Top Three!

Mammals: Eastern lowland gorilla (Antwerp), Amazon river dolphin (Duisburg), aye aye (London)
Birds: Philipine monkey-eating eagle (Planckendael), grey-necked rockfowl (Bronx), sicklebilled vanga (Walsrode)
Reptiles: Gharial (Prague), tuatara (Berlin), Jameson mamba,
Amphibians: Japanese giant salamander (Duisburg), Montserrat mountain chicken (Antwerp), Luristan newt (Antwerp)
Inverts: giant spider crab
Fish: common shovelnose ray,
Zoos: Bronx, Leipzig, Berlin
Exhibits: Congo Gorilla Forest (Bronx), Burgers' Desert (Burgers), Masoala rainforest (Zurich)
Guilty Pleasure: all curassow, all guenons, all small cats
Life ticks: black grouse (High Fenns Belgium), wolf (Georgia, Caucasus),
Buildings: Antelopehouse (Berlin Zoo), World of birds (Bronx), Egyptian temple (Antwerp)
 
My choices are all animals I have seen and aren't chosen based on rarity ( mainly anyway)

Mammals

Polar Bear, Snow Leopard, Okapi

( others considered were Malayan Tapir, Indian Rhino, Common Hippo, Ratel, Golden Cat, Striped hyaena)

The others were much harder:

Birds
Cassowary, Rockhopper Penguin, Ground Hornbill

Reptiles
Tuatara, Gharial, American Alligator

Amphibians
Giant Salamander

Fish
Arapaima, Puffer Fish, Electric Eel

Invertebrates

Don't really pay much attention to them but Blue Ringed Octopus at Weymouth Sealife a few years ago

Exhibits
Polar bear - Yorkshire Wildlife Park
Brown Bear - Whipsnade
Common Hippo - Zoo Berlin

Zoos
Tierpark Berlin, Zoo Berlin, Chester

Best life ticks
Fanaloka, Little Penguin, Hecks Macaque, Black footed cat

Most people on here will have seen those, but may be a while before anyone sees them onshow in a European zoo again
 
Mammals: Numbat, Spotted Cuscus and Attenbrough's Long-Beaked Echidna.
Birds: Kagu, Kakapo and Night Parrot.
Reptiles: Thorny Devil, Tentacled Snake and Saltwater Crocodile.
Amphibians: Holy Crucifix Toad, Southern Corroberre Frog and Northern Corroboree Frog.
Fish: Long-Nosed Hawkfish, Spotted Eagle Ray and Epaulette Sharks.
Invertebrates: Lava Snail, Giant Scholopendra and Mantis Shrimp.
Zoos: David Fleay Wildlife Park, Singapore Night Safari and Singapore River Safari.
Proudest Life Ticks: Platypus, Leopard Seal and Crescent Nailtail Wallaby.
Guilty Pleasures: Ringtail Lemurs, Tigers and Red-Necked Wallabies.
 
Mammal: Flat headed cat Risso's dolphin Calabar angwantibo
Bird: Sulu hornbill Secretary bird Violet-backed starling
Reptile: Mugger crocodile Green basilisk Geometric tortoise
Amphibian: Enstina newt Purple frog Whipping frog
Fish: Frilled shark Bicolor angelfish Gurnard lionfish
Zoos: Omaha Minnesota Cincinnati
Exhibits: Dolphin dome, International orangutan center Kingdoms of the night
Guilty pleasure animals: King penguin Sumatran tiger Chinese crocodile lizard
 
Only animals / exhibits / zoos I've seen:

Mammal species (not based on rarity - for those see lifeticks): Giant panda; Polar bear; Snow leopard

Bird species: Harpy eagle; Shoebill; Bearded vulture

Reptile species: Salt water crocodile; Komodo dragon; Gharial

Fish (all wildlife): Whale shark, Manta ray, Hammerhead sharks

Zoos: Pairi Daiza, San Diego (Zoo & Safari Park), Berlin (Zoo and Tierpark)

Exhibits: African and Asian plains (San Diego Zoo Safari Park); Gondwanaland (Leipzig); The Last Frontier (Pairi Daiza)

