Busch Gardens Tampa – also known as Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, FL and formerly known as Busch Gardens Africa and Busch Gardens: The Dark Continent – is a huge 335-acre combination zoo and theme park located 6 miles North of downtown Tampa in the low flat terrain of Florida’s West coast. It had 4,200,00 visitors in 2010, making it the 11th most-attended theme park in the US that year. The park opened in 1959 as an adjacent attraction to one of the Anheuser-Busch breweries; it was a modest small zoo and garden originally, and grew immense through the years after the brewery was closed. It retains its Busch moniker even though it is no longer owned by that company (it is owned by SeaWorld Parks and Entertainment, which in turn is owned by an octopus-like private equity investment firm now). There were once 5 different Busch Gardens parks of various sizes, although the two that remain were always the major ones: this one, and Busch Gardens Williamsburg in Virginia (which was also known as Busch Gardens: The Old Country). The Virginia park is actually very different from this one and has only a handful of animal exhibits in its European-themed roster of attractions, while the Florida park features an African theme and many animal exhibits. In fact, without the theme park attractions, this park would still be considered a major zoo because it has about 2,700 animals exhibited in many noteworthy habitats. Thus it is certainly deserving of a lengthy review here! Although the park’s theme is Africa, that theme is not exclusive and a few areas diverge from it. I visited most recently in early November 2011, and I will describe the park according to the current map’s designations, which lists 10 themed areas. 7 of the themed areas have at least one animal exhibit and those will be the focus of my review. Some of the themed areas are organized and theme-appropriate while others are a collection of various adjacent attractions that have been lumped together for easier identification on the map but make strange bedfellows. That is a result of any park that grows a bit haphazardly over the years. Fortunately, the overall layout of the park is a giant loop path that generally leads from one themed area to the next, and I will describe the animal exhibits according to the themed lands they are in, starting with the entrance area called Morocco. From there I will describe the themed areas in a clockwise direction around the loop: Bird Gardens, Sesame Street Safari of Fun, Stanleyville, Jungala, Congo, Timbuktu, Nairobi, Cheetah Hunt, and Egypt. Morocco is the entrance area to the park and begins with a large entrance plaza and then a village with services and shops and restaurants and two show theaters. All these features are housed in vaguely Morrocan buildings with stepped parapets and Moorish arches and tilework; much of the architecture of the park fits the themes and I will not describe it in depth except to say that it is extensive. The detailing and ‘authenticity’ is a step down from the Disney and Universal parks, but better than most other theme parks and zoos. The theme of the first animal exhibit in this area immediately diverges however; instead of an exhibit for North African animals there is an American alligator exhibit! It is a nice one though, composed of a large open yard dominated by a large pool that is contained with a low simulated rock backwall. Forming the backdrop is a very dense lush tropical forest that is the landscape of the other exhibit in Morocco. For such a large exhibit, there are few alligators but the inhabitants are large; keepers enter the exhibit and stand just feet away from them while talking to visitors on the other side of the railing and thin planting area that separates them. Myombe Reserve is the other exhibit, entered through a pergola adjacent to the alligator exhibit. It is another example of a divergent theme, since it is an exhibit complex that recreates the African rainforest…lumped in on the park map with Morocco! It lies between this area and Nairobi, so inclusion in either area would be geographically clumsy I suppose. Either way, it is an excellent exhibit complex of two habitats: one for chimpanzee, the other for gorilla. They are set in the most lushly planted area of the park and located along an exhibit path that winds through it. At the entrance pergola, a large wall graphic announces the theme and a troop of bronze gorilla statues stands nearby upon which to climb. The path then crosses a small wooden bridge over a stream and arrives at a large but low modern shelter for viewing the chimpanzee exhibit through large viewing windows. The grassy exhibit yard has gentle slopes punctuated by clumps of taller grasses and palms and small timber shelters and deadfalls. It is contained by a tall backwall of simulated eroded riverbank topped with lush trees and plants; this rockwork is too simple to be convincing but it is not too distracting. Its application on the right side of the large exhibit, where the visitor path leaves the shelter and rounds a bend to an open-air view across a moat and next to a waterfall, is more successful as it forms some terraces that step down to the water so that the water-filled moat is not a cavern. Next to this second viewing area are bronze chimpanzee statues that look out from the forest into the exhibit. The path then crosses a nice boardwalk over a low stream and enters a large