Zoos in tropical environments

[Tiger]

I may be posting a bit many threads the last time, but this one I wanted to post for a long time, even before this thread: Mixed wolf and bear enclosures
Anyway, what zoos in tropical environments do you know about? By this I mean zoos in tropical forests, not in, say, tropical grasslands. It would be interesting to know how zoos use these. The main reason I'm asking this is for a project in Planet Zoo I'm working on.
Perhaps the best known zoos that are located in tropical forest and also make use of this in some way in their park are the Singapore Zoo, River Safari, Night Safari and Jurong Bird Park, but no doubt there will be other zoos in Asia, Africa, South America, Central America, Australia and maybe even the southern United States that make use of the tropical forest they are located in.

 

[birdsandbats]

I may be posting a bit many threads the last time, but this one I wanted to post for a long time, even before this thread: Mixed wolf and bear enclosures
Anyway, what zoos in tropical environments do you know about? By this I mean zoos in tropical forests, not in, say, tropical grasslands. It would be interesting to know how zoos use these. The main reason I'm asking this is for a project in Planet Zoo I'm working on.
Perhaps the best known zoos that are located in tropical forest and also make use of this in some way in their park are the Singapore Zoo, River Safari, Night Safari and Jurong Bird Park, but no doubt there will be other zoos in Asia, Africa, South America, Central America, Australia and maybe even the southern United States that make use of the tropical forest they are located in.

While definitions of "the tropics" vary, the only parts of the US considered to be tropical are Hawaii and sometimes extreme southern Florida.

 

[Aardwolf]

Not a zoo per se, but I visited Yanacocha, a rescue/rehab center in the Ecuadorian Amazon that had permanent enclosures for non-releasable animals. Besides the animals that were housed there, I saw wild pygmy marmoset, agouti, common caiman, and yellow-footed tortoise on the grounds, as well as super-tame (certainly habituated) grey-winged trumpeter which followed us around the grounds and straight out of the gate

 

[Dhole dude]

While definitions of "the tropics" vary, the only parts of the US considered to be tropical are Hawaii and sometimes extreme southern Florida.

Along with Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Marianas, & the U.S Virgin Islands(I don’t believe the other Island Territories have zoos).

 

[Tiger]

While definitions of "the tropics" vary, the only parts of the US considered to be tropical are Hawaii and sometimes extreme southern Florida.

Along with Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Marianas, & the U.S Virgin Islands(I don’t believe the other Island Territories have zoos).

Yes, I meant the tropical swamps and forests of Florida. I hadn't even thought of the islands, Hawaii is definitely the most tropical part (yes, I know it's an island group) of the US. Does anyone know of any zoos on all these islands that take advantage of their tropical location, other than of course the Honolulu Zoo, which uses it as natural decoration around the paths and in animal enclosures. Their large trees they sometimes set apart because they are just special, such as large oak trees in regions with temperate climates.

 

[birdsandbats]

Along with Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Marianas, & the U.S Virgin Islands(I don’t believe the other Island Territories have zoos).

I wasn't counting those as although they are technically considered part of the US they aren't traditionally considered to be in the US (such as on maps).

 

[aardvark250]

As you have said the most significant one was the Mandai(and Jurong), but there are a few nice zoos in SE Asia too. I've heard some good things about Khao Kheow in Thailand, and maybe Taman Safari(s) in Indonesia too.

And i dont count Taiwan as tropical nor SE Asia before you ask.

 

[Jambi]

Singapore Zoo is on my bucket list, it seems like a good place, and I've seen a few websites claim it's the best zoo in the world, but how true that is I don't know. I remember they once had "the only polar bears in the tropics", but going on their website recently, it looks like they don't have the polar bears any more.

 

[amur leopard]

Singapore Zoo is on my bucket list, it seems like a good place, and I've seen a few websites claim it's the best zoo in the world, but how true that is I don't know

It shouldn't just be Singapore Zoo on your bucket list but rather all the Mandai parks. Arguably better than the zoo is Jurong Bird Park (though it will soon close to make way for the new bird park), along with River Safari and Night Safari. As for the claims that the zoo on its own is the best in the world, while these things are of course objective, I think the vast majority of people would agree that it isn't. All the Mandai parks together however is a different story.

For the single best zoo in the world, look instead to places such as Bronx, Prague, either Berlin or San Diego.

I remember they once had "the only polar bears in the tropics", but going on their website recently, it looks like they don't have the polar bears any more.

And a good thing they don't still have it too! The enclosure was awful and the conditions were about as unsuited as it gets for a polar bear. Unfortunately a couple of enclosures of that exhibits complex still remain, with the wolverine exhibit in particular being quite the eyesore.

 

[elefante]

The closest thing I've seen to a topical zoo is a sanctuary in Costa Rica. The aviary was basically just a net over some trees. Jaguars, mountain lions, margays, and ocelots were kept in naturalistic enclosures, most of which were surrounded with rock work. The monkeys were in a structure similar to the aviary and there were plenty of wild birds and I even caught a glimpse of a coatimundi at the dumpster behaving like its trash panda relatives.