Guilty pleasure animals: Meerkats, Ring Tailed Lemurs, Giant Pandas

Proudest Lifeticks: Sumatran Rhino (San Diego Zoo), Northern White Rhino (San Diego Zoo Safari Park), Platypus (Sydney)
 
All choices are based on zoos, experiences and animals I've seen in person
Mammal species: Southern white rhinoceros, Eastern black rhinoceros, Indian rhinoceros (I have a thing for rhinos)
Bird species: Great blue turaco, Northern gannet, Phillipine duck
Reptile species: Zoutpansberg girdled lizard, William's dwarf gecko, Mangrove snake
Amphibian Species: Red-eyed tree frog, Lake Pátzcuaro salamander, Kaiser's spotted newt
Invertebrates: Partula snails, Phryganistria heusii yentuensis, Bullseye pistol shrimp (Alpheus soror)
Fish: Scalloped hammerhead shark, Sandtiger shark, Pyramid butterflyfish
Zoos: Burgers' Zoo, Rotterdam Zoo, Avifauna
Exhibits: Burgers' Desert (Burgers' Zoo), Pandasia (Ouwehands Dierenpark), Snavelrijk (Dierenpark Amersfoort)
Guilty pleasure animals: Pygmy goats (domestics in general), Gila monster, Plains zebras
Proudest Lifeticks: Baby the river dolphin, Spotted cuscus, Sandtiger shark
 
pachyderm pro said:
Mammals: Malayin Tapir, White-bellied Pangolin, Tayra
Birds: Rhinoceros Hornbill, Marabou Stork, Roseate Spoonbill
Reptiles: Orinoco Crocodile, Komodo Dragon, Grand Canyon Blue Iguana
Amphibians: Japanese Giant Salamander, Axolotl, Togo Slippery Frog
Invertebrates: Pacific Octopus, Upside Down Jellyfish, Moray Eel
Fish: Whale Shark, Lion Fish, Japanese Catfish
Favorite Zoos: San Diego, Singapore, Brookfield
Favorite Exhibits: Can't Decide
Guilty Pleasures: Elephants, Giant Pandas, Kinkajou
Proudest Life Ticks: Northern White Rhino, Puerto-Rican Parrot, White-Bellied Pangolin
Click to expand...

You have a few species on here that are probably in my top 10 species to see in their respective groups! Are the slippery frogs on-exhibit at Brookfield now?

jayjds2 said:
They are really common in accredited zoos in the states, perhaps almost as common as meerkats. They can be found in just about every reptile house or similar exhibit. Regardless, I really enjoy them.
Click to expand...

Same here, I imagine the main difference is that they're likely Extinct in the Wild so an actual endangered species.

~Thylo
 
Chlidonias said:
Just species which I have personally seen. I'm guessing the intent was really for zoo animals, but I'll do both captive and wild to cover my bases and give me twice as many answers.


Mammal species (captive): Long-beaked Echidna at Taronga Zoo; Sunda Pangolin at Singapore Night Safari; Beluga at Beijing Aquarium

Mammal species (wild): Red Panda in China; Yunnan Snub-nosed Monkey in China; Tibetan Wolf in India

Bird species (captive): Australian Owlet-nightjar at Moonlit Sanctuary; Picathartes at Frankfurt Zoo; Blue-rumped Parrot at Dusit Zoo

Bird species (wild): Crested Ibis in China; Rock Wren in New Zealand; Ibisbill in India

Reptile species (captive): Moloch at the Melbourne Museum; Viper Boa at Dusit Zoo; Phoboscincus at Noumea Zoo

Reptile species (wild): Gharial in India; King Cobra in Malaysia (almost stood on that one); Komodo Dragon

Amphibian Species (captive): Chinese Giant Salamander at Singapore River Safari; Southern Corroboree Frog at Melbourne Zoo; Budgett's Frog at Shanghai Natural Wild Insect Kingdom

Amphibian Species (wild): Oriental Fire-bellied Toad in South Korea; White-spotted Burrowing Frog in Australia; Spotted Stream Frog in Borneo

Invertebrates (captive): Cone Shells at the Shanghai Aquarium; Nautilus at the Noumea Aquarium; Giant Sea Spiders at the International Antarctic Centre in New Zealand

