acre paddock and when a youngster stood up to drink the gondola left him behind. It’s those frustrating moments that taint an otherwise unique zoo experience. Also, 30 minutes is a genuinely long time to be up in the air on a ride. Quite often a zoo ride will be 5 to 8 minutes in length, but I really did feel that I was up in the gondola for an extremely long time. Some folks will think trundling up above the animals in a moving contraption is the best thing ever, but it’s not really my cup of tea. Give me a walking path!
Safari Gondola ride:
Safari Gondola ride:
So, there you have Kolmarden Wildlife Park. I’ve written extensively about this zoo as I have mixed feelings about it. The entrance pathway is very steep, and it goes past exhibits for Wolverines and European Lynx in vast enclosures where it is almost impossible to see the animals. Then one can explore Bamses World, the huge kiddie zone. At that point, a visitor has gone 45 minutes of walking and seen zero exotic creatures. The same could be said about the other end of the park, with Marine World (dolphins are eventually leaving), the rollercoaster and amusement park section, and the Safari Gondola where you cannot see any animals unless you take a half-hour ride. That leaves the entire middle chunk of the zoo and it’s entirely possible to see that section in probably an hour and a half. An amazing fact is that big, famous Kolmarden Zoo, with its families booking multi-day holidays, has only 20 exhibits with exotic animals that can be seen by walking around. I ended up staying just over 3 hours, as I explored the entire park, but a zoo nerd might well be disappointed to stroll around, see 20 exhibits, then take the gondola to catch glimpses of animals in the forest.
I think that everyone should visit Kolmarden Wildlife Park and make up their own mind. One thing that's clear is that the trio of huge paddocks (African Savanna, Asian Savanna and South American Pampas) are all stunning. Tiger World and the nearby Dholes are both fantastic exhibits, the Brown Bear habitat is jaw-dropping, the pinniped pool is wonderful, and the Snow Leopard exhibit is world-class. Also, the Safari Gondola is a highlight for most visitors and was jam-packed during my visit and so I'm very fortunate that I had a gondola all to myself. Those handful of exhibits make Kolmarden a must-see attraction for a zoo nerd, but just be prepared to possibly be hugged by Bamses the Teddy Bear!
Zoo/Aquarium # 16: Kolmarden Wildlife Park (Kolmarden, SE)
I have included 20 photos in this review, but I did upload a total of 140 photos into the gallery. Check them out for an extensive overview of the park.
Kolmarden Wildlife Park is the Disney’s Animal Kingdom of Scandinavia. For the one and only time on the trip, I felt a little awkward lining up at the entrance gate. There were all these families there awaiting Mickey and Goofy…errr..make that Bamses the Teddy Bear and Pelle the Cat. Out came the characters to greet everyone with hugs and smiles, in costumes that would be amazingly realistic if you were a little kid but inside there was probably a couple of sweating little Swedish teenagers cursing the heatwave. They skipped me in the lineup because they probably thought I was some kind of weirdo Swede, even though I prominently wore my Edmonton Valley Zoo hat. I wanted to yell, “I’m from Canada, eh!” but I gritted my teeth and quickly made my way into the park.
Kolmarden is a big, famous zoo that receives 750,000 visitors each year (plus another 130,000 for the separate Tropicarium attraction outside – more on that in the next zoo review) and it opened in the late 1960s. Sweden’s largest city, by far, is Stockholm and it’s about an hour and a half north of Kolmarden Wildlife Park. People come from near and far to visit this zoo, as it’s got some strong similarities to Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Both have lots of space, as Kolmarden is 150 hectares/371 acres in size, although not all the land is used. Both have ‘magical’ characters that walk around and put on shows. Both have one major ride to view animals that dominates a section of the park, and both have rollercoasters and captive animals on the same site. And lastly, both can be seen in a few hours if you are a zoo nerd that has zero inclination to ride a coaster or hang out in the kiddie amusement park area.
Let’s get the non-animal parts out of the way first.
I must be up front and admit that in some ways Kolmarden is not really my type of zoo. It’s a phenomenal zoo for a family and if I had my wife and 4 kids with me then it would likely have been a candidate to be the best zoo of the trip for them, even prompting us to stay multiple days as there is a popular hotel on site and I saw many groups of people walking from that direction first thing in the morning. Visitors are there to ride Wildfire, the second tallest wooden rollercoaster on the planet and it apparently reaches speeds of 115 km/hr. It opened in 2016 and looks amazing if you are into that sort of thing. Quite honestly, I would have to be paid a large sum of money to go on it as it looks truly terrifying. Nearby, there’s a mini rollercoaster, a boat swing thing, and other glitz and glamour items with no animals. There’s even a General Store that sells nothing but Coca-Cola products, which is cool but a little odd.
Wildlife rollercoaster:
Then there is 'Bamses World', which has all sorts of rides for young children. Anyone 10 or over would not be interested in this part of the park. I wandered through just to see what was there and it was crazy busy with kids galloping all over the place. It’s actually easy to get lost in there, because it is pure chaos and it is literally acres of rides, amusement activities and all sorts of crying and yelling toddlers. I struggled to find an exit and I’m sure that at least a few families were thinking: “Hey, isn’t that the Swedish weirdo who was alone at the entrance, and now he’s walking around in the kiddie zone. What’s up with that?” I dodged the giant Teddy Bear named Bamses, avoided Pelle the black-and-white Cat, pulled my cap down low and slunk my way out of the mayhem. Between the rollercoaster area and the Bamses World nonsense, there are acres of the zoo with zero animals and only the screams of disappointed zoo nerds.
I will say that Kolmarden Wildlife Park is better than Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Disney has the famous Kilimanjaro Safaris ride, and a world-class gorilla exhibit and some great African exhibits, and some nice ungulates at their lodge down the road, but everything else scattered across the park is simply average, with Asia, Affection Section, Oasis and Discovery Island full of typical, at times bland and smallish animal enclosures. Kolmarden is so much better. One massive factor is the setting, as the Swedish zoo has some steep trails, and one is plunged into a forest at various times throughout the grounds. There are clearings with animal exhibits, but then thick woodland and immense rocky areas that are amazing to walk around. Some of my old Geography teachers would have a blast analyzing the terrain.
Kolmarden has zero fish, insects, reptiles or amphibians, and only three on-show bird species (Ostrich, Rhea and Southern Ground Hornbill). This is yet another Scandinavian zoo that focuses almost exclusively on mammals. There are around 50 mammal species and once you strip away all the gloss from the rollercoasters and Disney-esque characters, this is a zoo filled with superb exhibits. There are animal habitats here that are world-class. Tiger World is an amazing enclosure, with a rocky backdrop and loads of viewing angles. I saw 5 Amur Tigers all together in the exhibit, which is across from a beautiful Chinese Dhole habitat that is just as impressive. Tiger World actually lists 8 tigers on the sign, but perhaps they rotate a few on and off exhibit. The park used to have a big pack of wolves and allow the public in with them for special tours, but after the death of a staff member by the wolves, and another attack on a TV presenter, that all halted and there are no more captive wolves in Kolmarden. Now that huge space, several acres in size, has been changed to a Wolverine habitat.
I saw 5 Amur Tigers in the one large exhibit:
Tiger World:
A Chinese Dhole in the center of this photo illustrates the vast size of the exhibit:
Wolverine exhibit (old wolf enclosure):
There’s a Snow Leopard exhibit that rivals Zurich (which I saw in 2003) for the best I’ve seen. An enormous mountain is in the enclosure and a lot of people were looking out from the round wall that circles the habitat. At first, it took a minute to adjust one’s eyes to the terrain, but when the two Snow Leopards moved the crowd hummed with delight. Wonderful. The Red Panda exhibit is spacious and nice, with Small-clawed Otters in with the pandas. Bush Dogs have a big space to roam, Bactrian Camels and Mishmi Takins (together) have a nice paddock, with a secondary exhibit for yet more Takins. The Brown Bear habitat is like a slice of the wild, echoing the Snow Leopard exhibit by having a gargantuan mountain as the main focus, with a waterfall to drink from. It’s dazzling, especially when chunks of frozen food was tossed into the exhibit by a keeper. Farther along is a terrifically vast South American Pampas, with Lowland Tapir, Vicuna, Capybara, Mara and Rhea wandering around. At Kolmarden, you can pay extra to go behind the scenes and pet Capybaras, and there’s also a similar option to pet and feed Meerkats. A very tall aviary, probably designed for eagles, is home to a single Southern Ground Hornbill.
If you zoom in then you will see two Snow Leopards in this photo (in an enclosure which held Polar Bears for decades):
Brown Bear exhibit:
Bush Dog exhibit:
South American Pampas:
The African Savanna is acres in size, with a lot of animals milling about in all directions. I would be at Boras Zoo the next day and the similarities are eerie in terms of the size, aesthetics and rocky wall of the Kolmarden savanna. Which one was first? Here the species list includes the following: White Rhino, Giraffe, Grevy’s Zebra, Blesbok, Addra Gazelle, Addax, Sable Antelope, Nile Lechwe, Red River Hog and Ostrich. It’s interesting to compare some of the African Savannas I’ve seen with something like Woodland Park Zoo’s example. That Seattle zoo won an AZA award for its African Savanna 40 years ago, but when I was there last (2019) there was a grand total of 8 animals on the savanna. Scandinavian zoos like Ree Park and Kolmarden don’t have 8 animals on their African Savannas, but instead EIGHTY animals and the experience of viewing them is a thousand times better. Suddenly, Woodland Park’s savanna seems quaint and old-fashioned, still pleasant but a shadow of its Nordic peers. One peril of visiting hundreds of different zoos is that some of the exhibits that I used to love are suddenly, rather sharply, put into perspective as being a bit outdated and small.
African Savanna:
Next door is an Asian Savanna, with perhaps 10 Bactrian Camels, 10 Yak and 10 Kulan all together in a large space with rocky walls around the perimeter. The African and Asian Savannas complement each other well, with the same basic layout and probably over 100 ungulates in one spot. It’s beautiful to sit and watch the herd animals and sure beats a rollercoaster any day of the week.
Asian Savanna:
There’s an ‘Aparium’, with Gorillas and Chimpanzees in exhibits that I thought could have been bigger. Renovating the space to hold only one species would be the way forward in my opinion, especially because the Gorillas recently had twins and the big Chimpanzee troop must be at least 15 animals. I didn't go inside the Great Ape House as it was closed during my visit. The White-handed Gibbons next door have a lush island that is well designed.
Chimpanzee exhibit (larger than the Gorilla space):
Kolmarden even has elephants, with a trio of Asian Elephants off to the side and down a long lane. Many visitors stopped at the top of the path and watched the elephants from a distance, but I would strongly advise zoo nerds to take the walk. There are close-up views of the zoo’s three Asian Elephants near their pool at the bottom of the winding exhibit, plus a very nice Meerkat exhibit is situated there as well. There is also access to the Pachyderm House, showcasing the indoor areas for the White Rhinos and Asian Elephants. The elephant complex isn’t the greatest, but it's probably adequate and it connects to the African Savanna side yard. The elephants are 25, 26 and 27 years old and so they still have a long life ahead of them.
Asian Elephant exhibit:
There are also Atlantic Bottle-nosed Dolphins here at Kolmarden Wildlife Park. The big Marine World complex is surrounded by shops selling food and souvenirs, plus there is Sweden’s only Dolphinarium (called ‘Hope’) and the 10-12 dolphins can be seen at any time during the day. It’s an indoor pool, surprisingly deep and with a really pretty rock backdrop. However, those rocks cut into the available space for the cetaceans and the zoo has already announced that they are phasing out the dolphins. Where they will end up is anyone’s guess, but outside of Spain it would seem that the era of European Dolphinariums is on its last legs. If Kolmarden could somehow get some Walruses as replacements then that would be fantastic. Across from the dolphin arena is a splendid pinniped pool for Cape Fur Seals, Grey Seals and Harbour Seals. The view from the top of the visitor area, with a mountainous forest backdrop, is marvelous and the pool has an incredible depth to it. Very few pinniped exhibits have such a natural look as this one.
