Minnesota Zoo The Future Of The Zoo

snowleopard

snowleopard

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http://www.twincities.com/localnews/ci_13605746?nclick_check=1#

The news article details the 3 phases of the "Heart of the Zoo" project, which is designed to be constructed over the next few years and represents an exciting future for this excellent zoo. The idea is that the Minnesota Zoo will then cement its position as arguably one of the 10 best zoos in the United States (which means ALL of North America) after the latest additions.

The zoo is at an all-time high: a record-breaking attendance of 1.3 million last year, an all-time record number of visitor memberships, and back-to-back years of AZA award-winning exhibits (Minnesota Trail & Russia's Grizzly Coast). Is this the most improved zoo in North America?:)
 
snowleopard said:
Is this the most improved zoo in North America?:)
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It may be, but that probably depends on the time frame for "most improved". If you go back 20-30 years, certainly Oakland and Atlanta would have to be near the top of the most-improved list, as both were THEN listed (the the Humane Society) as among the nation's worst zoos. Now both are very good!

If we're only talking about the past decade, then other contenders would be: Cheyenne Mountain (opened African Rift Valley & Rocky Mountain Wild); Sedgwick County (Gorilla Forest, Penguin Cove, & Tiger Trail); Miami (Amazon & Beyond is a huge addition!); Utah's Hogle (Asian Highlands & Elephant Encounter); Toledo (doubled in size in 2000, added Arctic Encounter, Africa!, and a new children's zoo); and Memphis (CHINA-including giant pandas, Northwest Passage, Teton Trek).

But my winner is predictable: Omaha (Desert Dome, Kingdoms of the Night, Gorilla Valley, Butterfly/Insect Pavilion, Skyfari -- all opened in the last decade!). Madagascar!, with America's first walk-through lemur exhibit, is expected to open next year too.
 
ANyhuis said:
Madagascar!, with America's first walk-through lemur exhibit, is expected to open next year too.
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I am amazed there are currently no lemur walk-throughs in any US zoos, I'm hard pressed to think of a lemur exhibit which does not feature a walk-through in Britain!
 
redpanda said:
I am amazed there are currently no lemur walk-throughs in any US zoos, I'm hard pressed to think of a lemur exhibit which does not feature a walk-through in Britain!
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I know! I just experienced a wonderful lemur walk-through at Bioparc Valencia. Also saw one (that was closed) in Madrid, and I've previously enjoyed them in Prague and Berlin Tierpark. So WHY do you think there is this difference? Is it possible that the USA's problem with too many lawsuits has American zoos willing to take a chance on having visitors bitten by a lemur? Are the lawsuit laws that different in Europe?
 
ANyhuis said:
Are the lawsuit laws that different in Europe?
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Yes. As is the concept of personal responsibility, now all but lost in the "land of victims" our country has become.

Philadelphia zoo built a walk-through lemur exhibit more than 10 years ago (a section of the "Peco Primate Reserve"), but stopped letting people enter it only a year or so later--probably because of fear of lawsuits.

Part of Bronx's Madagascar is for all intents and purposes a walk-through, as there is no real barrier separating the ringtails from the public. But it's not the same as having a red-ruffed lemur rifle through your camera bag as I've had happen in Berlin and Prague!
 
In case anyone is interested, here's a picture of me actually petting a black-and-white ruffed lemur at the Berlin Tierpark:
Zoo Photo Gallery - America's Best Zoos

At Bioparc Valencia, the policy is actually that you are not supposed to purposely touch the lemurs -- but they can touch you. It's similar to the Monkey Village policy with squirrel monkeys in Phoenix.

Two other recent instances where European zoos at least seem to be much less worried about human/animal contact:
(1) At the Lisbon (Portugal) Zoo, in the middle of their "Lemurs Island" exhibit (with 4-5 different lemur species in separate netted enclosures), they have a rather small, round fenced exhibit and pool for a pygmy hippo. The fence is so low that I was able to reach in and pat the hippo on the back.
(2) At the Madrid Zoo, I was able to pet the head of a cassowary. Aren't these birds supposed to be deadly dangerous? Or is that only with their kick?

Sorry for hijacking your thread, SnowLeopard.
 
ANyhuis said:
(2) At the Madrid Zoo, I was able to pet the head of a cassowary. Aren't these birds supposed to be deadly dangerous? Or is that only with their kick?
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Yes

I have heard from a European zoo that the winds are changing there ever so slightly.
 
ANyhuis said:
Are the lawsuit laws that different in Europe?
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YES! Over here we are deeply fascinated by the "lawsuit culture" in The US and we have nothing coming even close to it.

Suing McDonald´s for getting burned by a hot cup of coffee dropped by yourself onto your lap? NO WAY!!! :D

I am not being ironic here or something, I actually think these cultural differences between our Western societies are interesting and somewhat amusing. ;)
 
I would have to agree with Dan on this one. Our laws are very much different. However, lately I have seen some sort of blame culture and McDonald's coffee cup style non-personal responsibility rear up in Continental Europe. A rather curious chain of events.

Also: Reminiscing of cultural differences ... A colleague of mine at work is US-Maine born and we have had quite a few interesting conversations on this subject as in courtesies, jokes, general behaviour et cetera. Besides language-wise we do have an English English and an American English variety! :D
 
This lawsuit nonsense actually hit the zoo world last summer when a stupid lady was watching the dolphin show in the "splash zone" at the Brookfield Zoo. After getting wet from the dolphins, she slipped on the wet floor, hurt herself, and turned around and sued the Zoo for her injuries:
Brookfield Zoo dolphin lawsuit: Woman sues over fall she blames on wet floor - Chicago Tribune

Not to get too political, but no matter how much you love Barack Obama and hate the Republicans, this is one issue where Obama is wrong and the Republicans are right. If Obama would just add some serious tort (lawsuit) reform, he could pass a really good Health care bill. But sadly, Obama's Democrats are in the back pocket of the USA's nasty trial lawyers, just as the Republican are controlled (to a degree) by the guy lobby.
 
LOL -- typing too fast! The Republicans are NOT controlled by the "guy lobby" -- I meant by the "gun lobby".
 
Cheers for the video link Mario. It is great to hear that the plan is for the Minnesota Zoo to confirm its place as one of the 10 best American zoos. Of course, there are many other zoos that say the exact same thing!:)

It is a good idea to have all of the future projects detailed in one place:

http://ourmnzoo.org/
 
"Faces of the African Forest" opens on Memorial Day within the "Tropics Trail" building, as the renovation of that area of the zoo continues. Dwarf crocodiles, red river hogs, bats, hyrax and colobus and DeBrazza monkeys will be in that section of the rainforest building. The two species of monkeys and red river hogs will be in a mixed-species exhibit, and the total cost is $650,000:

At the Minnesota Zoo, welcome to the jungle - TwinCities.com
 
Minnesota was great already and will only get better. As for being a top ten American zoo very soon, I would say yes. In the next couple years I am likely going to move Minnesota and Dallas into my top ten (while San Diego has already been knocked out of my top ten - at least the zoo, not the Wild Animal Park).
 
Arizona Docent said:
Minnesota was great already and will only get better. As for being a top ten American zoo very soon, I would say yes. In the next couple years I am likely going to move Minnesota and Dallas into my top ten (while San Diego has already been knocked out of my top ten - at least the zoo, not the Wild Animal Park).
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Umm, where did you have SD before?
 
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