Don't forget that North America also includes the Caribbean Islands
and Central America down to Panama.
and Central America down to Panama.
What zoo has the best display/# species of North American animals?
- Thread starter Daktari JG
- Start date
Shedd Aquarium has the most species in the world with approximately 1500 species.
San Diego Zoo has probably the best collection of animals but not the best exhibits.
San Diego Zoo has probably the best collection of animals but not the best exhibits.
I think that this thread is only meant for North American animals, so having the most amount of total species doesn’t necessarily mean they have the most North American animals. San Diego in particular isn’t very strong in North American animals, lots of zoos have larger North American collections.
Yup, I misread the title COMPLETELY. I thought he was asking for the best collection of animals in a North American Zoo.
I would say the North Carolina Zoo (my local zoo but let me explain). They have about 80-100 acres devoted to North American species. This is split into 5 different thematic zones. All of the exhibits are large for their inhabitants, with one of nations best polar bear exhibits, a 11 acre bison/elk paddoxk, all 3 species of bear, a massive alligator exhibit and a 25 foot tall puffin display. This is all set in an actual forest, with the swamp area being an actual swamp.
The larger species included are:
Also the Desert building was formally North American themed. Now it is more generalist, yet still has vampire bat, roadrunner, burrowing owl, ocelot, and well many other native species (plenty of snakes).
Edit: Here is the zoos species list
http://nczoo.org/Documents/AnimalListing.pdf
The larger species included are:
- Bison
- American elk
- Cougar
- Black bear
- Brown bear
- Polar bear
- Arctic fox
- Red wolf
- American alligator
- Harbor seal
- California sea lion
- Hellbender
- Alligator snapping turtle
- River otter
- Bobcat
Also the Desert building was formally North American themed. Now it is more generalist, yet still has vampire bat, roadrunner, burrowing owl, ocelot, and well many other native species (plenty of snakes).
Edit: Here is the zoos species list
http://nczoo.org/Documents/AnimalListing.pdf
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I thought NC would be a contender, as well as Tuscon Sonora Desert Museum.
Anybody else?
Anybody else?
Columbus has a nice North American section as well as a manatee tank. Oklahoma city zoo has Oklahoma trails section. Most of the North American sections at zoos are simply the native species that are found in the state in which the zoo exists (Miami, Oklahoma City, Minnesota, Sedgwick County, Phoenix...). Woodland Park and Oregon have nice sections, yet again its species in that region, with a focus on larger animals.
Also many of the largest zoos in country, such as San Diego, Bronx, Omaha and St. Louis do not have many North American species at all. Their are some nice smaller zoos with good North American collections. ZooAmerica is pretty nice and has some rarer species. Queens Zoo does not have to much, but again has good quality.
This has made me think, has anyone ever made a thread about which zoo in the U.S. has the best collection for each continent? That might be a cool idea.
I'd be very interested in hearing which one wins for European species!
I haven't been to too many major zoos with good Nearctic variety - Atlanta has a few birds (including greater roadrunner) and an extension of the reptile house devoted to native Georgian herps (plus a few taxa in the main building like alligator snapper), but that's it. North Carolina's is fantastic, though. Exhibit quality is all around superb, and sans maybe a few small mammals, coyote (but not many zoos really exhibit those), caprines, moose and bald eagles, most of the more iconic species are present.
Northwest Trek looks amazing and has an exclusively North American collection, but most if not all are mammals.
Well I imagine Europe would not be a hard category to win, given how few European species are kept commonly in the US. Thinking of species at zoos I have been to, and basically its just the capercaille exhibit in World of Birds at the Bronx Zoo that pops into my mind. So basically can't think of any exhibits.
Given the NC Zoo's warmer months, moose would likely not succeed at the zoo. The zoo has bald eagles behind the scenes and were previously on display, yet the exhibit was way to small for them.
Fellow NC native here. I second nczoofan's nomination; with half of the zoo dedicated to North America, the NC Zoo's collection of NA wildlife is very expansive. The exhibits, especially the Prairie and Cypress Swamp, are all excellent. And they just opened a new Hellbender exhibit as well.
While their Desert Dome has seen a few African species (Sand Cat, Pancake Tortoise, Rock Hyrax, Cape Porcupine, White-Headed Buffalo Weaver) and Australian species (Laughing Kookaburra, Spiny-tailed Monitor, Blue-tongued Skink, Frill-necked Lizard) mixed in, its collection is still majority NA.