Dolphin pool:
Pinniped pool:
The unique attraction at Kolmarden is the Safari Ride (‘Safaribanan’). It was once a drive-through safari park, but the gondolas were built instead and opened in 2011. There is a long, almost 30-minute gondola tour that takes visitors over several different habitats. There are signs stating that this is a unique attraction, but doesn’t Cabarceno Zoo in Spain have something quite similar? Oakland Zoo also has a gondola system, but in that case it is only 4 minutes up to a different part of the zoo and not quite the same thing as at Kolmarden. The Safari Gondola ride takes visitors directly over the heads of Reticulated Giraffes, Grevy’s Zebras, Common Eland, Ankole Cattle, Gemsbok, Blackbuck, Blue Wildebeest, Fallow Deer, Pere David’s Deer, Axis Deer, Alpine Ibex, American Bison, Moose, Ostriches, Brown Bears, Lions and several other species in vast, gargantuan paddocks. It’s a bit disconcerting to see a herd of Blackbuck in with the giraffes and other African animals, or some Alpine Ibex mingling with ostriches (!!), but I’m sure that the Muggles in the gondolas won’t care. Unfortunately, it is only possible to see all those species on the gondola ride.
Safari Gondola ride entrance:
The gondola is naturally like all kinds of rides in zoos. I saw a couple of Brown Bears in their vast forest of an enclosure, but just when it seemed as if they were doing something interesting I had moved on. I was above a half-dozen Moose in their huge, multi-acre paddock and when a youngster stood up to drink the gondola left him behind. It’s those frustrating moments that taint an otherwise unique zoo experience. Also, 30 minutes is a genuinely long time to be up in the air on a ride. Quite often a zoo ride will be 5 to 8 minutes in length, but I really did feel that I was up in the gondola for an extremely long time. Some folks will think trundling up above the animals in a moving contraption is the best thing ever, but it’s not really my cup of tea. Give me a walking path!
Safari Gondola ride:
Safari Gondola ride:
So, there you have Kolmarden Wildlife Park. I’ve written extensively about this zoo as I have mixed feelings about it. The entrance pathway is very steep, and it goes past exhibits for Wolverines and European Lynx in vast enclosures where it is almost impossible to see the animals. Then one can explore Bamses World, the huge kiddie zone. At that point, a visitor has gone 45 minutes of walking and seen zero exotic creatures. The same could be said about the other end of the park, with Marine World (dolphins are eventually leaving), the rollercoaster and amusement park section, and the Safari Gondola where you cannot see any animals unless you take a half-hour ride. That leaves the entire middle chunk of the zoo and it’s entirely possible to see that section in probably an hour and a half. An amazing fact is that big, famous Kolmarden Zoo, with its families booking multi-day holidays, has only 20 exhibits with exotic animals that can be seen by walking around. I ended up staying just over 3 hours, as I explored the entire park, but a zoo nerd might well be disappointed to stroll around, see 20 exhibits, then take the gondola to catch glimpses of animals in the forest.
I think that everyone should visit Kolmarden Wildlife Park and make up their own mind. One thing that's clear is that the trio of huge paddocks (African Savanna, Asian Savanna and South American Pampas) are all stunning. Tiger World and the nearby Dholes are both fantastic exhibits, the Brown Bear habitat is jaw-dropping, the pinniped pool is wonderful, and the Snow Leopard exhibit is world-class. Also, the Safari Gondola is a highlight for most visitors and was jam-packed during my visit and so I'm very fortunate that I had a gondola all to myself. Those handful of exhibits make Kolmarden a must-see attraction for a zoo nerd, but just be prepared to possibly be hugged by Bamses the Teddy Bear!
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Kalaw
Well-Known Member
Monday, August 8th, 2022
Zoo/Aquarium # 16: Kolmarden Wildlife Park (Kolmarden, SE)
Kolmarden Wildlife Park is the Disney’s Animal Kingdom of Scandinavia. For the one and only time on the trip, I felt a little awkward lining up at the entrance gate. There were all these families there awaiting Mickey and Goofy…errr..make that Bamses the Teddy Bear and Pelle the Cat. Out came the characters to greet everyone with hugs and smiles, in costumes that would be amazingly realistic if you were a little kid but inside there was probably a couple of sweating little Swedish teenagers cursing the heatwave. They skipped me in the lineup because they probably thought I was some kind of weirdo Swede, even though I prominently wore my Edmonton Valley Zoo hat. I wanted to yell, “I’m from Canada, eh!” but I gritted my teeth and quickly made my way into the park.
Kolmarden is a big, famous zoo that receives 750,000 visitors each year (plus another 130,000 for the separate Tropicarium attraction outside – more on that in the next zoo review) and it opened in the late 1960s. Sweden’s largest city, by far, is Stockholm and it’s about an hour and a half north of Kolmarden Wildlife Park. People come from near and far to visit this zoo, as it’s got some strong similarities to Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Both have lots of space, as Kolmarden is 150 hectares/371 acres in size, although not all the land is used. Both have ‘magical’ characters that walk around and put on shows. Both have one major ride to view animals that dominates a section of the park, and both have rollercoasters and captive animals on the same site. And lastly, both can be seen in a few hours if you are a zoo nerd that has zero inclination to ride a coaster or hang out in the kiddie amusement park area.
Let’s get the non-animal parts out of the way first.
I must be up front and admit that in some ways Kolmarden is not really my type of zoo. It’s a phenomenal zoo for a family and if I had my wife and 4 kids with me then it would likely have been a candidate to be the best zoo of the trip for them, even prompting us to stay multiple days as there is a popular hotel on site and I saw many groups of people walking from that direction first thing in the morning. Visitors are there to ride Wildfire, the second tallest wooden rollercoaster on the planet and it apparently reaches speeds of 115 km/hr. It opened in 2016 and looks amazing if you are into that sort of thing. Quite honestly, I would have to be paid a large sum of money to go on it as it looks truly terrifying. Nearby, there’s a mini rollercoaster, a boat swing thing, and other glitz and glamour items with no animals. There’s even a General Store that sells nothing but Coca-Cola products, which is cool but a little odd.
Wildlife rollercoaster:
Then there is 'Bamses World', which has all sorts of rides for young children. Anyone 10 or over would not be interested in this part of the park. I wandered through just to see what was there and it was crazy busy with kids galloping all over the place. It’s actually easy to get lost in there, because it is pure chaos and it is literally acres of rides, amusement activities and all sorts of crying and yelling toddlers. I struggled to find an exit and I’m sure that at least a few families were thinking: “Hey, isn’t that the Swedish weirdo who was alone at the entrance, and now he’s walking around in the kiddie zone. What’s up with that?” I dodged the giant Teddy Bear named Bamses, avoided Pelle the black-and-white Cat, pulled my cap down low and slunk my way out of the mayhem. Between the rollercoaster area and the Bamses World nonsense, there are acres of the zoo with zero animals and only the screams of disappointed zoo nerds.
I will say that Kolmarden Wildlife Park is better than Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Disney has the famous Kilimanjaro Safaris ride, and a world-class gorilla exhibit and some great African exhibits, and some nice ungulates at their lodge down the road, but everything else scattered across the park is simply average, with Asia, Affection Section, Oasis and Discovery Island full of typical, at times bland and smallish animal enclosures. Kolmarden is so much better. One massive factor is the setting, as the Swedish zoo has some steep trails, and one is plunged into a forest at various times throughout the grounds. There are clearings with animal exhibits, but then thick woodland and immense rocky areas that are amazing to walk around. Some of my old Geography teachers would have a blast analyzing the terrain.
Kolmarden has zero fish, insects, reptiles or amphibians, and only three on-show bird species (Ostrich, Rhea and Southern Ground Hornbill). This is yet another Scandinavian zoo that focuses almost exclusively on mammals. There are around 50 mammal species and once you strip away all the gloss from the rollercoasters and Disney-esque characters, this is a zoo filled with superb exhibits. There are animal habitats here that are world-class. Tiger World is an amazing enclosure, with a rocky backdrop and loads of viewing angles. I saw 5 Amur Tigers all together in the exhibit, which is across from a beautiful Chinese Dhole habitat that is just as impressive. Tiger World actually lists 8 tigers on the sign, but perhaps they rotate a few on and off exhibit. The park used to have a big pack of wolves and allow the public in with them for special tours, but after the death of a staff member by the wolves, and another attack on a TV presenter, that all halted and there are no more captive wolves in Kolmarden. Now that huge space, several acres in size, has been changed to a Wolverine habitat.
I saw 5 Amur Tigers in the one large exhibit:
Tiger World:
A Chinese Dhole in the center of this photo illustrates the vast size of the exhibit:
Wolverine exhibit (old wolf enclosure):
There’s a Snow Leopard exhibit that rivals Zurich (which I saw in 2003) for the best I’ve seen. An enormous mountain is in the enclosure and a lot of people were looking out from the round wall that circles the habitat. At first, it took a minute to adjust one’s eyes to the terrain, but when the two Snow Leopards moved the crowd hummed with delight. Wonderful. The Red Panda exhibit is spacious and nice, with Small-clawed Otters in with the pandas. Bush Dogs have a big space to roam, Bactrian Camels and Mishmi Takins (together) have a nice paddock, with a secondary exhibit for yet more Takins. The Brown Bear habitat is like a slice of the wild, echoing the Snow Leopard exhibit by having a gargantuan mountain as the main focus, with a waterfall to drink from. It’s dazzling, especially when chunks of frozen food was tossed into the exhibit by a keeper. Farther along is a terrifically vast South American Pampas, with Lowland Tapir, Vicuna, Capybara, Mara and Rhea wandering around. At Kolmarden, you can pay extra to go behind the scenes and pet Capybaras, and there’s also a similar option to pet and feed Meerkats. A very tall aviary, probably designed for eagles, is home to a single Southern Ground Hornbill.
If you zoom in then you will see two Snow Leopards in this photo (in an enclosure which held Polar Bears for decades):
Brown Bear exhibit:
Bush Dog exhibit:
South American Pampas:
The African Savanna is acres in size, with a lot of animals milling about in all directions. I would be at Boras Zoo the next day and the similarities are eerie in terms of the size, aesthetics and rocky wall of the Kolmarden savanna. Which one was first? Here the species list includes the following: White Rhino, Giraffe, Grevy’s Zebra, Blesbok, Addra Gazelle, Addax, Sable Antelope, Nile Lechwe, Red River Hog and Ostrich. It’s interesting to compare some of the African Savannas I’ve seen with something like Woodland Park Zoo’s example. That Seattle zoo won an AZA award for its African Savanna 40 years ago, but when I was there last (2019) there was a grand total of 8 animals on the savanna. Scandinavian zoos like Ree Park and Kolmarden don’t have 8 animals on their African Savannas, but instead EIGHTY animals and the experience of viewing them is a thousand times better. Suddenly, Woodland Park’s savanna seems quaint and old-fashioned, still pleasant but a shadow of its Nordic peers. One peril of visiting hundreds of different zoos is that some of the exhibits that I used to love are suddenly, rather sharply, put into perspective as being a bit outdated and small.
African Savanna:
Next door is an Asian Savanna, with perhaps 10 Bactrian Camels, 10 Yak and 10 Kulan all together in a large space with rocky walls around the perimeter. The African and Asian Savannas complement each other well, with the same basic layout and probably over 100 ungulates in one spot. It’s beautiful to sit and watch the herd animals and sure beats a rollercoaster any day of the week.
Asian Savanna:
There’s an ‘Aparium’, with Gorillas and Chimpanzees in exhibits that I thought could have been bigger. Renovating the space to hold only one species would be the way forward in my opinion, especially because the Gorillas recently had twins and the big Chimpanzee troop must be at least 15 animals. I didn't go inside the Great Ape House as it was closed during my visit. The White-handed Gibbons next door have a lush island that is well designed.
Chimpanzee exhibit (larger than the Gorilla space):
Kolmarden even has elephants, with a trio of Asian Elephants off to the side and down a long lane. Many visitors stopped at the top of the path and watched the elephants from a distance, but I would strongly advise zoo nerds to take the walk. There are close-up views of the zoo’s three Asian Elephants near their pool at the bottom of the winding exhibit, plus a very nice Meerkat exhibit is situated there as well. There is also access to the Pachyderm House, showcasing the indoor areas for the White Rhinos and Asian Elephants. The elephant complex isn’t the greatest, but it's probably adequate and it connects to the African Savanna side yard. The elephants are 25, 26 and 27 years old and so they still have a long life ahead of them.
Asian Elephant exhibit:
There are even Atlantic Bottle-nosed Dolphins here at Kolmarden Wildlife Park. The big Marine World complex is surrounded by shops selling food and souvenirs, plus there is Sweden’s only Dolphinarium (called ‘Hope’) and the 10-12 dolphins can be seen at any time during the day. It’s an indoor pool, surprisingly deep and with a really pretty rock backdrop. However, those rocks cut into the available space for the cetaceans and the zoo has already announced that they are phasing out the dolphins. Where they will end up is anyone’s guess, but outside of Spain it would seem that the era of European Dolphinariums is on its last legs. If Kolmarden could somehow get some Walruses as replacements then that would be fantastic. Across from the dolphin arena is a splendid pinniped pool for Cape Fur Seals, Grey Seals and Harbour Seals. The view from the top of the visitor area, with a mountainous forest backdrop, is marvelous and the pool has an incredible depth to it. Very few pinniped exhibits have such a natural look as this one.