Invertebrates (wild): Trilobite Larva in various parts of Malaysia; Peripatus in New Zealand; Kinabalu Giant Leech in Borneo

Fish (captive): Kaluga Sturgeon at the Vladivostok Aquarium; Ornate Cowfish at Melbourne Aquarium; NZ Hagfish at Southern Encounter Aquarium in New Zealand

Fish (wild): Manta Rays off Komodo; Mudskippers (everywhere); Archerfish in Singapore

Zoos: Auckland Zoo; Jurong Bird Park; Healesville Sanctuary

Exhibits: Singapore Night Safari's walk-through flying squirrel "aviary"; Singapore River Safari's manatee aquarium; Frankfurt Zoo's Grzimek House

Guilty pleasure animals: I don't really have this

Proudest Lifeticks (captive): I'm not sure I'm "proud" of being able to see any captive animal because they're just sitting there waiting to be seen, but I guess I'll say Sumatran Rhinoceros at Lok Kawi; Picathartes at Frankfurt Zoo (the last captive individual); and Sumba Hornbill at Bali Bird Park

Proudest Lifeticks (wild): Flores Giant Rat (it took two trips to Flores to get that one); Emperor Penguin (never thought I'd have that on my life-list); Cloven-feathered Dove (just because I'd always wanted to see one)
Click to expand...
Reading this back, I'm going to make a few small changes.

Mammal species (captive): Long-beaked Echidna at Taronga Zoo; Sunda Pangolin at Singapore Night Safari; Beluga at Beijing Aquarium
Here I'm going to take out Sunda Pangolin because I have recently seen that in the wild (so I'm moving it to the category below). Thinking of cool mammals I've seen to replace it, I considered Marbled Cat at Taiping Zoo but that's just a cat. I settled on Pigmy Hog at the Nameri Breeding Centre in Assam because probably even fewer Zoochatters have seen one of those than have seen a Marbled Cat.

Mammal species (wild): Red Panda in China; Yunnan Snub-nosed Monkey in China; Tibetan Wolf in India
I need to place Sunda Pangolin in this category (seen in Singapore a couple of months ago). I can't take out Red Panda because that is just a species which is amazing to have seen. If I went back in time and said to child-me "you will go see Red Pandas in the wild", child-me would have replied "watchoo talkin' about Willis?" (because that's how we talked back then). And Tibetan Wolf was one of the most memorable mammal sightings I've had. So the Yunnan Snub-nosed Monkey has to get shuffled out to make room for the pangolin.

Bird species (captive): Australian Owlet-nightjar at Moonlit Sanctuary; Picathartes at Frankfurt Zoo; Blue-rumped Parrot at Dusit Zoo
Removing Blue-rumped Parrot because I've seen it in a few places now, and replacing it with Philippine Eagle at Jurong Bird Park.

Bird species (wild): Crested Ibis in China; Rock Wren in New Zealand; Ibisbill in India
Here I decided Indian Skimmer was too cool not to include... not sure which of the above three to remove though. Crested Ibis was supposed to be extinct by the time I grew up but it isn't. Rock Wren is my favourite NZ bird. Ibisbill is just so difficult to see. Closing my eyes and stabbing at the screen, Rock Wren gets removed.
 
I had to spend a long time on this but I think I've settled on my answers:

Top Three Mammals: Sumatran Rhinoceros, pangolin, Amazon River Dolphin
Top Three Birds: California Condor, Hawai'i 'Amakihi, Rufous-Fronted Laughingthrush
Top Three Reptiles: Tuatara, Bornean Earless Monitor, Arakan Forest Turtle
Top Three Amphibians: Kihansi Spray Toad, Fleischmann's Glass Frog, Puerto Rican Crested Toad
Top Three Invertebrates: Lord Howe Stick Insect, Bigfin Reef Squid, any of the nine Partula snails I've seen
Top Three Fishes: Whale Shark, Scalloped Hammerhead, either of the two Manta I've seen
Top Three Major Zoos: Bronx Zoo, Chester Zoo, Prague Zoo
Top Three Minor Zoos: Highland Wildlife Park, Tennessee Aquarium, Nashville Zoo
Top Three Exhibits: Afrykarium (Wroclaw Zoo), Desert Dome (Omaha), Ocean Voyager (Georgia Aquarium)
Guilty Pleasure Animals*: African Bush Elephant, Barred Owl, American Alligator

*I considered typical ABC zoo animals for this.