Also, Cypress Swamp previously has (or had) Malayan Horned Frog (Xenophrys aceras). I think they replaced them, along with Amphibian Alert, with a Sandhills display.
Edit: Need to change that last part for clarity.
While their Desert Dome has seen a few African species (Sand Cat, Pancake Tortoise, Rock Hyrax, Cape Porcupine, White-Headed Buffalo Weaver) and Australian species (Laughing Kookaburra, Spiny-tailed Monitor, Blue-tongued Skink, Frill-necked Lizard) mixed in, its collection is still majority NA.
Also, Cypress Swamp previously has (or had) Malayan Horned Frog (Xenophrys aceras). I think they replaced them, along with Amphibian Alert, with a Sandhills display.
Edit: Need to change that last part for clarity.
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I have heard a lot of good things about North Carolina and their collection. Even though it is limited to two continents, I have heard both areas are some of the best in the country.
Cheyenne Mountain Zoo has a pretty decent NA collection. Species include moose, Mexican grey wolves, mountain lions, NA porcupine, lynx, NA river otters, bald eagles, grizzly bears in the Rocky Mountain Wild section where all the exhibits are basically fenced off mountain terrain. American beaver, American kestrel, Rocky Mountain goat, black-footed ferret, Wyoming toad and others are housed elsewhere around the zoo. All together, it has the best NA collection in the state. Only really missing bison and elk.
Cheyenne Mountain Zoo has a pretty decent NA collection. Species include moose, Mexican grey wolves, mountain lions, NA porcupine, lynx, NA river otters, bald eagles, grizzly bears in the Rocky Mountain Wild section where all the exhibits are basically fenced off mountain terrain. American beaver, American kestrel, Rocky Mountain goat, black-footed ferret, Wyoming toad and others are housed elsewhere around the zoo. All together, it has the best NA collection in the state. Only really missing bison and elk.
The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum has some top-notch exhibitry but it's actualyl pretty limited species-wise with there being a lot more signed than are actually present and, as @nczoofan mentioned, it's pretty specific to just the Sonoran Desert.
I made a species list here which should be pretty complete except for Merriam's Wild Turkey, which I forgot were present behind the scenes.
~Thylo
Minnesota Zoo is a good candidate. It specializes in cold weather animals, and therefore has an extensive collection. Here is list of NA species at MN Zoo (not that there are bond to be various fish and invert species missing):
House Sparrow*, Burmese Python*, Mandarin Duck*, White-Cheeked Pintail, Lesser Scaup, West Indian Whistling Duck, Hooded Merganser, Black-Necked Stilt, Roseate Spoonbill, Scarlet Ibis, Keel-Billed Toucan, Crested Oropendola, Venezuelan Troupial*, Red-Rumped Agouti*, Blanding's Turtle, Painted Turtle, Common Map Turtle, False Map Turtle, Spiny Softshell Turtle, Smooth Softshell Turtle, Western Hognose, American Toad, American Bullfrog, Mudpuppy, Northern Leopard Frog, American Beaver, Lake Sturgeon, Bluegill, Lake Sturgeon, Yellow Perch, Northern Pike, Black Crappie, North American River Otter, Great Horned Owl, North American Porcupine, Fisher, Coyote, Gray Wolf, Wolverine, American Black Bear, Ruffed Grouse, Pileated Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Northern Cardinal, Cedar Waxwing, Yellow-Rumped Warbler, Mourning Dove, American Robin, Rose-Breasted Grosbeak, Bald Eagle, Bobcat, Canada Lynx, Cougar, Snowy Owl, Red-Tailed Hawk, Fatmucket, Mucket, Higgin's Eye Pearly Mussel, Grizzly Bear, Rainbow Trout, Wild Boar*, American Bison, Pronghorn, Black-Tailed Prairie Dog, Musk Ox, Caribou, Moose
*= Present in North American only as introduced populations