Dolphin pool:
Pinniped pool:
The unique attraction at Kolmarden is the Safari Ride (‘Safaribanan’). It was once a drive-through safari park, but the gondolas were built instead and opened in 2011. There is a long, almost 30-minute gondola tour that takes visitors over several different habitats. There are signs stating that this is a unique attraction, but doesn’t Cabarceno Zoo in Spain have something quite similar? Oakland Zoo also has a gondola system, but in that case it is only 4 minutes up to a different part of the zoo and not quite the same thing as at Kolmarden. The Safari Gondola ride takes visitors directly over the heads of Reticulated Giraffes, Grevy’s Zebras, Common Eland, Ankole Cattle, Gemsbok, Blackbuck, Blue Wildebeest, Fallow Deer, Pere David’s Deer, Axis Deer, Alpine Ibex, American Bison, Moose, Ostriches, Brown Bears, Lions and several other species in vast, gargantuan paddocks. It’s a bit disconcerting to see a herd of Blackbuck in with the giraffes and other African animals, or some Alpine Ibex mingling with ostriches (!!), but I’m sure that the Muggles in the gondolas won’t care. Unfortunately, it is only possible to see all those species on the gondola ride.
Safari Gondola ride entrance:
The gondola is naturally like all kinds of rides in zoos. I saw a couple of Brown Bears in their vast forest of an enclosure, but just when it seemed as if they were doing something interesting I had moved on. I was above a half-dozen Moose in their huge, multi-acre paddock and when a youngster stood up to drink the gondola left him behind. It’s those frustrating moments that taint an otherwise unique zoo experience. Also, 30 minutes is a genuinely long time to be up in the air on a ride. Quite often a zoo ride will be 5 to 8 minutes in length, but I really did feel that I was up in the gondola for an extremely long time. Some folks will think trundling up above the animals in a moving contraption is the best thing ever, but it’s not really my cup of tea. Give me a walking path!
Safari Gondola ride:
Safari Gondola ride:
So, there you have Kolmarden Wildlife Park. I’ve written extensively about this zoo as I have mixed feelings about it. The entrance pathway is very steep, and it goes past exhibits for Wolverines and European Lynx in vast enclosures where it is almost impossible to see the animals. Then one can explore Bamses World, the huge kiddie zone. At that point, a visitor has gone 45 minutes of walking and seen zero exotic creatures. The same could be said about the other end of the park, with Marine World (dolphins are eventually leaving), the rollercoaster and amusement park section, and the Safari Gondola where you cannot see any animals unless you take a half-hour ride. That leaves the entire middle chunk of the zoo and it’s entirely possible to see that section in probably an hour and a half. An amazing fact is that big, famous Kolmarden Zoo, with its families booking multi-day holidays, has only 20 exhibits with exotic animals that can be seen by walking around. I ended up staying just over 3 hours, as I explored the entire park, but a zoo nerd might well be disappointed to stroll around, see 20 exhibits, then take the gondola to catch glimpses of animals in the forest.
I think that everyone should visit Kolmarden Wildlife Park and make up their own mind. One thing that's clear is that the trio of huge paddocks (African Savanna, Asian Savanna and South American Pampas) are all stunning. Tiger World and the nearby Dholes are both fantastic exhibits, the Brown Bear habitat is jaw-dropping, the pinniped pool is wonderful, and the Snow Leopard exhibit is world-class. Also, the Safari Gondola is a highlight for most visitors and was jam-packed during my visit and so I'm very fortunate that I had a gondola all to myself. Those handful of exhibits make Kolmarden a must-see attraction for a zoo nerd, but just be prepared to possibly be hugged by Bamses the Teddy Bear!
Thank you for the review snowleopard! This was a really good read!
Kolmarden is a zoo that I was first made aware of through Sheridan's books. I now have rather mixed feelings on them, but prior to discovering various other sources of zoo information (this site being one of them), I was very reliant on those books! While reading about Kolmarden, I was somewhat put off for the same reasons as you; the abundance of rides and playgrounds and the lack of exhibits despite its covering an enormous area. However, without this excellent review, I would never have known how high the standard of exhibitry is, with some of those carnivore habitats in particular standing out to me. Thank you for bringing bringing this very strange place to my attention!
One thing that has always confused me, however, is the Tropicarium. To me it seems to be to Kolmarden Zoo what the Aquarium is to Zoo Berlin. And yet while most zoo nerds tend to view the Berlins as one entity, the Kolmardens are typically viewed as separate. Is there a reason behind this, or is it a coincidence?
Either way, thank you for all these amazing reviews!
Thanks so much for your kind words. I think that my Denmark, Sweden & Norway trip is opening the eyes of many zoo nerds, as I receive a lot of messages and questions about particular exhibits. The zoos in Scandinavia previously hadn’t received a lot of attention on ZooChat, mainly because of their remote location in comparison to the rest of Europe.
The Aquarium is part of Zoo Berlin and they are one attraction. Even though the Aquarium in Berlin, and the same goes for the Aquarium at Hagenbeck, costs extra, it's all technically part of the zoo. Many zoos across Europe have aquariums inside them.
The Kolmarden Tropicarium outside of Kolmarden Wildlife Park is in a different category and it is a completely separate attraction. Different ownership, different entrance fee, and in all the many maps, posters and pamphlets (and I think even on the zoo's website), the Tropicarium isn't mentioned. It's funny, because they complement each other well and the Tropicarium has some amazing reptile exhibits. I'll post a review of it tomorrow!
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Monday, August 8th, 2022
Zoo/Aquarium # 17: Kolmarden Tropicarium (Kolmarden, SE)
I uploaded almost 40 photos into the gallery, and they are the first photos that anyone on ZooChat has added of the Tropicarium in 12 years. It seems that the facility has had a brand-new entrance in that time period.
This establishment is located directly outside Kolmarden Wildlife Park, but the Tropicarium is a completely separate establishment. In fact, the main zoo makes no mention of it on its website or on any of its maps or pamphlets, even though they are right next to one another. Other than a shared parking lot, this is without a doubt a separate facility with different ownership and no connection to the big zoo next door. It’s definitely well worth visiting and serves to complement the mammal heavy Kolmarden Wildlife Park. Tropicarium, which opened around 50 years ago, is an apt name, as the first half is basically an Aquarium, while the second half is a Reptile House, although it is all inside one building and can be toured in about an hour. Approximately 130,000 visitors wind their way through the hallways of the Tropicarium each year.
Tropicarium entrance:
Upon entry, the first thing that visitors encounter is the Aquarium section. There’s an open-topped stingray tank that’s quite barren inside, a shark tank with a short tunnel, and a rocky, grotto-like cave setting. There are some Slender Seahorses, Horseshoe Crabs, lots of tropical fish, plus some large sharks such as Sand Tiger and Nurse in the main tank. It’s all nice but a tad predictable.
Stingray tank:
Shark exhibit:
Going around the corner, there is a lengthy hallway with many impressive, large tanks on either side of the path. Piranhas have a lush jungle exhibit, and they share their water with an Alligator Snapping Turtle! An ‘Eurasian’ tank has hundreds of Red Garra, a species that is used in health spas to nibble away dead human skin. A beautiful Amazon Flooded Forest tank contains Red-bellied Pacu, Oscar Cichlid, Ripsaw Catfish, Redtail Catfish, Ocellate River Stingray, Dorado and Leopard Pleco. It is beautifully landscaped, as are all the exhibits down this hallway. There’s Cuban Crocodiles, an Electric Eel and many tropical fish. The eels are in an open-topped exhibit and even though the glass is high I could have easily reached over and touched the water. Shocking!
Red-bellied Piranha/Alligator Snapping Turtle exhibit (with a mesh top):
Amazon Flooded Forest exhibit (three large windows for one gorgeous tank):
Cuban Crocodile exhibit (holding only juveniles):
An open-topped Electric Eel exhibit (want to get zapped?):
There is the Tropicarium’s only outdoor enclosure at the back of the building, and it consists of a walk-through Ring-tailed Lemur exhibit with perhaps a half-dozen of the animals. I went through it, but the whole idea of having lemurs here seems incongruous to the purpose of a Tropicarium. It’s similar to how Blijdorp Zoo in Rotterdam recently added a lemur walk-through to its otherwise superb Aquarium. Why? To make Muggles happy? The large space could be used for outdoor reptile habitats.
The next (and last) section of the Tropicarium is easily my favourite, as the aquatic elements are left behind and many floor to ceiling reptile terrariums are in the next long hallway. Some of the exhibits are verging on spectacular, with the only flaw being a few of the signs here and there being outdated. Right off the bat, there is a large desert environment for a couple of Inland Taipans, with the next huge exhibit containing two Eastern Green Mambas and 5 Gaboon Vipers all together. Who has to clean out that enclosure? Yikes! There is a choice selection of snakes, as well as a stunning American Alligator exhibit with a combination of cave stalactites AND a swamp setting.
The very modern and sleek Reptile Hallway:
Inland Taipan exhibit:
Black Mamba exhibit (snake can be seen at the back):
I saw 5 Gaboon Vipers and two Eastern Green Mambas in this terrarium:
There is a spacious, immersive American Alligator exhibit set inside a cave:
The two gators were waiting for someone to reach in:
Dwarf Mongoose exhibit:
Tarantula wall exhibits:
Species list for Reptile Hall (37 species): Dwarf Mongoose, Common Marmoset, American Alligator, Inland Taipan, King Cobra, Rhinoceros Viper, Gaboon Viper, Eastern Green Mamba, Black Mamba, Fer-de-Lance, Bushmaster, Cottonmouth, Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake, Timber Rattlesnake, Ridley’s Ratsnake, Reticulated Python, Boa Constrictor, Green Tree Python, Carpet Python, Gila Monster, Solomon Island Skink, Chinese Pond Turtle, Chinese Box Turtle, Common Box Turtle, Hilaire’s Toadhead Turtle, Red-eared Slider, Siebenrock’s Side-necked Turtle, Tomato Frog, Vietnamese Mossy Frog, Amazon Milk Frog, Yellow-banded Poison Dart Frog, Blue Poison Dart Frog, Cane Toad, Mexican Fire-leg Tarantula, Mexican Redknee Tarantula, Brazilian Salmon Pink Bird-eating Tarantula and Blind Cave Fish.
Zoo/Aquarium # 17: Kolmarden Tropicarium (Kolmarden, SE)
I uploaded almost 40 photos into the gallery, and they are the first photos that anyone on ZooChat has added of the Tropicarium in 12 years. It seems that the facility has had a brand-new entrance in that time period.
This establishment is located directly outside Kolmarden Wildlife Park, but the Tropicarium is a completely separate establishment. In fact, the main zoo makes no mention of it on its website or on any of its maps or pamphlets, even though they are right next to one another. Other than a shared parking lot, this is without a doubt a separate facility with different ownership and no connection to the big zoo next door. It’s definitely well worth visiting and serves to complement the mammal heavy Kolmarden Wildlife Park. Tropicarium, which opened around 50 years ago, is an apt name, as the first half is basically an Aquarium, while the second half is a Reptile House, although it is all inside one building and can be toured in about an hour. Approximately 130,000 visitors wind their way through the hallways of the Tropicarium each year.
Tropicarium entrance:
Upon entry, the first thing that visitors encounter is the Aquarium section. There’s an open-topped stingray tank that’s quite barren inside, a shark tank with a short tunnel, and a rocky, grotto-like cave setting. There are some Slender Seahorses, Horseshoe Crabs, lots of tropical fish, plus some large sharks such as Sand Tiger and Nurse in the main tank. It’s all nice but a tad predictable.
Stingray tank:
Shark exhibit:
Going around the corner, there is a lengthy hallway with many impressive, large tanks on either side of the path. Piranhas have a lush jungle exhibit, and they share their water with an Alligator Snapping Turtle! An ‘Eurasian’ tank has hundreds of Red Garra, a species that is used in health spas to nibble away dead human skin. A beautiful Amazon Flooded Forest tank contains Red-bellied Pacu, Oscar Cichlid, Ripsaw Catfish, Redtail Catfish, Ocellate River Stingray, Dorado and Leopard Pleco. It is beautifully landscaped, as are all the exhibits down this hallway. There’s Cuban Crocodiles, an Electric Eel and many tropical fish. The eels are in an open-topped exhibit and even though the glass is high I could have easily reached over and touched the water. Shocking!