~Thylo
 
Don't see how TN Aquarium is "minor."
Top Three Mammals: Royal antelope, Soemmerring's gazelle, Black duiker
Top Three Birds: Golden-headed quetzal, Harpy eagle, Kagu
Top Three Reptiles: New Guinea crocodile, Tuatara, Southeastern five-lined skink
Top Three Invertebrates- Black widow, Golden orb weaver, Blue morpho
Top Three Fishes: Whale shark, Lemon shark, Manta ray
Top Three Major Zoos: Bronx Zoo, Columbus Zoo, St. Louis Zoo
Top Three Minor Zoos: NC Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores, Toledo Zoo, Virginia Zoo
Top Three Exhibits: World of Birds, North America at Columbus Zoo, St. Louis's herpetarium.
Guilty Pleasure: Meerkat, Snowy owl, Asian elephant
 
Mammals: Aardvark, Okapi, Western lowland gorilla
Birds: King vulture, Shoebill, Southern cassowary
Reptiles: Indian gharial, King cobra, Komodo dragon
Amphibians: Don't really have any except maybe glass frog
Invertebrates: Chambered nautilus, Giant pacific octopus, Japanese spider crab
Fishes: Alligator gar, Great white shark, Ocean sunfish,
Aquariums/Zoos: Monterey Bay Aquarium; San Diego Zoo; Sacramento Zoo (I'm very bias)
Exhibits: Africa Rocks (San Diego Zoo); Okapi Forest (Sacramento Zoo); Open Ocean (Monterey Bay Aquarium)
Guilty pleasure animals: Elephants, Giraffes, Gorillas
Proudest Lifeticks: Flapjack octopus, Great white shark; Okapi (I just like them a lot)
 
Last edited:
I think I need to post an update for me, given my first time posting in this thread was quite a few years ago and my views have changed a substantial amount!

Top Three Mammals: Bonobo, Babirusa, Aye-aye
Top Three Birds: Shoebill, Pesquet's parrot, Javan green magpie
Top Three Reptiles: Tuatara, Ploughshare tortoise, Gharial
Top Three Amphibians: Chinese giant salamander, Titicaca water frog, Cameroon slippery frog
Top Three Invertebrates: Regal jumping spider, Lord Howe Island stick insect, Peacock mantis shrimp
Top Three Fishes: Scalloped hammerhead shark, Splitfin flashlightfish, Electric eel
Top Three Major Zoos: Chester Zoo, Prague Zoo, Burgers' Zoo
Top Three Minor Zoos: Hamerton Zoo, Zie-ZOO, Walsrode Weltvogelpark
Top Three Exhibits: Indonesian Pavilion (Prague Zoo), Mangrove (Burgers' Zoo), Oceanium (Blijdorp)
Guilty Pleasure Animals: Chimpanzee, Budgerigar, Royal python
 
Difficult choices, species here are often not the rarest, but ones I am happiest of/thought I would never see them.

Mammal species (captive): Proboscis monkey (Apenheul & Singapore), Northern white rhino (Ol Pejeta), Saiga (Cologne)

Mammal species (wild): Kipunji (Tanzania), Sunda pangolin (Singapore), Indri (Madagascar)

Bird species (captive): Spix' macaw (Pairi Daiza & Jurong), Shoebill (Pairi Daiza, Wuppertal, Frankfurt, Walsrode, Zuerich, Prague, Jurong), Capuchin bird (Zlin, Walsrode, Veldhoven)

Bird species (wild): Sickle-billed vanga (Madagascar), Torrent duck (Chile), Wallcreeper (Bulgaria)

Reptile species (captive): Mangshan pit viper (Lausanne & Prague), Indian gharial (Prague, Singapore & Berlin), Perentie (Zurich)

Reptile species (wild): King cobra (Singapore), Uroplatus sikorae (Madagascar), Tuatara (New Zealand)

