While walk-through exhibits as a whole are far less common in the US compared to Europe, you'll still see plenty of walkthrough around, just not ones for primates. Walkthroughs for birds, butterflies, and macropods are especially common.
Did Omaha's re-open?
It beats leaving the dog boxed in a crate most of its life - or within a closed car during hot days...
There's also more than just Phoenix for primate walk-throughs. Most of them however are callitrichids and/or titi monkeys included in mixed-species aviaries/rainforest buildings.
What places other than Phoenix and Calgary?
National Zoo, for instance, in Amazonia.
Jokes aside, few threads are as iconic on ZooChat as a snowleopard road trip and its always exciting to see you back at it. A few comments on the discourse thus far:After reading the first part of your review I was going to make a similar comment, but you beat me to the punch. Oregon was originally going to be included on "America's 50 Must-see Zoos" but as I struggled to write about it I realized there isn't a whole lot "must-see" about the zoo. It does many things well, few things poor, but even fewer things truly great. Downsizing the collection for the sake of larger and better exhibits is understandable, necessary even, but I'm not a fan of how ABC centric the zoo has become in recent years. That's more of a general complaint I have about many US zoos as of late, but The new stuff doesn't look like anything to write home about either, although I almost kinda like the meshed chimp enclosure. Something about it is charming in an odd way despite its industrial appearance.
For many years there were free-roaming golden lion tamarins in the Lied Jungle, but I didn't see any when I visited Omaha two years ago and there hasn't been any mention of them for a while. Beyond callitrichids, Moody Gardens has free-roaming white-faced sakis in the rainforest pyramid.
DAY 2: Wednesday, July 5th
I spent many hours driving today, but I did visit two fairly obscure attractions that I’d never even heard of until a few years ago. They were #547 and #548 for me all-time.
Zoo/Aquarium #2: Charleston Marine Life Center (Charleston, Oregon)
Charleston Marine Life Center is a small aquarium that is the public face of Oregon University’s facility called the Oregon Institute of Marine Biology. It’s located more than 3 hours south of Portland, directly on the coastline, which makes for a nice environment with the Pacific Ocean lapping the beach not too far away. Admission is $5, children are free, and therefore a zoo nerd shouldn’t expect too much from this establishment.
A building with a bleached Humpback Whale skull greets visitors and the center is only open 4 days a week, 6 hours each day. I was the first one in the door and I counted 6 employees/volunteers, so perhaps the Institute across the road maintains staffing. All of the animals are locally sourced and there are 14 tanks on the main floor. Other than the large-ish touch tank, the rest of the exhibits are a bit old-fashioned and of an average size. The highlights include a juvenile Giant Pacific Octopus, a couple of Red Pacific Octopuses, two Wolf Eels in an exhibit too small for their girth, some unlabeled fish and at least 5 crab species: Dungeness, Brown Box, Moss, Spiny Lithode and Puget Sound King.
Crab tanks:
The upper floor has some interesting artifacts and it’s essentially a marine museum. There are quite a few whale bones (which people can touch), a huge Sperm Whale skull, Humpback Whale baleen mounted in a case, lots of intact squid and various octopuses in jars, and many shells and other seaside items. The facility offers up a number of school programs and that’s nice to see as engaging young children with marine life is always exciting. I spent 30 minutes at this small aquarium.
Sperm Whale skull:
I then drove 3 hours south (142 miles/228 km).
Zoo/Aquarium #3: Wildlife Images Rehabilitation and Education Center (Grants Pass, Oregon)
Wildlife Images opened in 1981 and has been rescuing and rehabilitating wildlife for 42 years. Set on 24 acres of land (although the public section is a fraction of that), I had no idea what to expect from this facility. It became ZAA-accredited in 2022, there is a detailed paper map that is handed out to all visitors (which is more than be said for many major zoos these days!) and the entrance building is large, air-conditioned and full of friendly employees.
Zoo map:
I ended up spending an hour and 20 minutes here, much of that time sweating in the 36-degree Celsius (97 Fahrenheit) heat. The first thing that visitors come across, apart from an elaborate House Sparrow indoor/outdoor aviary connected to the main building, is ‘Robert’s Reptile Room’, which is named after Steve Irwin’s son. This small, cabin-like structure contains the following 12 species: Ball Python, Northern Rubber Boa, California Kingsnake, Red-tailed Green Rat Snake, Corn Snake, Madagascar Giant Day Gecko, Leopard Gecko, Armadillo Lizard, Desert Tortoise, Eastern Box Turtle, Mexican Red-knee Tarantula and Madagascar Hissing Cockroach.