Red-bellied Piranha/Alligator Snapping Turtle exhibit (with a mesh top):
Amazon Flooded Forest exhibit (three large windows for one gorgeous tank):
Cuban Crocodile exhibit (holding only juveniles):
An open-topped Electric Eel exhibit (want to get zapped?):
There is the Tropicarium’s only outdoor enclosure at the back of the building, and it consists of a walk-through Ring-tailed Lemur exhibit with perhaps a half-dozen of the animals. I went through it, but the whole idea of having lemurs here seems incongruous to the purpose of a Tropicarium. It’s similar to how Blijdorp Zoo in Rotterdam recently added a lemur walk-through to its otherwise superb Aquarium. Why? To make Muggles happy? The large space could be used for outdoor reptile habitats.
The next (and last) section of the Tropicarium is easily my favourite, as the aquatic elements are left behind and many floor to ceiling reptile terrariums are in the next long hallway. Some of the exhibits are verging on spectacular, with the only flaw being a few of the signs here and there being outdated. Right off the bat, there is a large desert environment for a couple of Inland Taipans, with the next huge exhibit containing two Eastern Green Mambas and 5 Gaboon Vipers all together. Who has to clean out that enclosure? Yikes! There is a choice selection of snakes, as well as a stunning American Alligator exhibit with a combination of cave stalactites AND a swamp setting.
The very modern and sleek Reptile Hallway:
Inland Taipan exhibit:
Black Mamba exhibit (snake can be seen at the back):
I saw 5 Gaboon Vipers and two Eastern Green Mambas in this terrarium:
There is a spacious, immersive American Alligator exhibit set inside a cave:
The two gators were waiting for someone to reach in:
Dwarf Mongoose exhibit:
Tarantula wall exhibits:
Species list for Reptile Hall (37 species): Dwarf Mongoose, Common Marmoset, American Alligator, Inland Taipan, King Cobra, Rhinoceros Viper, Gaboon Viper, Eastern Green Mamba, Black Mamba, Fer-de-Lance, Bushmaster, Cottonmouth, Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake, Timber Rattlesnake, Ridley’s Ratsnake, Reticulated Python, Boa Constrictor, Green Tree Python, Carpet Python, Gila Monster, Solomon Island Skink, Chinese Pond Turtle, Chinese Box Turtle, Common Box Turtle, Hilaire’s Toadhead Turtle, Red-eared Slider, Siebenrock’s Side-necked Turtle, Tomato Frog, Vietnamese Mossy Frog, Amazon Milk Frog, Yellow-banded Poison Dart Frog, Blue Poison Dart Frog, Cane Toad, Mexican Fire-leg Tarantula, Mexican Redknee Tarantula, Brazilian Salmon Pink Bird-eating Tarantula and Blind Cave Fish.
Monday, August 8th, 2022
Zoo/Aquarium # 16: Kolmarden Wildlife Park (Kolmarden, SE)
I have included 20 photos in this review, but I did upload a total of 140 photos into the gallery. Check them out for an extensive overview of the park.
Kolmarden Wildlife Park is the Disney’s Animal Kingdom of Scandinavia. For the one and only time on the trip, I felt a little awkward lining up at the entrance gate. There were all these families there awaiting Mickey and Goofy…errr..make that Bamses the Teddy Bear and Pelle the Cat. Out came the characters to greet everyone with hugs and smiles, in costumes that would be amazingly realistic if you were a little kid but inside there was probably a couple of sweating little Swedish teenagers cursing the heatwave. They skipped me in the lineup because they probably thought I was some kind of weirdo Swede, even though I prominently wore my Edmonton Valley Zoo hat. I wanted to yell, “I’m from Canada, eh!” but I gritted my teeth and quickly made my way into the park.
Kolmarden is a big, famous zoo that receives 750,000 visitors each year (plus another 130,000 for the separate Tropicarium attraction outside – more on that in the next zoo review) and it opened in the late 1960s. Sweden’s largest city, by far, is Stockholm and it’s about an hour and a half north of Kolmarden Wildlife Park. People come from near and far to visit this zoo, as it’s got some strong similarities to Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Both have lots of space, as Kolmarden is 150 hectares/371 acres in size, although not all the land is used. Both have ‘magical’ characters that walk around and put on shows. Both have one major ride to view animals that dominates a section of the park, and both have rollercoasters and captive animals on the same site. And lastly, both can be seen in a few hours if you are a zoo nerd that has zero inclination to ride a coaster or hang out in the kiddie amusement park area.
Let’s get the non-animal parts out of the way first.
I must be up front and admit that in some ways Kolmarden is not really my type of zoo. It’s a phenomenal zoo for a family and if I had my wife and 4 kids with me then it would likely have been a candidate to be the best zoo of the trip for them, even prompting us to stay multiple days as there is a popular hotel on site and I saw many groups of people walking from that direction first thing in the morning. Visitors are there to ride Wildfire, the second tallest wooden rollercoaster on the planet and it apparently reaches speeds of 115 km/hr. It opened in 2016 and looks amazing if you are into that sort of thing. Quite honestly, I would have to be paid a large sum of money to go on it as it looks truly terrifying. Nearby, there’s a mini rollercoaster, a boat swing thing, and other glitz and glamour items with no animals. There’s even a General Store that sells nothing but Coca-Cola products, which is cool but a little odd.
Wildlife rollercoaster:
Then there is 'Bamses World', which has all sorts of rides for young children. Anyone 10 or over would not be interested in this part of the park. I wandered through just to see what was there and it was crazy busy with kids galloping all over the place. It’s actually easy to get lost in there, because it is pure chaos and it is literally acres of rides, amusement activities and all sorts of crying and yelling toddlers. I struggled to find an exit and I’m sure that at least a few families were thinking: “Hey, isn’t that the Swedish weirdo who was alone at the entrance, and now he’s walking around in the kiddie zone. What’s up with that?” I dodged the giant Teddy Bear named Bamses, avoided Pelle the black-and-white Cat, pulled my cap down low and slunk my way out of the mayhem. Between the rollercoaster area and the Bamses World nonsense, there are acres of the zoo with zero animals and only the screams of disappointed zoo nerds.
I will say that Kolmarden Wildlife Park is better than Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Disney has the famous Kilimanjaro Safaris ride, and a world-class gorilla exhibit and some great African exhibits, and some nice ungulates at their lodge down the road, but everything else scattered across the park is simply average, with Asia, Affection Section, Oasis and Discovery Island full of typical, at times bland and smallish animal enclosures. Kolmarden is so much better. One massive factor is the setting, as the Swedish zoo has some steep trails, and one is plunged into a forest at various times throughout the grounds. There are clearings with animal exhibits, but then thick woodland and immense rocky areas that are amazing to walk around. Some of my old Geography teachers would have a blast analyzing the terrain.
Kolmarden has zero fish, insects, reptiles or amphibians, and only three on-show bird species (Ostrich, Rhea and Southern Ground Hornbill). This is yet another Scandinavian zoo that focuses almost exclusively on mammals. There are around 50 mammal species and once you strip away all the gloss from the rollercoasters and Disney-esque characters, this is a zoo filled with superb exhibits. There are animal habitats here that are world-class. Tiger World is an amazing enclosure, with a rocky backdrop and loads of viewing angles. I saw 5 Amur Tigers all together in the exhibit, which is across from a beautiful Chinese Dhole habitat that is just as impressive. Tiger World actually lists 8 tigers on the sign, but perhaps they rotate a few on and off exhibit. The park used to have a big pack of wolves and allow the public in with them for special tours, but after the death of a staff member by the wolves, and another attack on a TV presenter, that all halted and there are no more captive wolves in Kolmarden. Now that huge space, several acres in size, has been changed to a Wolverine habitat.
I saw 5 Amur Tigers in the one large exhibit:
Tiger World:
A Chinese Dhole in the center of this photo illustrates the vast size of the exhibit:
Wolverine exhibit (old wolf enclosure):
There’s a Snow Leopard exhibit that rivals Zurich (which I saw in 2003) for the best I’ve seen. An enormous mountain is in the enclosure and a lot of people were looking out from the round wall that circles the habitat. At first, it took a minute to adjust one’s eyes to the terrain, but when the two Snow Leopards moved the crowd hummed with delight. Wonderful. The Red Panda exhibit is spacious and nice, with Small-clawed Otters in with the pandas. Bush Dogs have a big space to roam, Bactrian Camels and Mishmi Takins (together) have a nice paddock, with a secondary exhibit for yet more Takins. The Brown Bear habitat is like a slice of the wild, echoing the Snow Leopard exhibit by having a gargantuan mountain as the main focus, with a waterfall to drink from. It’s dazzling, especially when chunks of frozen food was tossed into the exhibit by a keeper. Farther along is a terrifically vast South American Pampas, with Lowland Tapir, Vicuna, Capybara, Mara and Rhea wandering around. At Kolmarden, you can pay extra to go behind the scenes and pet Capybaras, and there’s also a similar option to pet and feed Meerkats. A very tall aviary, probably designed for eagles, is home to a single Southern Ground Hornbill.
If you zoom in then you will see two Snow Leopards in this photo (in an enclosure which held Polar Bears for decades):
Brown Bear exhibit:
Bush Dog exhibit:
South American Pampas:
The African Savanna is acres in size, with a lot of animals milling about in all directions. I would be at Boras Zoo the next day and the similarities are eerie in terms of the size, aesthetics and rocky wall of the Kolmarden savanna. Which one was first? Here the species list includes the following: White Rhino, Giraffe, Grevy’s Zebra, Blesbok, Addra Gazelle, Addax, Sable Antelope, Nile Lechwe, Red River Hog and Ostrich. It’s interesting to compare some of the African Savannas I’ve seen with something like Woodland Park Zoo’s example. That Seattle zoo won an AZA award for its African Savanna 40 years ago, but when I was there last (2019) there was a grand total of 8 animals on the savanna. Scandinavian zoos like Ree Park and Kolmarden don’t have 8 animals on their African Savannas, but instead EIGHTY animals and the experience of viewing them is a thousand times better. Suddenly, Woodland Park’s savanna seems quaint and old-fashioned, still pleasant but a shadow of its Nordic peers. One peril of visiting hundreds of different zoos is that some of the exhibits that I used to love are suddenly, rather sharply, put into perspective as being a bit outdated and small.
African Savanna:
Next door is an Asian Savanna, with perhaps 10 Bactrian Camels, 10 Yak and 10 Kulan all together in a large space with rocky walls around the perimeter. The African and Asian Savannas complement each other well, with the same basic layout and probably over 100 ungulates in one spot. It’s beautiful to sit and watch the herd animals and sure beats a rollercoaster any day of the week.
Asian Savanna:
There’s an ‘Aparium’, with Gorillas and Chimpanzees in exhibits that I thought could have been bigger. Renovating the space to hold only one species would be the way forward in my opinion, especially because the Gorillas recently had twins and the big Chimpanzee troop must be at least 15 animals. I didn't go inside the Great Ape House as it was closed during my visit. The White-handed Gibbons next door have a lush island that is well designed.
Chimpanzee exhibit (larger than the Gorilla space):
Kolmarden even has elephants, with a trio of Asian Elephants off to the side and down a long lane. Many visitors stopped at the top of the path and watched the elephants from a distance, but I would strongly advise zoo nerds to take the walk. There are close-up views of the zoo’s three Asian Elephants near their pool at the bottom of the winding exhibit, plus a very nice Meerkat exhibit is situated there as well. There is also access to the Pachyderm House, showcasing the indoor areas for the White Rhinos and Asian Elephants. The elephant complex isn’t the greatest, but it's probably adequate and it connects to the African Savanna side yard. The elephants are 25, 26 and 27 years old and so they still have a long life ahead of them.
Asian Elephant exhibit:
There are also Atlantic Bottle-nosed Dolphins here at Kolmarden Wildlife Park. The big Marine World complex is surrounded by shops selling food and souvenirs, plus there is Sweden’s only Dolphinarium (called ‘Hope’) and the 10-12 dolphins can be seen at any time during the day. It’s an indoor pool, surprisingly deep and with a really pretty rock backdrop. However, those rocks cut into the available space for the cetaceans and the zoo has already announced that they are phasing out the dolphins. Where they will end up is anyone’s guess, but outside of Spain it would seem that the era of European Dolphinariums is on its last legs. If Kolmarden could somehow get some Walruses as replacements then that would be fantastic. Across from the dolphin arena is a splendid pinniped pool for Cape Fur Seals, Grey Seals and Harbour Seals. The view from the top of the visitor area, with a mountainous forest backdrop, is marvelous and the pool has an incredible depth to it. Very few pinniped exhibits have such a natural look as this one.
