Thoughts on Farm Exhibits?
- Thread starter HTZ
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Prochilodus246
Well-Known Member
I am one for skipping the Farmyard areas of zoos. I sometimes take an interest or a look around if they have interesting breeds represented rather than the standard African pygmy goats and whether there are some interesting wild species tucked away inside a barn for example.
I usually skip farm sections as I'm not great with noise and crowds. Tho I see their value, I think they'd benefit from showcasing more rare heritage breeds endemic of the region.
I know Queens Zoo has the mulefoot hog. I'd love to see the WCS do this across all 4 of their children's zoos
I know Queens Zoo has the mulefoot hog. I'd love to see the WCS do this across all 4 of their children's zoos
For zoo nerds, farm exhibits are generally a waste of time. For families with young children, farm exhibits are fantastic. That's it in a nutshell.
I remember visiting Sedgwick County Zoo (USA) back in 2010 and at that time they had THREE farm areas all together in a row. It was quite remarkable to see and here are two photos of each of the farm zones.
American Farm:
Asian Farm:
African Farm:
I remember visiting Sedgwick County Zoo (USA) back in 2010 and at that time they had THREE farm areas all together in a row. It was quite remarkable to see and here are two photos of each of the farm zones.
American Farm:
Asian Farm:
African Farm:
Interesting to see how many of you, consciously or not, equate farm animals with kid's.
On the topic of farm exhibits in Zoos, in my opinion, nobody can beat the Tierpark Nordhorn in Germany. Not only is the Vechthof, a beautifull very accurat reconstruction of a old local farming estate, it is filled with endangered local breeds, with a extrem amount of education about farming, the breeds themselef and the historical life of farmers. But also how the Zoo uses these old breeds to rewild areas in nature reserves. It also uses the old breeds themself as food,which can be locally bought in the zoo. I knew nothing besides the vulture ibex aviary, but this farm area was a suprising highlight for me.
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Dr. Loxodonta
Well-Known Member
I agree with @elefante, I see farm area/exhibits as generally more childish. If the farm area, let’s say, is about rarer domestic breeds then I may bother to swing past to see that breed. If on the other hand it is just your typical pygmy goats and pigs ect, then I would not bother. On the other hand, it is important for children to see not only wild but also domestic species to learn about the world’s working/domesticated animals. Overall, I tend to miss out farm exhibits as they generally are not worth the time.
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Lafone
Well-Known Member
That sounds great and for me would be an ideal farm exhibit - thanks for sharing that one.
Lafone
Well-Known Member
For zoo nerds, farm exhibits are generally a waste of time. For families with young children, farm exhibits are fantastic. That's it in a nutshell.
I remember visiting Sedgwick County Zoo (USA) back in 2010 and at that time they had THREE farm areas all together in a row. It was quite remarkable to see and here are two photos of each of the farm zones.
American Farm:
Asian Farm:
African Farm:
I really like this idea of farms from different places in one that’s clever and engaging I’d definitely spend time in the farm area that had that.
Aardwolf
Well-Known Member
I’m not normally too interested in farm areas - though I always at least stroll though them, and certainly understand and appreciate their appeal - but SC is just an exceptionally well done one. The only thing I would have tweaked was incorporating a South American/New World farm with llama, guinea pig, turkey, and Muscovy duck - the concept of the separate domestication of species in the Americas is a fascinating one! I also think it would be fun to try to educate visitors as to why some species were successfully domesticated whereas others were not
Lafone
Well-Known Member
I agree that’s really interesting and between that and the rare breed working farm idea those are super engaging ways to show domesticated species.
Dr. Loxodonta
Well-Known Member
I always enjoy seeing and being educated by traditional rare breeds, for instance, watching a Shire horse and learning how endangered they are as a breed is critically important to spread the message as well and enjoyable being able to see and feel the animal.
Kalaw
Well-Known Member
Not normally the biggest fan of farm-type exhibits (although I agree that they are of tremendous educational significance) but I do enjoy seeing rare and unusual breeds of more common farm animals, and when zoos incorporate this into their domestic zones it can be amusing.
