The Top Ten Zoos You've Been To

The Lied Jungle is the best exhibit to experience out of the ones I've been to. That's not to say it's the best exhibit, because there are some issues, but for a visitor experience, I absolutely loved it! Same to a lesser degree with the other two mega indoor exhibits you mention. All 3 are among my top 10-15 zoo exhibits.

Otherwise, the aquarium is good as you say, they have good hoofstock exhibits, good great ape exhibits, a very nice butterfly house, the new Madagascar exhibit, a good cheetah exhibit, the primate islands, etc. Their collection is also quite good.

I'd say the bear exhibits are a little below average and the cat exhibits are mostly poor to mediocre, but people give them way too hard of a time for having their indoor areas open to the public while other zoos get total passes for their indoor exhibits that are not open to the public.
 
While you're questioning things, I hope you don't mind me doing the same. Oakland and National over the Bronx and SD? LA in the same league as SD and better than Omaha? ASDM as the best pure zoo? You got some explaining to do. ;)
 
mweb08 said:
While you're questioning things, I hope you don't mind me doing the same. Oakland and National over the Bronx and SD? LA in the same league as SD and better than Omaha? ASDM as the best pure zoo? You got some explaining to do. ;)
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I find Oakland to be a very good all-around zoo. They have a heavy emphasis on the welfare of their animals and promoting conservation. I find at that zoo that I find the people watching the animals more in depth, and seemingly enjoying themselves more than I do at most zoos.

I was very impressed with the National Zoo for the same reasons pretty much as Oakland. Their collections are not massive and the emphasis of the exhibits is animal welfare and visitor appreciation of the animals and ecosystems that their wild relatives live in.

I think in terms of collection that LA and San Diego are in the same league, and increasingly in exhibitry. They both have some major conservation initiatives, San Diego more so with their CRES (or whatever they are now calling it). I think generally that San Diego is still excellent, but fear for its decline. LA Zoo is in a renaissance. I would definitely rank LA above Omaha in exhibit quality, conservation work, and it at least has a comparable collection.

The Bronx Zoo and San Diego ARE excellent zoos. WCS is an excellent institution. I happen to like some other zoos better, but that is personal preference. I find the massive scale of both of these places less enjoyable than some of the more intimate zoos where you can watch the animals and enjoy the company of the people that you are with instead of freaking out about seeing all of the exhibits. Some of this is a function of mellowing with age.

As for ASDM, they have the advantage of being immersed in the middle of the ecosystem that they are presenting to the public, an advantage that very few other institutions have. I think arguably they do the best job of presenting animals and their ecosystems of any zoo in the world that I have seen, which is why I ranked them where I did. Disney does the same for African savanna species, as the Bronx does for the Congo rain forest.
 
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my 10 favorites

No certain order and why they are my favorites:
Columbus (moose)
Cincinnati(Jungle Trails)
Brookfield (cat house)
Dallas(elephants)
Ft Worth (musuem of living art)
St Louis (hoof stock)
Memphis (pandas)
Tyler, TX (great small zoo)
Bronz (Jungle World plus I love the history of the Bronx zoo)
San Antonio (whooping cranes)
 
Mine are:
1. Bronx Zoo (over 100 times)
2.rojer williams park zoo (1 time)- very nice african area and many species but small and personal at same time
3. philladelphia zoo (2 times)- great cat and primate colllections with average enclousures
4.maryland zoo (1 time)- nice collection of african animals and nice atmosphere
5. National zoo (3 times)- best asian elephant exhibit, asia trail, orangutan exhibit
6.Cape may zoo (1 time)- huge african enclousures, nice collection for a smaller zoo in the woods
7. central park zoo (like 20 times)- not one bad exhibit, best snow leopard exhibit, great location
8. franklin park zoo( 1 time)
9. Queens zoo- great aviary and nice farmyard
10. prospect park zoo- great australian animal and dingo exhibit, historical
 
mweb08 said:
While you're questioning things, I hope you don't mind me doing the same. Oakland and National over the Bronx and SD? LA in the same league as SD and better than Omaha? ASDM as the best pure zoo? You got some explaining to do. ;)
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I remember David saying that his favorite zoos were the ones that had no bad exhibits. Was it snowleopard's "My beef with the bronx" thread?
 
DavidBrown said:
I find Oakland to be a very good all-around zoo. They have a heavy emphasis on the welfare of their animals and promoting conservation. I find at that zoo that I find the people watching the animals more in depth, and seemingly enjoying themselves more than I do at most zoos.

I was very impressed with the National Zoo for the same reasons pretty much as Oakland. Their collections are not massive and the emphasis of the exhibits is animal welfare and visitor appreciation of the animals and ecosystems that their wild relatives live in.

I think in terms of collection that LA and San Diego are in the same league, and increasingly in exhibitry. They both have some major conservation initiatives, San Diego more so with their CRES (or whatever they are now calling it). I think generally that San Diego is still excellent, but fear for its decline. LA Zoo is in a renaissance. I would definitely rank LA above Omaha in exhibit quality, conservation work, and it at least has a comparable collection.

The Bronx Zoo and San Diego ARE excellent zoos. WCS is an excellent institution. I happen to like some other zoos better, but that is personal preference. I find the massive scale of both of these places less enjoyable than some of the more intimate zoos where you can watch the animals and enjoy the company of the people that you are with instead of freaking out about seeing all of the exhibits. Some of this is a function of mellowing with age.

As for ASDM, they have the advantage of being immersed in the middle of the ecosystem that they are presenting to the public, an advantage that very few other institutions have. I think arguably they do the best job of presenting animals and their ecosystems of any zoo in the world that I have seen, which is why I ranked them where I did. Disney does the same for African savanna species, as the Bronx does for the Congo rain forest.
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Well I disagree with many of these assessments as I think SD, Omaha, and the Bronx are leaps and bounds better than DC, which I've been to many times, plus Oakland and LA, which I just visited.

I also can't go along with the thought that less is more. A zoo shouldn't be penalized imo because there's a lot to see and it's a challenge to see it all in one day.
 
mweb08 said:
Well I disagree with many of these assessments as I think SD, Omaha, and the Bronx are leaps and bounds better than DC, which I've been to many times, plus Oakland and LA, which I just visited.

I also can't go along with the thought that less is more. A zoo shouldn't be penalized imo because there's a lot to see and it's a challenge to see it all in one day.
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My rankings are all just personal opinion. I shouldn't even be ranking zoos as I don't believe there is a "greatest" zoo. There are many great zoos and aquariums, and they all have strengths and weaknesses. People obviously have different criteria for ranking zoos. My primary criteria are whether a zoo is a good home for its residents and provides a meaningful wildlife conservation and enjoyment experience. Other people rank zoos by the size and diversity of their collection.

Although I love zoos and aquariums, they all pale in comparison to the actual wild species and ecosystems they are representative "ambassadors" of, but which most people will not get to see due to lack of time, money, or interest. I wish that everyone could experience wild giraffes and elephants and their ecosystems, but since they cannot I'm glad that zoos are there to play the role of ambassador.
 
These are zoos and aquariums that i like and have visited though you cannot avoid part of your life history in these matters.
1.- Leipzig zoo _ Germany
2.- Zoomat - Chiapas, Mexico
3- Zoologico do Sao Paulo, Brasil
4.- Tierpark- Berlin, Germany
5.- Shedd Aquarium - Chicago, USA
6 - Zoologico de Chapultepec , Mexico City
7 - Brookfield zoo, Chicago, USA
8- Lincioln Park zoo, Chicago, USA
9- Africam Safari, Mexico
10 Toronto zoo, canada
 
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