Your local zoo comes up to you and says, design any exhibit

[FSBlue]

What would you do?

Personally, an exhibit I would love to see at the Jax Zoo, considering Tigers will be there soon, is a Manatee rescue area/aquarium.

I would divide it into three areas, the fresh water part of the St.Johns, the brackish wetlands, and the Atlantic Ocean.

 

[Meaghan Edwards]

At the Toronto Zoo, I would give the Indonesian area a huge makeover. At the entrance of the area would be a Indonesian village, with a "house" overlooking into a new Malayan Tapir display.

I would also create a Canadian Prairie area with coyotes, Swift Foxes, Pronghorn, and outdoor exhibits for Black-footed Ferret, Burrowing owls and Prairie Dogs.

 

[Zambar]

At Marwell, I would design the gorilla exhibit (this is something that will happen in reality) with a bridge going through a walk-through aviary centred round a waterfall and plunge pool with typical congo birds; touracos, hornbills, etc. The bridge continues out of the avairy around a netted enclosure containing Colobus and Diana Monkeys. The bridge leads in to a house where visitors walk past the monkeys indoor quaters at canopy level, into a mini rainforest of vivaria containing smaller creatures like potto, gaboon viper, giant millipedes and the like. Vistors then circle a glass enclosed rainforest enclosure, which the gorillas can access. Food is thrown into the deep leaf litter, allowing the apes to forage in a natural enviroment. Before leaving the house, the visitors look into the more traditional indoor gym with climbing structures and a deep straw layer (with night dens underneath). Visitors continue outside, where an outdoor enclosure can be viewed, full of dead trees for climbing and heavy planting.

 

[groundskeeper24]

I'd design an African River exhibit for Cincinnati. I would have a large Berlin-type indoor hippo complex and yard. Other than hippos, I'd include Nile crocs, several wading birds, possibly cape buffalo and hyenas.

 

[Dom]

For cotswold wildlife park, i'd do a carnivores building, which is indoor for the visitors, but the animals are outside, if that makes sence! To begin with, on the left hand side, there is american badgers, in a scrub land style enclousure. Next on the left is fishing cats, with a pool coming up to the glass window, with densce planting at the rear. Next house is for pine martins, with the top netted over, featuring plenty of climbing structures. Lastly on the left hand side is a large puma exibit which features a tunnel streching over the biulding over to the other side, (hope this is making sence!) giving the pumas two enclousures. Back at the start on the right hand side is tasmanian devils, then pallas cats and then brown hyenas.

Really hope this makes sence!!

 

[redpanda]

I would demolish Paignton's Crocodile Swamp and start again, getting rid of all the "commoners", so that only the Cuban Crocs are left. Then, I would enlarge it and turn it into a caribbean wetland with an indoor greenhouse which has the crocs, and manatees, howler monkeys and some larger birds. Outside I would have a large walk-through aviary with the zoo's flamingo and some other caribbean birds. Then, to act as a transition between the two areas, I would have a room full of jewel cases and a couple of galleries showing the dangers to caribbean wetlands.

 

[Quartz92]

Right now, I would choose to do the Canadian Wilderness Area, (comming soon to the Toronto Zoo) with habitats ranging from the praries to rivers, I would build a new pavilion and put some of the great lake species of fish and birds.

After that I would add a Fisherman's Village which would take visitors to a whole new extreme. They would be able to view all sorts of animals that are native to the eastern and western coast of Canada. I would have harbour porpoise, muskrat, octopus, seals, and a walk through avairy with some interesting birds that I people don't normally see in the city. Like hummingbird's etc.

After that I would take the Indo-Malayan Pavilion (mainly) and the rest of the area and completely redevelop it and add some more animals. The pavilion would have 3 levels, ground, middle, and canopy views, have exotic birds (toucans) and others. New exhibits for every animal. Maybe even add sunbears!

 

[tigertiger]

If we're going with my local home zoo, I'd give Bronx a real bird exhibit beyond WOB's. And a hippo. If we're talking Cincinnati, I would give them an aviary with rarer bird species and a great hornbill exhibit.

 

[UntBwe]

I would design a huge hall like Burgers' Bush for the Amazonian monkeys and tropical birds! The monkeys can roam freely as far as possible or are living on small islands. You must get the feeling of walking through a rainforest where you can meet the monkeys of Amazonia (squirell monkeys, spider monkeys, titi monkeys, etc.). Parrots and other birds are flying around while you enjoy the typical trees and plants of South America.

 

[Zoo Visitor]

What would you do? ...

I would design a new exhibit for the elephants so they would not have to be transferred to the Pittsburgh ICC.

I would expand into the area between the Pachyderm House and Big Cat Falls to add more space. Then I would knock down the wall separating the elephants and the Asian rhino because the elephants and the rhino seem to get along very well - see my video showing one of the elephants reaching over the wall and scratching the rhino's ears:

I would then add grass, plant a couple of trees, and build a dirt hill with a gentle slope and a plateau at the top where treats could be placed to encourage the elephants and the rhino to climb for extra exercise. (If there would be enough money, I would include an underpass in the hill also.

I know this plan probably has design flaws and multiple other issues. But, you asked, and I can dream, can't I?

I really don't want the elephant exhibit to close.

 

[FSBlue]

I decided to expand on my original thoughts as, compared to other posts, they were abit short.

First would be the Manatee rescue area. The closest one is at SeaWorld and a new facility would be a great help to their conservation.

The freshwater sections would include a new exhibit for the American Alligators, an alligator snapping turtle exhibit, and a large freshwater aquariums featuing catfish, gars, and bass. The estuary exhibit would double as an aviary, featuring native species such as Ospreys and Snowy Egrets. The Atlantic Ocean area could also funcition as a Sea Turtle rehab area. In addition, sharks, Flounder, Grouper, and other local species could be shown.