rocky overhang in the forest into the Research Outpost, an interpretive room with a scattering of average educational graphics (and in true zoo fashion, a wax-toy-making souvenir machine plopped in the room in defiance of the graphics, probably added later and not intended by the exhibit designers!). The end of the sheltered cave wall has a small opening in the rock that looks through the backside of a large waterfall that crashes into the other exhibit in the complex, for gorilla. It is a great habitat and begins as the path exits the Research Outpost and turns a corner in the lush jungle, where yet another bronze gorilla statue looks across a small curved seating amphitheater for viewing the exhibit across a rocky moat. This area of the habitat is dominated by the large waterfall mentioned earlier as it cascades down around a convincing assembly of large simulated boulders. The rockwork that contains the yard is similar and differs from the exposed riverbank type for the chimpanzees. This habitat is also lusher, backed by a higher canopy of green, and subdivided by boulders into a more complex series of spaces. The path then goes back into the jungle and descends into a dark viewing area contained in boulders and covered by a low modern shelter similar to the one for the chimpanzee viewing area. This one has a single long viewing window at grade so that the gorillas can approach it, and it views a flatter part of their terrain. A second nearly identical shelter is reached through a short passageway and offers yet another view into another node of the exhibit. The grassy ground plain inside is scattered with a few plants as well as some small shade trees and deadfalls, and the family troop seems to enjoy moving about the entire space. The path then exits this shelter and twists around to an exit out of the forest. Chimpanzee Exhibit in Myombe Reserve: Bird Gardens is the themed area that occupies the oldest part of the park, and is one of two that primarily focuses on animal exhibits. It is scenic and pleasant but is rather generic, and a bit of a piecemeal arrangement. The first exhibits encountered are part of a shop called Xcursions: inside is a small round column fishtank with unidentified inhabitants while outside is a simulated treetrunk and branches hanging over a small pond that is a perch for macaws. On my previous visit in 2008 there was a side path that reached Eagle Canyon, a complex of several small open-air grottos with deadfalls for injured raptors to perch on, but the path was closed and the habitat not listed on the map this time. Also closed, this time for renovation, was a very modern – for 1959 – restaurant with a lagoon in front; the lagoon was still filled with water but any resident waterfowl appeared to be gone. Nearby is the Bird Gardens Theater, a medium-sized amphitheater of metal grandstand seating covered with a canopy that is the home of the animal show, Critter Castaways. It has a nice stage set of a large simulated boat in ruins, as if it has washed ashore from a storm. I did not see the show however so I cannot comment on the content, but I understand it features rescued and shelter animals, especially dogs. Adjacent to the theater is a massive exhibit for Caribbean flamingo that is dominated by a large shallow lake filled with large koi. The shores on one side are a simple open grassy area for the birds, and the visitor path circles a large part of it. A simple wood railing is used as the barrier from the path, and it is used again on the other side of the path for three open habitats that ring the larger one: one for bar-headed goose, one for unidentified waterfowl, and a very small one with a pond for unidentified turtle. This area could use some more graphics, but it is a nice area to stroll through and is landscaped with various tropical plants and informal flower beds. Bird Gardens has one of the park’s newest exhibit complexes, which is actually a renovation and redesign of an older area that has been rethemed to Walkabout Way. This Australian themed complex is not especially Australian in architecture or details, but it does indeed feature some animals from that continent in its two exhibits. The Kookaburra’s Nest occupies an existing aviary that has an attractive rustic timber open-air pavilion for shaded exterior viewing of the aviary. Visitors can also go inside the aviary on a short path through the medium-sized timber pole-supported mesh structure. It is lushly landscaped and has a small pond and stream. The species are unidentified and I spotted scarlet ibis and other non-Australian birds, so the theme is not consistent. Attached to one side of the main aviary is a mediocre small cage for the exhibit’s namesake, kookaburra. It’s a shame that the species selection and the showcase species are not given the appropriate treatment. The other exhibit in Walkabout Way is far more successful: a large walk-through habitat for kangaroos and wallabies called Kangaloom. Visitors enter through a gated small open-air shed; a counter on one side is called The Tuckerbox and is for purchasing kangaroo food (pellets). That’s right – at select times through the day, visitors can feed them and it is a delight! After entering the exhibit, the long visitor path is lined with rustic timber railings for its entire length until it exits the yard at the other end through a gate. The habitat is mostly bare sandy earth but does have some thin trees scattered