Next up is a row of aviaries that are all quite tiny and typical of American raptor centers. Some of the birds were hit by cars or struck by powerlines, with the vultures arriving from Busch Gardens Tampa Bay after they were no longer required for the bird show. There’s a Peregrine Falcon, an Augur Buzzard, a Ferruginous Hawk, an Eurasian Eagle Owl, an American Crow (former pet), two King Vultures, a Bald Eagle and a Golden Eagle. The birds are regularly taken out from their tiny homes and while I was there a Golden Eagle was hopping around on the grass and sunning itself. There’s also a much larger aviary for two Sandhill Cranes and a Turkey Vulture.
Row of aviaries:
King Vulture aviary:
There are signs detailing how Wildlife Images rescues more than 1,000 animals each year, with a huge list on whiteboards showing all the incomings and outgoings. There has already been 439 animal patients so far this year, including species not found at the park such as Raccoons, American Minks and Long-tailed Weasels. Many of the permanent residents were former pets and doomed to either euthanasia or a lifetime at this zoo. Basic, functional enclosures packed with a lot of enrichment contain the following mammals: Bobcat, Eastern Fox Squirrel, Virginia Opossum, Striped Skunk, American Badger, White-nosed Coati and River Otter. There’s also a Red-footed Tortoise and a Western Screech Owl in this area.
Striped Skunk exhibit (for two ex-pets):
Bobcat and American Badger exhibits:
At the rear of the property is a larger loop, with an enclosure for a Gray Fox that had been a ‘pet’ and this poor little guy spent two years inside a dog crate. He will face “lifelong medical issues” but now has an exhibit that contains a lot of enrichment opportunities. There are two enclosures for wolf hybrids (4 of them), an Eurasian Lynx, some Rheas, Swamp Wallabies, Patagonian Cavies, a single elderly Brown Bear and a spacious farmyard zone with domestic animals.
Gray Fox exhibit:
Eurasian Lynx exhibit (ex-Cougar enclosure):
Wildlife Images is home to approximately 40 species and every single one of them was either hurt and unable to be released back into the wild, a former pet, or unwanted from other zoos. Founded by David Siddon, now deceased, the center is run by David Siddon Jr. who once spent 12 years working at Oregon Zoo. A way for Wildlife Images to generate money is to rent out their impressive Event Pavilion, and the even more impressive ‘Bindi’s Critter Creek’ area, which is named after Bindi Irwin. There is a strong connection with Australia Zoo, due to the fact that the zoo is a sponsor of Wildlife Images and in the 1990s Terri Irwin gave her pet Cougar to the park.
Event Pavilion:
Irwin Family Pavilion:
Steve Irwin bench:
I then drove 6 hours to my motel for the evening. In the first two days, I travelled approximately 1,800 km (1,100 miles). I drove through Washington and Oregon and halfway into California. That's the equivalent of driving from London to Rome.
It always perplexes me what species are displayed at rescue/rehabilitation zoos, even some reputable ones. The non-native raptor species, Swamp Wallabies, and Rhea are all species I wouldn't expect there to be individuals needing rescue very often. This isn't a dig at this facility or any other, just a general observation that really surprises me when discussing these kinds of facilities.DAY 2: Wednesday, July 5th
I spent many hours driving today, but I did visit two fairly obscure attractions that I’d never even heard of until a few years ago. They were #547 and #548 for me all-time.
Zoo/Aquarium #2: Charleston Marine Life Center (Charleston, Oregon)
Charleston Marine Life Center is a small aquarium that is the public face of Oregon University’s facility called the Oregon Institute of Marine Biology. It’s located more than 3 hours south of Portland, directly on the coastline, which makes for a nice environment with the Pacific Ocean lapping the beach not too far away. Admission is $5, children are free, and therefore a zoo nerd shouldn’t expect too much from this establishment.
A building with a bleached Humpback Whale skull greets visitors and the center is only open 4 days a week, 6 hours each day. I was the first one in the door and I counted 6 employees/volunteers, so perhaps the Institute across the road maintains staffing. All of the animals are locally sourced and there are 14 tanks on the main floor. Other than the large-ish touch tank, the rest of the exhibits are a bit old-fashioned and of an average size. The highlights include a juvenile Giant Pacific Octopus, a couple of Red Pacific Octopuses, two Wolf Eels in an exhibit too small for their girth, some unlabeled fish and at least 5 crab species: Dungeness, Brown Box, Moss, Spiny Lithode and Puget Sound King.