For example, Noah's Ark Zoo Farm in Wraxall, England have British White Cattle, Highland Cattle, Tamworth Pigs and, the real highlight for me, both Suffolk Punch and Shire Horses, two of the biggest and most remarkable horse breeds. In warmer months, they rotate between a series of lovely, grassy paddocks in the centre of the zoo for grazing, as well as a small hidden paddock behind the lions and elephants, which is where I saw the Tamworths on my visit. Another favourite of mine is the Mangalica Pigs, who arrived at London Zoo last year and gave me good enough reason to pay attention to 'Animal Adventure' (the zoo's domestics zone) on all of my visits. It is lovely to see that, however much we are used to seeing domestics, they can still be unique and fascinating at times - not only does it provide us zoo enthusiasts some entertainment, but it is also an interesting message for younger visitors who may, for example, struggle to think of cattle beyond the classic black-and-white Friesians whose design appears on milk bottles.
I will say, however, that if I am visiting a very large zoo and fear that I may not have time to see its entirety, the farm will be the first thing that I nominate to skip. This was what happened on my visit to Zurich (although I did have time to quickly pace through the farm, getting a sense of its design for the sake of completeness) and on most of my visits to Whipsnade.
For example, Noah's Ark Zoo Farm in Wraxall, England have British White Cattle, Highland Cattle, Tamworth Pigs and, the real highlight for me, both Suffolk Punch and Shire Horses, two of the biggest and most remarkable horse breeds. In warmer months, they rotate between a series of lovely, grassy paddocks in the centre of the zoo for grazing, as well as a small hidden paddock behind the lions and elephants, which is where I saw the Tamworths on my visit. Another favourite of mine is the Mangalica Pigs, who arrived at London Zoo last year and gave me good enough reason to pay attention to 'Animal Adventure' (the zoo's domestics zone) on all of my visits. It is lovely to see that, however much we are used to seeing domestics, they can still be unique and fascinating at times - not only does it provide us zoo enthusiasts some entertainment, but it is also an interesting message for younger visitors who may, for example, struggle to think of cattle beyond the classic black-and-white Friesians whose design appears on milk bottles.
I will say, however, that if I am visiting a very large zoo and fear that I may not have time to see its entirety, the farm will be the first thing that I nominate to skip. This was what happened on my visit to Zurich (although I did have time to quickly pace through the farm, getting a sense of its design for the sake of completeness) and on most of my visits to Whipsnade.
Is that a live cow?
I thought it was a statue or facsimile at first before zooming in to see individual hairs and fur qualities...
T
Yes, it is a real cow. They do live demonstartion with animals (even though I only saw work with horses when I was there). I found another image of the same cow horses).
FrederickA
Active Member
The farm exhibit in my local zoo in California has always been an excellent draw for guest as they can interact with chickens, goats and sometimes sheep's and once a cow and the signs around it show the importance of animals and produce that California has in feeding the world and I've always liked getting to pet them and I think this is often a big factor as to why so many schools come to the zoo, the parking usually pours out into the street by 12 and why people vote to take small percentage of their tax money to help the zoo pay for expansions and animal care.
The_Leopard_Seal
Well-Known Member
I do agree with domesticated animals being used to represent for extinct relatives (such as cattle to represent aurochs) and with the preservation of rare breeds. I also think domesticated animals can be great for educational purposes. But it is also worth pointing out that domesticated species can be very bad for conservation. Horses, dogs, cats and pigs are all widespread invasive species. I think it is irresponsible for any zoo to have free-ranging cats on it's property.
I understand the value a zoo can derive from keeping farm/domestic species, but personally I find them uninteresting and will usually skip over them.
I like farm exhibits for themselves. I really enjoy seeing local / heritage breeds. For years I’ve thought the Alaska Zoo has missed an opportunity to highlight high latitude/high altitude domestic breeds/species. I think an exhibit highlighting the wild ancestors of domestic species would be neat. I can sometimes see using domestic animals as outright proxies for wild/extinct counterparts (for example Bactrian Camels, Yaks, Water Buffalo, and Reindeer). And in zoos nowadays…if you want to pump up your ungulate numbers…seems that you need to count the domestics.