House Sparrow*, Burmese Python*, Mandarin Duck*, White-Cheeked Pintail, Lesser Scaup, West Indian Whistling Duck, Hooded Merganser, Black-Necked Stilt, Roseate Spoonbill, Scarlet Ibis, Keel-Billed Toucan, Crested Oropendola, Venezuelan Troupial*, Red-Rumped Agouti*, Blanding's Turtle, Painted Turtle, Common Map Turtle, False Map Turtle, Spiny Softshell Turtle, Smooth Softshell Turtle, Western Hognose, American Toad, American Bullfrog, Mudpuppy, Northern Leopard Frog, American Beaver, Lake Sturgeon, Bluegill, Lake Sturgeon, Yellow Perch, Northern Pike, Black Crappie, North American River Otter, Great Horned Owl, North American Porcupine, Fisher, Coyote, Gray Wolf, Wolverine, American Black Bear, Ruffed Grouse, Pileated Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Northern Cardinal, Cedar Waxwing, Yellow-Rumped Warbler, Mourning Dove, American Robin, Rose-Breasted Grosbeak, Bald Eagle, Bobcat, Canada Lynx, Cougar, Snowy Owl, Red-Tailed Hawk, Fatmucket, Mucket, Higgin's Eye Pearly Mussel, Grizzly Bear, Rainbow Trout, Wild Boar*, American Bison, Pronghorn, Black-Tailed Prairie Dog, Musk Ox, Caribou, Moose
*= Present in North American only as introduced populations
Knowing i'm biased to the NC Zoo, as I visit so much. So I have been trying to find another zoo that has North American exhibits covering more than just a singular state or ecosystem, but tbh its hard. Plenty of zoos have great exhibits covering where they exist, ASDM, Oklahoma City, Miami, Minnesota and more. Yet I can't think of any that cover all or most of north america (mainly canada, US and Northern Mexico; as central america is generally lumped into South America at zoos). Also many zoos seem to miss the smaller animals of North America (Woodland Park for example).
Also let me say the NC Zoo is pretty specific to the state of North Carolina (especially in streamside), yet still includes other megafauna from the continent, as well as a variety of Southwestern desert wildlife.
Detroit has a decent selection of North American species
Species include:
*Gray wolf (best exhibit I've ever seen for them)
*Bison
*Bald eagle
*Black bear
*Brown bear (one is a Syrian brown bear, I'm not sure which subsecies the other is)
*Polar bear
*Arctic fox
*Harbor seal
*Harp seal (as I understand the only one in captivity in North America)
*Beaver
*River otter
*Wolverine
*Various herps
Species include:
*Gray wolf (best exhibit I've ever seen for them)
*Bison
*Bald eagle
*Black bear
*Brown bear (one is a Syrian brown bear, I'm not sure which subsecies the other is)
*Polar bear
*Arctic fox
*Harbor seal
*Harp seal (as I understand the only one in captivity in North America)
*Beaver
*River otter
*Wolverine
*Various herps
Living Desert is another good one. The collection is split half Africa and half North America. Like ASDM, though, the collection is based on desert species but from a more general Southwest region. They have fantastic gardens to go along with it and the best Caprine enclosure I've ever seen as well.
@elefante pretty sure SeaWorld Orlando still has a Harp Seal.
~Thylo
@elefante pretty sure SeaWorld Orlando still has a Harp Seal.
~Thylo
The thread title says both best display and best number of species. I am not sure if the thread starter means they have to have both of these to count, or if either category is worth mentioning. I have no idea about most species, but as for good exhibits two of the best zoos in the country (my opinion) are Northwest Trek and Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. I remember Columbus and Minnesota having good sections too, based on trips long ago. Woodland Park (Seattle) has a nice section. The new California Trail at Oakland Zoo is pretty good. A lot of aquariums are focused on the local region (in fact maybe the majority of aquariums in the USA?).
But someone raises an interesting point. Most North American themed exhibits focus on the region in which the facility is located. I am scratching my head trying to think of a zoo in my country that portrays a wide range of the continent's habitats.
But someone raises an interesting point. Most North American themed exhibits focus on the region in which the facility is located. I am scratching my head trying to think of a zoo in my country that portrays a wide range of the continent's habitats.
TheEthiopianWolf03
Well-Known Member
I was going to say Oakland zoo as well but with a lack of smaller species that would have been perfect for this region of the zoo, I wasn’t sure if it’s up there with the best like the already mentioned ASDM. If you are looking for top notch exhibits, go to Oakland and Seattle. If you are looking for diversity then ASDM might be your best bet.
For a zoo with a full American experience maybe North Carolina or Smithsonian (although Smithsonian doesn’t have any desert areas).
Smithsonian has a decent North American exhibit but there's not that much to it.
~Thylo
~Thylo