Dolphin pool:
Pinniped pool:
The unique attraction at Kolmarden is the Safari Ride (‘Safaribanan’). It was once a drive-through safari park, but the gondolas were built instead and opened in 2011. There is a long, almost 30-minute gondola tour that takes visitors over several different habitats. There are signs stating that this is a unique attraction, but doesn’t Cabarceno Zoo in Spain have something quite similar? Oakland Zoo also has a gondola system, but in that case it is only 4 minutes up to a different part of the zoo and not quite the same thing as at Kolmarden. The Safari Gondola ride takes visitors directly over the heads of Reticulated Giraffes, Grevy’s Zebras, Common Eland, Ankole Cattle, Gemsbok, Blackbuck, Blue Wildebeest, Fallow Deer, Pere David’s Deer, Axis Deer, Alpine Ibex, American Bison, Moose, Ostriches, Brown Bears, Lions and several other species in vast, gargantuan paddocks. It’s a bit disconcerting to see a herd of Blackbuck in with the giraffes and other African animals, or some Alpine Ibex mingling with ostriches (!!), but I’m sure that the Muggles in the gondolas won’t care. Unfortunately, it is only possible to see all those species on the gondola ride.
Safari Gondola ride entrance:
The gondola is naturally like all kinds of rides in zoos. I saw a couple of Brown Bears in their vast forest of an enclosure, but just when it seemed as if they were doing something interesting I had moved on. I was above a half-dozen Moose in their huge, multi-acre paddock and when a youngster stood up to drink the gondola left him behind. It’s those frustrating moments that taint an otherwise unique zoo experience. Also, 30 minutes is a genuinely long time to be up in the air on a ride. Quite often a zoo ride will be 5 to 8 minutes in length, but I really did feel that I was up in the gondola for an extremely long time. Some folks will think trundling up above the animals in a moving contraption is the best thing ever, but it’s not really my cup of tea. Give me a walking path!
Safari Gondola ride:
Safari Gondola ride:
So, there you have Kolmarden Wildlife Park. I’ve written extensively about this zoo as I have mixed feelings about it. The entrance pathway is very steep, and it goes past exhibits for Wolverines and European Lynx in vast enclosures where it is almost impossible to see the animals. Then one can explore Bamses World, the huge kiddie zone. At that point, a visitor has gone 45 minutes of walking and seen zero exotic creatures. The same could be said about the other end of the park, with Marine World (dolphins are eventually leaving), the rollercoaster and amusement park section, and the Safari Gondola where you cannot see any animals unless you take a half-hour ride. That leaves the entire middle chunk of the zoo and it’s entirely possible to see that section in probably an hour and a half. An amazing fact is that big, famous Kolmarden Zoo, with its families booking multi-day holidays, has only 20 exhibits with exotic animals that can be seen by walking around. I ended up staying just over 3 hours, as I explored the entire park, but a zoo nerd might well be disappointed to stroll around, see 20 exhibits, then take the gondola to catch glimpses of animals in the forest.
I think that everyone should visit Kolmarden Wildlife Park and make up their own mind. One thing that's clear is that the trio of huge paddocks (African Savanna, Asian Savanna and South American Pampas) are all stunning. Tiger World and the nearby Dholes are both fantastic exhibits, the Brown Bear habitat is jaw-dropping, the pinniped pool is wonderful, and the Snow Leopard exhibit is world-class. Also, the Safari Gondola is a highlight for most visitors and was jam-packed during my visit and so I'm very fortunate that I had a gondola all to myself. Those handful of exhibits make Kolmarden a must-see attraction for a zoo nerd, but just be prepared to possibly be hugged by Bamses the Teddy Bear!
loving the trip report as usual. thank you
re gondola/cable car rides, yes Cabarceno has this and other examples could be Busch Gardens Tampa, Taronga or on a much diminished scale (chair lift) Dudley.
So "Unique in Sweden" perhaps.
Monday, August 8th, 2022
Zoo/Aquarium # 18: Parken Zoo (Eskilstuna, SE)
After I toured both Kolmarden Wildlife Park (3 hours) and the nearby Tropicarium (1 hour), I drove for about an hour and a half north to the city of Eskilstuna. Parken Zoo is an establishment that opened in 1956 and judging from the zoo’s map, and the little attention that this place receives online, I was expecting a quick visit around the 14 hectares/35 acres. However, in the end I stayed for almost 3 hours and far past closing time as the gates were locked but visitors weren’t immediately escorted out of the zoo. Thank goodness for that, as there are a number of truly excellent exhibits here and carnivores and primates do particularly well.
I probably sound like a broken record by now, but here is yet another example of a Scandinavian zoo that focuses almost entirely on mammals. If you are a ‘twitcher’ then don’t bother heading to northern Europe, unless you wish to seek out one of the very few specialist bird zoos. Parken Zoo has 250,000 annual visitors and those that tour the zoo see practically zero insects or fish, maybe 10 reptile/amphibian species and you can count the bird species on one hand. Instead, the zoo has about 35 mammal species and quite a few stellar exhibits. It's quality over quantity, with my photos highlighting just how impressive some of those mammal exhibits really are.
My first impression wasn’t a great one. Looking at the zoo’s map, the right-hand side has a separate entrance for a campground and then a farmyard area with almost all domestic animals as the first enclosures. I entered through the main gates on the left-hand side, where the first thing I walked past was an amusement park for little kids. There’s a good 5-minute walk past a fancy restaurant, the kiddie rides, a closed down crocodilian exhibit, a massive slide and then finally into the zoo. There’s also an outdoor public swimming pool that can be accessed from both the amusement park and the zoo itself. Even the first handful of exhibits aren’t that great: a rambling trio of enclosures all joined together to form a Visayan Warty Pig habitat, a typical Red Panda exhibit, and an open-topped, outdoor Tamandua exhibit. The animal areas are actually quite nice, but a lot of scattered debris, building materials and a semi-abandoned play area all look scruffy.
Tamandua exhibit:
Things pick up at the lemur complex, with a walk-through area and three separate enclosures for Black-and-White Ruffed Lemur, Red-bellied Lemur and Alaotran Gentle Lemur. Elsewhere in the zoo are Ring-tailed Lemurs, and next door is a White-cheeked Gibbon House. The gibbons have a nice outdoor island and there is even a photo and small sign about author Anthony Sheridan. He’s published three books on European zoos in the past decade and I believe that some if not all of his profits have gone towards gibbon conservation. There’s a small upper viewing area inside the Gibbon House and I was pleased to see a row of terrariums with the following 7 species: Yellow-banded Poison Dart Frog, Australian Green Tree Frog, Amazon Milk Frog, Oriental Fire-bellied Toad, Common Fire Salamander, Walking Stick Insect and Madagascar Hissing Cockroach.
Gibbon House:
There’s a Primate House with Peruvian Squirrel Monkeys, Yellow-breasted Capuchins, Emperor Tamarins and Pied Tamarins, all seen outdoors and inside, with a couple of overhead tunnels for the monkeys to access their different areas. There’s also White-handed Gibbons, giving the zoo two gibbon species. Just like at the Gibbon House, there are a few herps here and Hermann’s Tortoises, Rhinoceros Iguanas, Gila Monsters and Bearded Dragons are in a pleasant desert-themed section as part of the Monkey House. Another primate species is found elsewhere in the zoo, and they are the magnificent and extremely rare Drills. How many zoos in the world have this species? I saw three of them and these huge monkeys have a terrific forest exhibit that could almost be good enough for a troop of gorillas.
Primate House:
Primate exhibits:
Drill exhibit:
There’s a lush South American zone, dominated by a long, narrow enclosure featuring Lowland Tapirs (swimming with surprising pace in a small lake) and Capybara. Maned Wolves stink up the joint in their forested enclosure, and a real highlight of the zoo is the Greater Flamingo walk-through aviary. South America continues with a pair of Jaguar enclosures with mock-ruin exteriors and basic yards that aren’t anything too spectacular. Next door is an Amazon House, featuring a beautiful outdoor and indoor setup for Giant Otters that’s not as nice as Givskud but still very impressive. Emperor Tamarins (the zoo’s 12th primate species), Red-footed Tortoises, Ball Pythons, Axolotls and Piranhas are all here too.
Lowland Tapir/Capybara exhibit:
Greater Flamingo walk-through aviary:
There are two Giant Otters on the log in this photo of their beautiful exhibit:
The 'mock-ruin' outside wall for the zoo's two Jaguar exhibits:
The center of the zoo is the best part, and it contains a whole series of above average exhibits. There’s a Pygmy Hippo lagoon that is very nice indeed, a long Cheetah habitat, a huge yard for a couple of Bactrian Camels, and a wonderful setup for a Fossa House. There are two outdoor yards and 4 interconnected indoor areas all for Fossas. The Amur Leopard habitat has extremely tall trees and there is full access by the big cats. Chinese Dholes have a spacious, naturalistic exhibit and Sumatran Tigers do well here with a long enclosure. Aldabra Tortoises have their own small house and outdoor yard that incorporates a play area for kids above the chelonians.
There is a large pool for the zoo's three Pygmy Hippos:
Cheetah exhibit (with two cats on top of the shelter):
Fossa exhibits (there are two outdoor habitats):
This photo shows 50% of the space given to Amur Leopards and the cats have full access to many of the tall trees:
Sumatran Tiger exhibit:
A real highlight of the zoo is the Desert House. It has a spacious Meerkat exhibit and a terrific, very large enclosure for Sand Cats. Decorated with bright red and white paint, the Desert House is accessible by visitors, where there are indoor areas for the Meerkats and Sand Cats, as well as Radiated Tortoises and Luristan Newts.
Desert House:
The exhibit for Sand Cats is surrounded by glass walls:
The zoo has an Asian Pavilion, with Small-clawed Otters, Asiatic Lions (in a disappointing exhibit) and the main focus is on a superb Clouded Leopard habitat. The indoor area is huge and probably at one point held something much larger, and the outdoor exhibit is also spacious for such a small cat species. Apparently the zoo had Giant Pandas here at one point in the mid-1980s. The Asian Pavilion is also in red and white, as is the Komodo Dragon House with the world’s largest lizards accompanied by Aldabra Tortoises and Red-bellied Short-necked Turtles next door.
Asian Pavilion (a huge cement block with red-and-white flourishes):
Clouded Leopard outdoor exhibit:
Clouded Leopard indoor exhibit:
Parken Zoo has its rough edges around the sides, but the central core of the zoo is very good. The 12 primate species all have above average accommodation, and the 7 cat species (aside from the lions) are all in notable exhibits. The Asian Pavilion, Amazon House, Desert House and Flamingo Aviary are all terrific, with some rare species such as Chinese Dholes, Drills, Giant Otters and Fossas having fantastic exhibits. It’s a fascinating zoo, with very few ungulates, birds, reptiles, amphibians, insects or fish, and yet I spent almost 3 hours there looking mainly at primates and carnivores and enjoying myself immensely.
I have included 20 photos in this review (the maximum allowed), but for a much more extensive visual look at Parken Zoo I recommend visiting the ZooChat gallery to see the approximately 130 photos that I uploaded there.
After my very long day, I then had a 4-hour drive and I arrived at my hotel near Boras Zoo at 10:30 p.m. The life of a dedicated zoo nerd!
Zoo/Aquarium # 18: Parken Zoo (Eskilstuna, SE)
After I toured both Kolmarden Wildlife Park (3 hours) and the nearby Tropicarium (1 hour), I drove for about an hour and a half north to the city of Eskilstuna. Parken Zoo is an establishment that opened in 1956 and judging from the zoo’s map, and the little attention that this place receives online, I was expecting a quick visit around the 14 hectares/35 acres. However, in the end I stayed for almost 3 hours and far past closing time as the gates were locked but visitors weren’t immediately escorted out of the zoo. Thank goodness for that, as there are a number of truly excellent exhibits here and carnivores and primates do particularly well.
I probably sound like a broken record by now, but here is yet another example of a Scandinavian zoo that focuses almost entirely on mammals. If you are a ‘twitcher’ then don’t bother heading to northern Europe, unless you wish to seek out one of the very few specialist bird zoos. Parken Zoo has 250,000 annual visitors and those that tour the zoo see practically zero insects or fish, maybe 10 reptile/amphibian species and you can count the bird species on one hand. Instead, the zoo has about 35 mammal species and quite a few stellar exhibits. It's quality over quantity, with my photos highlighting just how impressive some of those mammal exhibits really are.