Amphibian Species: Chinese/Japanese giant salamander (many places), Great crested salamander (Netherlands, completing the set of all 21 wild terrestrial herp species in the NL), Peacock tree frog (Tanzania)

Invertebrates: Gulella spec. (Madagascar), Violet copper (Germany), Madagascar moon moth (Madagascar)

Fish (captive): Atlantic hagfish (Two Oceans Aquarium), Ocean sunfish (Lisbon), Manta ray (SEA Singapore)

Fish (wild): Sevengill shark (New Zealand), European salmon (Netherlands), Moray eel spec. (Croatia)

Zoos: Zoo Zurich, Burgers' Zoo, Tiergarten Schonbrunn

Minor zoos: Zoo Helsinki, Tierpark Bern, Alpenzoo Innsbruck

Exhibits: Bird house in Vienna, Coral reef tank Burgers' Zoo & Masoala hall Zurich

Guilty pleasure animals: Meerkat!

It feels unfair to leave Elephant seals, 3 Kiwi species, Rock wren, Mountain nyala, Euopean souslik and so many others of the list, so tomorrow this list would probably look different...
 
Part 2! Mammal: Gray mouse lemur-Zebra duiker-Black-footed Cat
Bird: Lesser bird-of-paradise-Northern bald ibis-Temmick's tragopan
Reptile- Samar cobra-Saltwater crocodile-Cave-dwelling rat snake
Amphibian: Emperor newt-African clawed frog-Indian bullfrog
Fish-Gold-spotted snake eel-Arapaima-Tripodfish
Invertebrate: Skeleton shrimp-Lesser octopus- Venus's girdle
Guilty pleasure animals: Meerkat-Queen angelfish-American bullfrog
 
Mammal species:
- Killer whale (cetaceans in general)
- Clouded leopard
- Orang-utan (all species)

Bird species:
- Yellow-eyed penguin (penguins in general)
- Cassowary
- Rhinoceros hornbill

Reptile species:
- Gharial (crocodilians in general)
- Heloderma (all species and subspecies)
- Tuatara

Amphibians:
- Giant salamanders (all species and subspecies)
- Phyllomedusa (all species and subspecies)
- Ambystoma (all species and subspecies)

Invertebrates:
- Pacific giant octopus
- Emperor scorpion
- Velvet worms (all species and subspecies)

Fish:
- Sturgeons (all species and subspecies)
- Scalloped hammerhead shark
- Sawfish (all species and subspecies)

Zoos:
- Prague Zoo
- Bronx Zoo
- Whipsnade Zoo

Exhibits:
- Congo Gorilla Forest (Bronx Zoo)
- La Selva (Faunia)
- Feline and Reptile Pavilion (Prague Zoo)

Guilty pleasure animals:
- Ring-tailed lemur
- Red-necked wallaby
- Asian small clawed otter

Proudest Lifeticks:
- Sunda pangolin (Singapore Night Safari)
- Leopard seal (Taronga Zoo)
- Emperor penguin (Wellington Zoo, The Nest)
 
The list is only about animals held in captivity that I have seen myself

Mammal species:
- Phillips dik-dik
- Black and rufous elephant shrew
- Aardvark

Bird species:
- Flame bowerbird
- Andean flamingo
- Lear's macaw

Reptile species:
- Geoemyda spengleri
- Agkistrodon contortrix
- Phelsuma quadriocellata

Amphibians:
- Ameerega bilinguis
- Andrias davidianus
- Pipa pipa

Invertebrates:
- Cambarellus patzcuarensis
- Phyllorhiza punctata
- Acromyrmex coronatus

Fish:
- Austrolebias nigripinnis
- Diodon hystrix
- Doryichthys martensii

Zoos:
- Al Wabra Wildlife Preservation
- Cabárceno Natural Park
- Beekse Bergen

Exhibits:
- Burgers Bush (Burgers Zoo)
- Monsoon forest (Chester Zoo)
- La Réserve des Hippopotames (Beauval zoo)

Guilty pleasure animals:
- Pygmy marmoset
- Flamingo
- Asian small clawed otter

Proudest Lifeticks:
- Giant ibis
- Beira
- Spix macaw
 
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