Surprisingly Undervisited Zoos

birdsandbats

birdsandbats

Well-Known Member
5+ year member
Are there any zoos you think are surprisingly undervisited? Either from an actual attendance perspective or from low traffic on this site specifically?

I think from a ZC perspective, Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum is shockingly undervisited. It's got a decent collection and some great exhibits and is a ten-minute walk from the extremely well-visited Lincoln Park Zoo.
 
I feel like Miami isn’t as appreciated as it should be considering it’s size and the amount of species it holds. Maybe I’ve looked in all the wrong places but the 4 Singapore parks should be given much more credit considering how many species they hold. I don’t really ever see much about them.
 
The Gladys Porter Zoo in Brownsville, Texas doesn't seem to get a lot of visits from ZooChatters. I guess the location is too out of the way for most people, it's not in or near a major city and most people don't travel far JUST for a zoo. (unless I guess it's a larger one) Still, I'm surprised I don't see more visitors to it. Last time I went I tried to take plenty of pictures for the site, I'll have to make another trip for that at some point.
 
birdsandbats said:
I think from a ZC perspective, Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum is shockingly undervisited. It's got a decent collection and some great exhibits and is a ten-minute walk from the extremely well-visited Lincoln Park Zoo.
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I second this. As a native Chicagoan, I have actually never been there. I've been to Lincoln Park Zoo probably well over 100 times in my life, but the Notebaert Museum has always slipped my mind, even though you can literally see it from zoo grounds.
 
PAKMan said:
I second this. As a native Chicagoan, I have actually never been there. I've been to Lincoln Park Zoo probably well over 100 times in my life, but the Notebaert Museum has always slipped my mind, even though you can literally see it from zoo grounds.
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It's worth the visit. :)
 
I agree about Gladys Porter, the Iocation is the major challenge there. Also, the Austin Nature & Science center. For a rather major city, and with it being the only decent animal facility in the city, you would think it would be better attended and represented here.

Miami, as mentioned, is interesting as it is a major zoo in a major city, but Miami as a city and destination is just different in some regards. The weather can be a challenge half of the year, and other diversions take away tourists, I would imagine. Most tourists are not going to Miami to go to the zoo, if they go out of their way for a "zoo" in Florida it is going to be DAK or Busch.

For aquariums I would say Long Island Aquarium. Being so close to the city, in a large residential area one would think it would have more people visiting, especially from these forums. I thoroughly enjoyed our visit there. Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies too, while well visited numbers wise, there seem to be very few people here that have been.
 
I don’t know if it’s underrated or not, but the Saint Louis Zoo is, I feel, is one of the best zoos in America (and is also my local zoo).
For starters, admission is free, which can be a downside because a lot of other things like food & shopping are pretty expensive.
The zoo has a perfect blend on historic-themed exhibits while also being modernized and staying up to date. The Rivers Edge is by far their greatest exhibit, feeling like we’re truly going somewhere else for a little while. Also, slightly weird comment, but this zoo is better to go on on rainy days.
You can get almost any nature-themed feel or vibe from this place. It’s a great place to take you into nature.
 
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