My first impression wasn’t a great one. Looking at the zoo’s map, the right-hand side has a separate entrance for a campground and then a farmyard area with almost all domestic animals as the first enclosures. I entered through the main gates on the left-hand side, where the first thing I walked past was an amusement park for little kids. There’s a good 5-minute walk past a fancy restaurant, the kiddie rides, a closed down crocodilian exhibit, a massive slide and then finally into the zoo. There’s also an outdoor public swimming pool that can be accessed from both the amusement park and the zoo itself. Even the first handful of exhibits aren’t that great: a rambling trio of enclosures all joined together to form a Visayan Warty Pig habitat, a typical Red Panda exhibit, and an open-topped, outdoor Tamandua exhibit. The animal areas are actually quite nice, but a lot of scattered debris, building materials and a semi-abandoned play area all look scruffy.
Tamandua exhibit:
Things pick up at the lemur complex, with a walk-through area and three separate enclosures for Black-and-White Ruffed Lemur, Red-bellied Lemur and Alaotran Gentle Lemur. Elsewhere in the zoo are Ring-tailed Lemurs, and next door is a White-cheeked Gibbon House. The gibbons have a nice outdoor island and there is even a photo and small sign about author Anthony Sheridan. He’s published three books on European zoos in the past decade and I believe that some if not all of his profits have gone towards gibbon conservation. There’s a small upper viewing area inside the Gibbon House and I was pleased to see a row of terrariums with the following 7 species: Yellow-banded Poison Dart Frog, Australian Green Tree Frog, Amazon Milk Frog, Oriental Fire-bellied Toad, Common Fire Salamander, Walking Stick Insect and Madagascar Hissing Cockroach.
Gibbon House:
There’s a Primate House with Peruvian Squirrel Monkeys, Yellow-breasted Capuchins, Emperor Tamarins and Pied Tamarins, all seen outdoors and inside, with a couple of overhead tunnels for the monkeys to access their different areas. There’s also White-handed Gibbons, giving the zoo two gibbon species. Just like at the Gibbon House, there are a few herps here and Hermann’s Tortoises, Rhinoceros Iguanas, Gila Monsters and Bearded Dragons are in a pleasant desert-themed section as part of the Monkey House. Another primate species is found elsewhere in the zoo, and they are the magnificent and extremely rare Drills. How many zoos in the world have this species? I saw three of them and these huge monkeys have a terrific forest exhibit that could almost be good enough for a troop of gorillas.
Primate House:
Primate exhibits:
Drill exhibit:
There’s a lush South American zone, dominated by a long, narrow enclosure featuring Lowland Tapirs (swimming with surprising pace in a small lake) and Capybara. Maned Wolves stink up the joint in their forested enclosure, and a real highlight of the zoo is the Greater Flamingo walk-through aviary. South America continues with a pair of Jaguar enclosures with mock-ruin exteriors and basic yards that aren’t anything too spectacular. Next door is an Amazon House, featuring a beautiful outdoor and indoor setup for Giant Otters that’s not as nice as Givskud but still very impressive. Emperor Tamarins (the zoo’s 12th primate species), Red-footed Tortoises, Ball Pythons, Axolotls and Piranhas are all here too.
Lowland Tapir/Capybara exhibit:
Greater Flamingo walk-through aviary:
There are two Giant Otters on the log in this photo of their beautiful exhibit:
The 'mock-ruin' outside wall for the zoo's two Jaguar exhibits:
The center of the zoo is the best part, and it contains a whole series of above average exhibits. There’s a Pygmy Hippo lagoon that is very nice indeed, a long Cheetah habitat, a huge yard for a couple of Bactrian Camels, and a wonderful setup for a Fossa House. There are two outdoor yards and 4 interconnected indoor areas all for Fossas. The Amur Leopard habitat has extremely tall trees and there is full access by the big cats. Chinese Dholes have a spacious, naturalistic exhibit and Sumatran Tigers do well here with a long enclosure. Aldabra Tortoises have their own small house and outdoor yard that incorporates a play area for kids above the chelonians.
There is a large pool for the zoo's three Pygmy Hippos:
Cheetah exhibit (with two cats on top of the shelter):
Fossa exhibits (there are two outdoor habitats):
This photo shows 50% of the space given to Amur Leopards and the cats have full access to many of the tall trees:
Sumatran Tiger exhibit:
A real highlight of the zoo is the Desert House. It has a spacious Meerkat exhibit and a terrific, very large enclosure for Sand Cats. Decorated with bright red and white paint, the Desert House is accessible by visitors, where there are indoor areas for the Meerkats and Sand Cats, as well as Radiated Tortoises and Luristan Newts.
Desert House:
The exhibit for Sand Cats is surrounded by glass walls:
The zoo has an Asian Pavilion, with Small-clawed Otters, Asiatic Lions (in a disappointing exhibit) and the main focus is on a superb Clouded Leopard habitat. The indoor area is huge and probably at one point held something much larger, and the outdoor exhibit is also spacious for such a small cat species. Apparently the zoo had Giant Pandas here at one point in the mid-1980s. The Asian Pavilion is also in red and white, as is the Komodo Dragon House with the world’s largest lizards accompanied by Aldabra Tortoises and Red-bellied Short-necked Turtles next door.
Asian Pavilion (a huge cement block with red-and-white flourishes):
Clouded Leopard outdoor exhibit:
Clouded Leopard indoor exhibit:
Parken Zoo has its rough edges around the sides, but the central core of the zoo is very good. The 12 primate species all have above average accommodation, and the 7 cat species (aside from the lions) are all in notable exhibits. The Asian Pavilion, Amazon House, Desert House and Flamingo Aviary are all terrific, with some rare species such as Chinese Dholes, Drills, Giant Otters and Fossas having fantastic exhibits. It’s a fascinating zoo, with very few ungulates, birds, reptiles, amphibians, insects or fish, and yet I spent almost 3 hours there looking mainly at primates and carnivores and enjoying myself immensely.
I have included 20 photos in this review (the maximum allowed), but for a much more extensive visual look at Parken Zoo I recommend visiting the ZooChat gallery to see the approximately 130 photos that I uploaded there.
After my very long day, I then had a 4-hour drive and I arrived at my hotel near Boras Zoo at 10:30 p.m. The life of a dedicated zoo nerd!
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16 holders in Europe currently.
Parken looks pretty excellent, I especially like the sand cat enclosure!
and another example include Chimelong safari park! (yeah it's your asian guy here hoping asian zoo get more attention)
I looked at Zootierliste (a gem of a site) and you are correct that there are 16 holders of Drills in Europe. I've seen the species at 4 European zoos (Parken, Hannover, Osnabruck, Wuppertal), plus 4 North American zoos: Atlanta (2008), Columbus (2008), Lincoln Park (2008) and Audubon (2010).
It would be interesting to know how many zoos have Drills worldwide. If there are at least 1,000 zoos/aquariums in North America, maybe 2,000 in Europe, plus a few thousand more elsewhere...I bet there's less than 25 facilities with Drills. That's a shame, as they are fascinating primates.
They are definitely disappearing from North America and I wouldn't be surprised, if Atlanta is the last holder. Both in Europe and USA their less endangered cousin, the Mandrill, proved more successful. I have seen Drill at Hannover, Munich, Wuppertal, Valencia, Barcelona, Sofia (2000's) and Port Lympne and they are usually among the highlighted species at the collection. Their situation in the wild is critical and the population declined with at least 50 % for the last 30 years. Future import from Cameroon is probably impossible. Hopefully the zoos will manage to keep them around longer.
There is one in japan too, so add that.
Tuesday, August 9th, 2022
One of the joys of this trip was coming into contact with @twilighter. His real name is Konstantin Yordanov, a Bulgarian-born man who lives near Oslo, Norway, and is a hotel manager with 120 people under his command. He and I corresponded before I left Canada, but I didn’t give him a lot of notice and this particular ‘Snowleopard Road Trip’ was a last-minute decision due to West Jet flight points that were going to expire. Konstantin is like all the other 20-25 zoo nerds that I’ve met over the years: curious, gracious, generous, kind-hearted and safe. I joked with him that my wife always worries when I meet strangers on my trips, and I met quite a few ZooChatters in Europe in 2019 (about a dozen subspecies ) and they were all wonderful. I stayed in people’s homes and received gifts in abundance.
With Konstantin I had nothing to worry about. He didn’t stab me to death in my sleep, but instead paid for our hotel room after I met him on Monday night. He also pre-booked our tickets to Boras Zoo and Nordens Ark and refused to accept any money, plus he bought my lunch at Boras Zoo and also showed up with a stack of zoo maps to add to my extensive collection. I argued on several occasions that I needed to pay for at least something, but he even pushed my wallet away and bought me a drink at Nordens Ark before I drove him back to his home at the end of a long yet satisfying day. Konstantin saved me $200 in total on this one day, plus due to his job as a hotel manager he managed to get me steep discounts on several other nights on the trip. I think that in total he saved me $500 Canadian and he said that any other zoo nerd that wishes to do a tour of Scandinavian zoos should send him a message as he can obtain discounts if he knows ahead of time.
The other thing about Konstantin is that he has a similar pace to visiting zoos as myself, and in fact he walks faster than I do. He realizes that I’m not at just one zoo for the day and I don't wish to spend 8 hours looking at Meerkats. He has big zoo trips himself and he knows what it’s like to eat on the run, or not spend hours watching shows or riding kiddie trains. Konstantin is like me in that he’s not a ‘birder’ or ‘twitcher’, someone who would spend all day at Randers Rainforest Zoo looking up rare birds in the canopy. He likes mammals and so Scandinavia is the perfect home for such a fine zoo nerd specimen. We talked until midnight on Monday night, then we were both up at 5:00 a.m. and we talked all day long, from 5:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. when I dropped him off at his home. Of all the zoo nerds that I have met over the past 15 years, perhaps Konstantin and I are the most alike in terms of what we enjoy seeing at a zoo (in this order: mammals, reptiles, amphibians, birds, fish) and the pace at which we like to see things.
Zoo/Aquarium # 19: Boras Zoo (Boras, SE)
Boras Zoo opened in 1962 and therefore is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year, coincidentally the same anniversary that the world’s greatest rock n’ roll band is celebrating. This facility is set on 53 hectares/130 acres, with 38 hectares/94 acres utilized as the zoo’s grounds. There are 270,000 annual visitors and not a lot of different species. However, don’t let that fool you into thinking this is a small, quick zoo that’s easily dismissed, as there is some value gained by hanging around some of the spacious exhibits. Once again, it's a zoo that is almost entirely mammals.
There is an interesting entrance, as once a ticket is purchased a visitor goes on a long walk on a massive wooden boardwalk that is very high off the ground. Other than glancing over at the heavily forested African Wild Dog exhibit, there isn’t much to see until one ends up at an iconic 5-acre habitat. That is of course the legendary African Savanna, where elephants and buffalo roam amidst herds of hoofstock. The zoo has 7 African Elephants, all but a single male mingling on the savanna with species such as Rothschild’s Giraffe, Grant’s Zebra, Blesbok, Common Eland, Cape Buffalo (4 of them), Ostrich and Helmeted Guineafowl. To see 8 different species in a rock-walled, multi-acre habitat is a lot like Kolmarden’s African Savanna, but nowhere in Europe has elephants and buffalo with the typical ungulates that one sees in these type of zoo exhibits. It’s a splendid habitat, with rocky sections, lots of enrichment and Konstantin and I watched the animals for a long time as visitors can walk around almost the entire 5 acres on a surrounding pathway. This being Europe, naturally it is possible to go inside the Giraffe/White Rhino House and the spacious, new (2018) Elephant House that has some similarities to what I’d see in Copenhagen. It’s difficult to drag yourself away from this spectacular savanna and later Konstantin and I had lunch on a patio overlooking the animal life. We lined up for a Swedish buffet and it was much different from my typical McDonald’s or Burger King lunch while driving my rental car to the next zoo.
Massive entrance walkway:
African Savanna:
African Savanna:
African Savanna:
Elephant House (opened in 2018):
Moving on from the African Savanna, the very next exhibit is almost as amazing. There are 5 Cheetahs and 4 White Rhinos all living together in the same enclosure. We were thrilled to get some photos of a White Rhino and Cheetah together, but later on we backtracked and went to that exhibit again and we saw an extraordinary sight. It’s surreal enough to see the two species interacting, but there was a marvelous display of territorial aggression from a very large rhino. It leaned forward and ran full tilt at a Cheetah. The icing on the cake for this experience was seeing the reaction of the cat. It waited until the rhino had its horn down and we thought that we were going to witness a gored feline, but at the last possible moment the Cheetah calmly stepped to the right and missed the charge. The Cheetah didn’t even shift into high gear, as instead it seemed to yawn, sniff and put its nose in the air as the nearsighted rhino lurched forward. It’s interesting to note that Boras Zoo has had its famous Cheetah/White Rhino combination for at least 20 years!