Crab tanks:
The upper floor has some interesting artifacts and it’s essentially a marine museum. There are quite a few whale bones (which people can touch), a huge Sperm Whale skull, Humpback Whale baleen mounted in a case, lots of intact squid and various octopuses in jars, and many shells and other seaside items. The facility offers up a number of school programs and that’s nice to see as engaging young children with marine life is always exciting. I spent 30 minutes at this small aquarium.
Sperm Whale skull:
I then drove 3 hours south (142 miles/228 km).
Zoo/Aquarium #3: Wildlife Images Rehabilitation and Education Center (Grants Pass, Oregon)
Wildlife Images opened in 1981 and has been rescuing and rehabilitating wildlife for 42 years. Set on 24 acres of land (although the public section is a fraction of that), I had no idea what to expect from this facility. It became ZAA-accredited in 2022, there is a detailed paper map that is handed out to all visitors (which is more than be said for many major zoos these days!) and the entrance building is large, air-conditioned and full of friendly employees.
Zoo map:
I ended up spending an hour and 20 minutes here, much of that time sweating in the 36-degree Celsius (97 Fahrenheit) heat. The first thing that visitors come across, apart from an elaborate House Sparrow indoor/outdoor aviary connected to the main building, is ‘Robert’s Reptile Room’, which is named after Steve Irwin’s son. This small, cabin-like structure contains the following 12 species: Ball Python, Northern Rubber Boa, California Kingsnake, Red-tailed Green Rat Snake, Corn Snake, Madagascar Giant Day Gecko, Leopard Gecko, Armadillo Lizard, Desert Tortoise, Eastern Box Turtle, Mexican Red-knee Tarantula and Madagascar Hissing Cockroach.
Next up is a row of aviaries that are all quite tiny and typical of American raptor centers. Some of the birds were hit by cars or struck by powerlines, with the vultures arriving from Busch Gardens Tampa Bay after they were no longer required for the bird show. There’s a Peregrine Falcon, an Augur Buzzard, a Ferruginous Hawk, an Eurasian Eagle Owl, an American Crow (former pet), two King Vultures, a Bald Eagle and a Golden Eagle. The birds are regularly taken out from their tiny homes and while I was there a Golden Eagle was hopping around on the grass and sunning itself. There’s also a much larger aviary for two Sandhill Cranes and a Turkey Vulture.
Row of aviaries:
King Vulture aviary:
There are signs detailing how Wildlife Images rescues more than 1,000 animals each year, with a huge list on whiteboards showing all the incomings and outgoings. There has already been 439 animal patients so far this year, including species not found at the park such as Raccoons, American Minks and Long-tailed Weasels. Many of the permanent residents were former pets and doomed to either euthanasia or a lifetime at this zoo. Basic, functional enclosures packed with a lot of enrichment contain the following mammals: Bobcat, Eastern Fox Squirrel, Virginia Opossum, Striped Skunk, American Badger, White-nosed Coati and River Otter. There’s also a Red-footed Tortoise and a Western Screech Owl in this area.
Striped Skunk exhibit (for two ex-pets):
Bobcat and American Badger exhibits:
At the rear of the property is a larger loop, with an enclosure for a Gray Fox that had been a ‘pet’ and this poor little guy spent two years inside a dog crate. He will face “lifelong medical issues” but now has an exhibit that contains a lot of enrichment opportunities. There are two enclosures for wolf hybrids (4 of them), an Eurasian Lynx, some Rheas, Swamp Wallabies, Patagonian Cavies, a single elderly Brown Bear and a spacious farmyard zone with domestic animals.
Gray Fox exhibit:
Eurasian Lynx exhibit (ex-Cougar enclosure):
Wildlife Images is home to approximately 40 species and every single one of them was either hurt and unable to be released back into the wild, a former pet, or unwanted from other zoos. Founded by David Siddon, now deceased, the center is run by David Siddon Jr. who once spent 12 years working at Oregon Zoo. A way for Wildlife Images to generate money is to rent out their impressive Event Pavilion, and the even more impressive ‘Bindi’s Critter Creek’ area, which is named after Bindi Irwin. There is a strong connection with Australia Zoo, due to the fact that the zoo is a sponsor of Wildlife Images and in the 1990s Terri Irwin gave her pet Cougar to the park.
Event Pavilion:
Irwin Family Pavilion:
Steve Irwin bench:
I then drove 6 hours to my motel for the evening. In the first two days, I travelled approximately 1,800 km (1,100 miles). I drove through Washington and Oregon and halfway into California. That's the equivalent of driving from London to Rome.