There are 4 White Rhinos and 5 Cheetahs in this spacious habitat:
White Rhino and Cheetah:
White Rhino charging a Cheetah:
The zoo’s Primate House is good, but not great. It contains average exhibits for 5 species (Chimpanzees, Bornean Orangutans, White-handed Gibbons, Sulawesi Crested Macaques and Cotton-top Tamarins), plus there is an enclosure for Banded Mongooses. The series of primate islands are adequate for their inhabitants, but considering that this zoo closes during the winter, then the indoor areas (while very well furnished and with natural substrate on the floor) definitely could be larger.
Primate House:
Primate Islands (there are 4 in total):
Nordic Forest is a section of Boras Zoo at the top of the zoo’s grounds, with only a few species but all of them have enormous habitats. Wolves have their own forest, viewed across a stream and it’s impossible to tell how far back the enclosure goes as the rear fencing is hidden from view. Brown Bears have several acres of space, and they are seen via a winding wooden boardwalk. There was even one bear swimming in the exhibit’s lake, which was a memorable sight. European Lynx have a slice of forest to themselves, and the zoo’s Grey and Harbour Seals literally have an entire lake to swim in. I’m convinced that they aren’t actually contained but could choose to waddle off into the mountains if they wanted to. Is this the zoo world’s largest pinniped exhibit? The growing herd of Wisent have several spacious yards, and the zoo’s Wolverines (3 separate exhibits) have one very steep, natural-looking habitat with lots of hiding places.
Brown Bear exhibit:
Brown Bear exhibit:
Wolf exhibit:
Here is one of the zoo's three exhibits for Wisent:
We saw 3 pinnipeds in this Grey Seal/Harbour Seal lake, but there could be many more!
African Lions have a moated enclosure that is a decent size, complete with a rocky mini mountain in the center. What really shocked me, as difficult as it is to be shocked when you walk through Randers with large free-ranging pythons, is the Big Cat House. It is possible to walk directly up to the indoor holding areas for the African Lions and Amur Tigers and put your fingers into the barred cages. There’s evidence of old holes where at some point there must have been a fenced barrier, but it’s all gone for both species, and I suppose that the Swedish authorities assume that anyone who has a finger chewed off is an idiot with no legal standing. In America, with lawyer billboards everywhere and an ex-reality star President and his white trash mob threatening legal action on a daily basis, one could never put their fingers into the indoor areas of lions and tigers.
African Lion exhibit:
Lion indoor viewing where it is easy enough for a visitor to poke their fingers into the cage:
What’s left in the zoo? There’s a costumed Simba the Lion character who is very popular, plus an extensive series of play areas and a big farmyard for young kids. Humboldt Penguins are in what is hands-down the zoo’s weakest exhibit, with an image of a King Penguin on the zoo map not helping the situation. Spotted Hyenas and African Wild Dogs (more than a dozen of them) have spacious, grassy exhibits. Bongos look magnificent up close and that opportunity presents itself here. There’s a flamingo exhibit and a Dino Park to finish things off.
A large pack of African Wild Dogs are to be found in a forest setting:
Spotted Hyena exhibit:
Boras Zoo doesn’t seem very big when looking at its map, with perhaps 30 mammal species and not much of anything else. It's yet another minimalist Scandinavian zoo with amazing exhibits. However, the African Savanna, practically unchanged since the 1960s, is magnificent with its elephants, giraffes, buffalo and antelope. Why hasn’t another zoo duplicated such a terrific combination? There’s also the White Rhino/Cheetah yard, with its death-defying cats, and the big Nordic Forest section is a brilliant example of how to display native wildlife in a spectacular way. If I was to ever come back, I think that it would be intriguing to spend the night in the brand-new Wildlife Camp area, with raised tents looking down on one of the zoo world’s truly great African Savannas. The cost is 4,800 SEK (about $600 Canadian or $462 U.S.) for a tent, which sleeps up to 4 people. You pay by the tent, so 4 zoo nerds would be $115 U.S. each and that includes a two-day entry ticket for the zoo, one overnight stay, dinner at the restaurant, a guided after-hours tour, breakfast and a “morning activity” which I’m guessing is probably something like riding one of the Cape Buffalo around the yard. The Wildlife Camp has just made its debut this year and I think that it’s a reasonable deal considering everything that it includes.
This angle of the African Savanna shows the brand-new overnight accommodation on the left-hand side, as well as the Elephant House in the center of the photo:
I uploaded approximately 80 photos of Boras Zoo into the gallery. After this, we had a two-hour drive to Nordens Ark to gaze at 16 jaw-dropping feline exhibits (for only 7 species of cat).
One of the joys of this trip was coming into contact with @twilighter. His real name is Konstantin Yordanov, a Bulgarian-born man who lives near Oslo, Norway, and is a hotel manager with 120 people under his command. He and I corresponded before I left Canada, but I didn’t give him a lot of notice and this particular ‘Snowleopard Road Trip’ was a last-minute decision due to West Jet flight points that were going to expire. Konstantin is like all the other 20-25 zoo nerds that I’ve met over the years: curious, gracious, generous, kind-hearted and safe. I joked with him that my wife always worries when I meet strangers on my trips, and I met quite a few ZooChatters in Europe in 2019 (about a dozen subspecies ) and they were all wonderful. I stayed in people’s homes and received gifts in abundance.
With Konstantin I had nothing to worry about. He didn’t stab me to death in my sleep, but instead paid for our hotel room after I met him on Monday night. He also pre-booked our tickets to Boras Zoo and Nordens Ark and refused to accept any money, plus he bought my lunch at Boras Zoo and also showed up with a stack of zoo maps to add to my extensive collection. I argued on several occasions that I needed to pay for at least something, but he even pushed my wallet away and bought me a drink at Nordens Ark before I drove him back to his home at the end of a long yet satisfying day. Konstantin saved me $200 in total on this one day, plus due to his job as a hotel manager he managed to get me steep discounts on several other nights on the trip. I think that in total he saved me $500 Canadian and he said that any other zoo nerd that wishes to do a tour of Scandinavian zoos should send him a message as he can obtain discounts if he knows ahead of time.
The other thing about Konstantin is that he has a similar pace to visiting zoos as myself, and in fact he walks faster than I do. He realizes that I’m not at just one zoo for the day and I don't wish to spend 8 hours looking at Meerkats. He has big zoo trips himself and he knows what it’s like to eat on the run, or not spend hours watching shows or riding kiddie trains. Konstantin is like me in that he’s not a ‘birder’ or ‘twitcher’, someone who would spend all day at Randers Rainforest Zoo looking up rare birds in the canopy. He likes mammals and so Scandinavia is the perfect home for such a fine zoo nerd specimen. We talked until midnight on Monday night, then we were both up at 5:00 a.m. and we talked all day long, from 5:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. when I dropped him off at his home. Of all the zoo nerds that I have met over the past 15 years, perhaps Konstantin and I are the most alike in terms of what we enjoy seeing at a zoo (in this order: mammals, reptiles, amphibians, birds, fish) and the pace at which we like to see things.
Zoo/Aquarium # 19: Boras Zoo (Boras, SE)
Boras Zoo opened in 1962 and therefore is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year, coincidentally the same anniversary that the world’s greatest rock n’ roll band is celebrating. This facility is set on 53 hectares/130 acres, with 38 hectares/94 acres utilized as the zoo’s grounds. There are 270,000 annual visitors and not a lot of different species. However, don’t let that fool you into thinking this is a small, quick zoo that’s easily dismissed, as there is some value gained by hanging around some of the spacious exhibits. Once again, it's a zoo that is almost entirely mammals.
There is an interesting entrance, as once a ticket is purchased a visitor goes on a long walk on a massive wooden boardwalk that is very high off the ground. Other than glancing over at the heavily forested African Wild Dog exhibit, there isn’t much to see until one ends up at an iconic 5-acre habitat. That is of course the legendary African Savanna, where elephants and buffalo roam amidst herds of hoofstock. The zoo has 7 African Elephants, all but a single male mingling on the savanna with species such as Rothschild’s Giraffe, Grant’s Zebra, Blesbok, Common Eland, Cape Buffalo (4 of them), Ostrich and Helmeted Guineafowl. To see 8 different species in a rock-walled, multi-acre habitat is a lot like Kolmarden’s African Savanna, but nowhere in Europe has elephants and buffalo with the typical ungulates that one sees in these type of zoo exhibits. It’s a splendid habitat, with rocky sections, lots of enrichment and Konstantin and I watched the animals for a long time as visitors can walk around almost the entire 5 acres on a surrounding pathway. This being Europe, naturally it is possible to go inside the Giraffe/White Rhino House and the spacious, new (2018) Elephant House that has some similarities to what I’d see in Copenhagen. It’s difficult to drag yourself away from this spectacular savanna and later Konstantin and I had lunch on a patio overlooking the animal life. We lined up for a Swedish buffet and it was much different from my typical McDonald’s or Burger King lunch while driving my rental car to the next zoo.
Massive entrance walkway:
African Savanna:
African Savanna:
African Savanna:
Elephant House (opened in 2018):
Moving on from the African Savanna, the very next exhibit is almost as amazing. There are 5 Cheetahs and 4 White Rhinos all living together in the same enclosure. We were thrilled to get some photos of a White Rhino and Cheetah together, but later on we backtracked and went to that exhibit again and we saw an extraordinary sight. It’s surreal enough to see the two species interacting, but there was a marvelous display of territorial aggression from a very large rhino. It leaned forward and ran full tilt at a Cheetah. The icing on the cake for this experience was seeing the reaction of the cat. It waited until the rhino had its horn down and we thought that we were going to witness a gored feline, but at the last possible moment the Cheetah calmly stepped to the right and missed the charge. The Cheetah didn’t even shift into high gear, as instead it seemed to yawn, sniff and put its nose in the air as the nearsighted rhino lurched forward. It’s interesting to note that Boras Zoo has had its famous Cheetah/White Rhino combination for at least 20 years!
There are 4 White Rhinos and 5 Cheetahs in this spacious habitat:
White Rhino and Cheetah:
White Rhino charging a Cheetah:
The zoo’s Primate House is good, but not great. It contains average exhibits for 5 species (Chimpanzees, Bornean Orangutans, White-handed Gibbons, Sulawesi Crested Macaques and Cotton-top Tamarins), plus there is an enclosure for Banded Mongooses. The series of primate islands are adequate for their inhabitants, but considering that this zoo closes during the winter, then the indoor areas (while very well furnished and with natural substrate on the floor) definitely could be larger.
Primate House:
Primate Islands (there are 4 in total):
Nordic Forest is a section of Boras Zoo at the top of the zoo’s grounds, with only a few species but all of them have enormous habitats. Wolves have their own forest, viewed across a stream and it’s impossible to tell how far back the enclosure goes as the rear fencing is hidden from view. Brown Bears have several acres of space, and they are seen via a winding wooden boardwalk. There was even one bear swimming in the exhibit’s lake, which was a memorable sight. European Lynx have a slice of forest to themselves, and the zoo’s Grey and Harbour Seals literally have an entire lake to swim in. I’m convinced that they aren’t actually contained but could choose to waddle off into the mountains if they wanted to. Is this the zoo world’s largest pinniped exhibit? The growing herd of Wisent have several spacious yards, and the zoo’s Wolverines (3 separate exhibits) have one very steep, natural-looking habitat with lots of hiding places.
Brown Bear exhibit:
Brown Bear exhibit:
Wolf exhibit:
Here is one of the zoo's three exhibits for Wisent:
We saw 3 pinnipeds in this Grey Seal/Harbour Seal lake, but there could be many more!
African Lions have a moated enclosure that is a decent size, complete with a rocky mini mountain in the center. What really shocked me, as difficult as it is to be shocked when you walk through Randers with large free-ranging pythons, is the Big Cat House. It is possible to walk directly up to the indoor holding areas for the African Lions and Amur Tigers and put your fingers into the barred cages. There’s evidence of old holes where at some point there must have been a fenced barrier, but it’s all gone for both species, and I suppose that the Swedish authorities assume that anyone who has a finger chewed off is an idiot with no legal standing. In America, with lawyer billboards everywhere and an ex-reality star President and his white trash mob threatening legal action on a daily basis, one could never put their fingers into the indoor areas of lions and tigers.
African Lion exhibit:
Lion indoor viewing where it is easy enough for a visitor to poke their fingers into the cage:
What’s left in the zoo? There’s a costumed Simba the Lion character who is very popular, plus an extensive series of play areas and a big farmyard for young kids. Humboldt Penguins are in what is hands-down the zoo’s weakest exhibit, with an image of a King Penguin on the zoo map not helping the situation. Spotted Hyenas and African Wild Dogs (more than a dozen of them) have spacious, grassy exhibits. Bongos look magnificent up close and that opportunity presents itself here. There’s a flamingo exhibit and a Dino Park to finish things off.
A large pack of African Wild Dogs are to be found in a forest setting:
Spotted Hyena exhibit:
Boras Zoo doesn’t seem very big when looking at its map, with perhaps 30 mammal species and not much of anything else. It's yet another minimalist Scandinavian zoo with amazing exhibits. However, the African Savanna, practically unchanged since the 1960s, is magnificent with its elephants, giraffes, buffalo and antelope. Why hasn’t another zoo duplicated such a terrific combination? There’s also the White Rhino/Cheetah yard, with its death-defying cats, and the big Nordic Forest section is a brilliant example of how to display native wildlife in a spectacular way. If I was to ever come back, I think that it would be intriguing to spend the night in the brand-new Wildlife Camp area, with raised tents looking down on one of the zoo world’s truly great African Savannas. The cost is 4,800 SEK (about $600 Canadian or $462 U.S.) for a tent, which sleeps up to 4 people. You pay by the tent, so 4 zoo nerds would be $115 U.S. each and that includes a two-day entry ticket for the zoo, one overnight stay, dinner at the restaurant, a guided after-hours tour, breakfast and a “morning activity” which I’m guessing is probably something like riding one of the Cape Buffalo around the yard. The Wildlife Camp has just made its debut this year and I think that it’s a reasonable deal considering everything that it includes.
This angle of the African Savanna shows the brand-new overnight accommodation on the left-hand side, as well as the Elephant House in the center of the photo:
I uploaded approximately 80 photos of Boras Zoo into the gallery. After this, we had a two-hour drive to Nordens Ark to gaze at 16 jaw-dropping feline exhibits (for only 7 species of cat).
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I don't think is the largest pinniped exhibit, simply because if they aren't contained it doesn't really count as an exhibit - rather this is the only zoo with free-roaming seals.Tuesday, August 9th, 2022
One of the joys of this trip was coming into contact with @twilighter. His real name is Konstantin Yordanov, a Bulgarian-born man who lives near Oslo, Norway, and is a hotel manager with 120 people under his command. He and I corresponded before I left Canada, but I didn’t give him a lot of notice and this particular ‘Snowleopard Road Trip’ was a last-minute decision due to West Jet flight points that were going to expire. Konstantin is like all the other 20-25 zoo nerds that I’ve met over the years: curious, gracious, generous, kind-hearted and safe. I joked with him that my wife always worries when I meet strangers on my trips, and I met quite a few ZooChatters in Europe in 2019 (about a dozen subspecies ) and they were all wonderful. I stayed in people’s homes and received gifts in abundance.
With Konstantin I had nothing to worry about. He didn’t stab me to death in my sleep, but instead paid for our hotel room after I met him on Monday night. He also pre-booked our tickets to Boras Zoo and Nordens Ark and refused to accept any money, plus he bought my lunch at Boras Zoo and also showed up with a stack of zoo maps to add to my extensive collection. I argued on several occasions that I needed to pay for at least something, but he even pushed my wallet away and bought me a drink at Nordens Ark before I drove him back to his home at the end of a long yet satisfying day. Konstantin saved me $200 in total on this one day, plus due to his job as a hotel manager he managed to get me steep discounts on several other nights on the trip. I think that in total he saved me $500 Canadian and he said that any other zoo nerd that wishes to do a tour of Scandinavian zoos should send him a message as he can obtain discounts if he knows ahead of time.
The other thing about Konstantin is that he has a similar pace to visiting zoos as myself, and in fact he walks faster than I do. He realizes that I’m not at just one zoo for the day and I don't wish to spend 8 hours looking at Meerkats. He has big zoo trips himself and he knows what it’s like to eat on the run, or not spend hours watching shows or riding kiddie trains. Konstantin is like me in that he’s not a ‘birder’ or ‘twitcher’, someone who would spend all day at Randers Rainforest Zoo looking up rare birds in the canopy. He likes mammals and so Scandinavia is the perfect home for such a fine zoo nerd specimen. We talked until midnight on Monday night, then we were both up at 5:00 a.m. and we talked all day long, from 5:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. when I dropped him off at his home. Of all the zoo nerds that I have met over the past 15 years, perhaps Konstantin and I are the most alike in terms of what we enjoy seeing at a zoo (in this order: mammals, reptiles, amphibians, birds, fish) and the pace at which we like to see things.
Zoo/Aquarium # 19: Boras Zoo (Boras, SE)
Boras Zoo opened in 1962 and therefore is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year, coincidentally the same anniversary that the world’s greatest rock n’ roll band is celebrating. This facility is set on 53 hectares/130 acres, with 38 hectares/94 acres utilized as the zoo’s grounds. There are 270,000 annual visitors and not a lot of different species. However, don’t let that fool you into thinking this is a small, quick zoo that’s easily dismissed, as there is some value gained by hanging around some of the spacious exhibits. Once again, it's a zoo that is almost entirely mammals.
There is an interesting entrance, as once a ticket is purchased a visitor goes on a long walk on a massive wooden boardwalk that is very high off the ground. Other than glancing over at the heavily forested African Wild Dog exhibit, there isn’t much to see until one ends up at an iconic 5-acre habitat. That is of course the legendary African Savanna, where elephants and buffalo roam amidst herds of hoofstock. The zoo has 7 African Elephants, all but a single male mingling on the savanna with species such as Rothschild’s Giraffe, Grant’s Zebra, Blesbok, Common Eland, Cape Buffalo (4 of them), Ostrich and Helmeted Guineafowl. To see 8 different species in a rock-walled, multi-acre habitat is a lot like Kolmarden’s African Savanna, but nowhere in Europe has elephants and buffalo with the typical ungulates that one sees in these type of zoo exhibits. It’s a splendid habitat, with rocky sections, lots of enrichment and Konstantin and I watched the animals for a long time as visitors can walk around almost the entire 5 acres on a surrounding pathway. This being Europe, naturally it is possible to go inside the Giraffe/White Rhino House and the spacious, new (2018) Elephant House that has some similarities to what I’d see in Copenhagen. It’s difficult to drag yourself away from this spectacular savanna and later Konstantin and I had lunch on a patio overlooking the animal life. We lined up for a Swedish buffet and it was much different from my typical McDonald’s or Burger King lunch while driving my rental car to the next zoo.
Massive entrance walkway:
African Savanna:
African Savanna:
African Savanna:
Elephant House (opened in 2018):
Moving on from the African Savanna, the very next exhibit is almost as amazing. There are 5 Cheetahs and 4 White Rhinos all living together in the same enclosure. We were thrilled to get some photos of a White Rhino and Cheetah together, but later on we backtracked and went to that exhibit again and we saw an extraordinary sight. It’s surreal enough to see the two species interacting, but there was a marvelous display of territorial aggression from a very large rhino. It leaned forward and ran full tilt at a Cheetah. The icing on the cake for this experience was seeing the reaction of the cat. It waited until the rhino had its horn down and we thought that we were going to witness a gored feline, but at the last possible moment the Cheetah calmly stepped to the right and missed the charge. The Cheetah didn’t even shift into high gear, as instead it seemed to yawn, sniff and put its nose in the air as the nearsighted rhino lurched forward. It’s interesting to note that Boras Zoo has had its famous Cheetah/White Rhino combination for at least 20 years!
There are 4 White Rhinos and 5 Cheetahs in this spacious habitat:
White Rhino and Cheetah:
White Rhino charging a Cheetah:
The zoo’s Primate House is good, but not great. It contains average exhibits for 5 species (Chimpanzees, Bornean Orangutans, White-handed Gibbons, Sulawesi Crested Macaques and Cotton-top Tamarins), plus there is an enclosure for Banded Mongooses. The series of primate islands are adequate for their inhabitants, but considering that this zoo closes during the winter, then the indoor areas (while very well furnished and with natural substrate on the floor) definitely could be larger.
Primate House:
Primate Islands (there are 4 in total):
Nordic Forest is a section of Boras Zoo at the top of the zoo’s grounds, with only a few species but all of them have enormous habitats. Wolves have their own forest, viewed across a stream and it’s impossible to tell how far back the enclosure goes as the rear fencing is hidden from view. Brown Bears have several acres of space, and they are seen via a winding wooden boardwalk. There was even one bear swimming in the exhibit’s lake, which was a memorable sight. European Lynx have a slice of forest to themselves, and the zoo’s Grey and Harbour Seals literally have an entire lake to swim in. I’m convinced that they aren’t actually contained but could choose to waddle off into the mountains if they wanted to. Is this the zoo world’s largest pinniped exhibit? The growing herd of Wisent have several spacious yards, and the zoo’s Wolverines (3 separate exhibits) have one very steep, natural-looking habitat with lots of hiding places.
Brown Bear exhibit:
Brown Bear exhibit:
Wolf exhibit:
Here is one of the zoo's three exhibits for Wisent:
We saw 3 pinnipeds in this Grey Seal/Harbour Seal lake, but there could be many more!
African Lions have a moated enclosure that is a decent size, complete with a rocky mini mountain in the center. What really shocked me, as difficult as it is to be shocked when you walk through Randers with large free-ranging pythons, is the Big Cat House. It is possible to walk directly up to the indoor holding areas for the African Lions and Amur Tigers and put your fingers into the barred cages. There’s evidence of old holes where at some point there must have been a fenced barrier, but it’s all gone for both species, and I suppose that the Swedish authorities assume that anyone who has a finger chewed off is an idiot with no legal standing. In America, with lawyer billboards everywhere and an ex-reality star President and his white trash mob threatening legal action on a daily basis, one could never put their fingers into the indoor areas of lions and tigers.
African Lion exhibit:
Lion indoor viewing where it is easy enough for a visitor to poke their fingers into the cage:
What’s left in the zoo? There’s a costumed Simba the Lion character who is very popular, plus an extensive series of play areas and a big farmyard for young kids. Humboldt Penguins are in what is hands-down the zoo’s weakest exhibit, with an image of a King Penguin on the zoo map not helping the situation. Spotted Hyenas and African Wild Dogs (more than a dozen of them) have spacious, grassy exhibits. Bongos look magnificent up close and that opportunity presents itself here. There’s a flamingo exhibit and a Dino Park to finish things off.
A large pack of African Wild Dogs are to be found in a forest setting:
Spotted Hyena exhibit:
Boras Zoo doesn’t seem very big when looking at its map, with perhaps 30 mammal species and not much of anything else. It's yet another minimalist Scandinavian zoo with amazing exhibits. However, the African Savanna, practically unchanged since the 1960s, is magnificent with its elephants, giraffes, buffalo and antelope. Why hasn’t another zoo duplicated such a terrific combination? There’s also the White Rhino/Cheetah yard, with its death-defying cats, and the big Nordic Forest section is a brilliant example of how to display native wildlife in a spectacular way. If I was to ever come back, I think that it would be intriguing to spend the night in the brand-new Wildlife Camp area, with raised tents looking down on one of the zoo world’s truly great African Savannas. The cost is 4,800 SEK (about $600 Canadian or $462 U.S.) for a tent, which sleeps up to 4 people. You pay by the tent, so 4 zoo nerds would be $115 U.S. each and that includes a two-day entry ticket for the zoo, one overnight stay, dinner at the restaurant, a guided after-hours tour, breakfast and a “morning activity” which I’m guessing is probably something like riding one of the Cape Buffalo around the yard. The Wildlife Camp has just made its debut this year and I think that it’s a reasonable deal considering everything that it includes.
This angle of the African Savanna shows the brand-new overnight accommodation on the left-hand side, as well as the Elephant House in the center of the photo:
I uploaded approximately 80 photos of Boras Zoo into the gallery. After this, we had a two-hour drive to Nordens Ark to gaze at 15 jaw-dropping feline exhibits (for only 7 species of cat).
felis silvestris
Well-Known Member
I know they aren’t pinnipeds, but Longleat’s sea lions have a whole lake as well (mixed in with hippos, strangely enough)