around and surrounded by poles to prevent bark stripping. It is a very large flat habitat, contained with a high wood fence and low fenced bamboo plantings along its backside and a small lake on its frontside in which some black swans and magpie goose and other waterfowl swim. Awnings for both the residents and visitors provide additional shade, as do trees planted just outside the back fence. Although the habitat’s details are not especially evocative of the outback, the resident mob is impressive. Eastern gray kangaroo, Western gray kangaroo, red kangaroo, wallaroo, Bennett’s wallaby, and an albino wallaby compose the mob, which must number about 40! The only other captive mob I can remember seeing that is this large is at the Kansas City Zoo (one species, in a far more naturalistic walk-through exhibit, although there was no feeding opportunity). In an interesting bit of exhibit design, the gaps between the railings are spaced so that the larger inhabitants (most of them) stay outside the visitor path railings and in the larger habitat; however, the smaller inhabitants, especially the Bennett’s wallabies, can fit through the railings and spend time on the visitor path or cross into the narrower part of the habitat adjacent to the small lake. At feeding time, many of the inhabitants come up to the railing and stick their arms and heads out to be fed from the path, and most are happy to be scratched or petted between their arms. I was lucky to be able to cuddle with a few wallabies on the path as well as feed many kangaroos and it was a highlight of the visit! Feeding Bennett's wallabies and other kangaroo species in Kangaloom, part of Walkabout Way in Bird Gardens: Bird Gardens continues with a few more exhibits, but the relative continuity of this themed area is broken by another themed area that is just off the park’s main loop: Sesame Street Safari of Fun, an attraction complex of rides and play areas catering to children. It has no animal exhibits so I will not describe it, but in its previous incarnation it was called Land of the Dragons and an animal exhibit that was near its entrance was called Living Dragons. That exhibit is still there but is no longer labeled as such although it is much the same as it was. It is actually an older small building with four adjacent aviary-like habitats with rocky back walls. Two are viewed through wire mesh and two through glass panels. Where the exterior walls turn corners, poorly simulated tree trunks with buttress roots have been added to the façade, probably an ill-conceived attempt to update the aging building. Some of the rockwork has also been updated to be more realistic over the years too. The habitats are mediocre ones: one for turaco (unidentified species), one for unidentified iguana and tortoise (signs are not Bird Gardens’ strong point), one for Komodo dragon (too small for this species), and one for Cuban iguana (the best of the four, although I spotted another turaco in this one). After the park loop passes the children’s themed area, Bird Gardens continues with Lory Landing, a nice large walk-through feeding aviary. It is a circle, with a huge oak in the middle erupting out of a high draped mesh canopy for containment. Once inside, there is a ‘foyer’ with a shed for purchasing nectar and a macaw perch before entering the main aviary; the path splits to go to one of two entries to the main aviary, passing between four poor small cage enclosures. They contain: hyacinth macaw; unidentified; unidentified hornbill; and unidentified toucan. Fortunately the main aviary is much better, with a meandering path between decent rockwork walls and a pond for unidentified waterfowl; timber poles support draped rope perches for the very large active flock of lories that chatter in this roomy and open but nicely shaded habitat. The final exhibit in this area is a large outdoor yard viewed from an elevated walkway near the Lory Landing. It is for giant anteater, crested screamer and…Indian muntjac. So much for geographic groupings! Despite this, it is one of the best exhibits for these species in terms of size that I have seen. Although the back fences are an assortment of styles depending on which behind-the-scenes facility they adjoin, there are enough tall shrubs and trees scattered to screen them. Some mature trees provide a shady canopy over much of the yard, while a sunny open area offers an alternative. A large group of philodendrons provides a great hiding area for the muntjac. Stanleyville does not have any animal exhibits but it does have stations for two rides that eventually view animal exhibits described later: the Skyride (it has another station in Cheetah Hunt) and the Serengeti Express train (it has stations in Congo and Nairobi). Jungala is the only themed area of the park that focuses on Southeast Asian animals, although it does not seek to recreate Southeast Asia. Instead, its exhibits and play areas and rides and restaurants and shop are designed in a cheerful contemporary take on jungle exoticism. It is well-designed and consistent for the most part, and all its elements were opened at the same time in 2008. Each element of the area has its own logo, graphics are plentiful, it is lushly planted, the rockwork is stylized, and the layout and details create a sense of adventure. There are two entrances to it off the main park loop. Tiger Trail is the name of the complex of two exhibits for Bengal tiger, including white tiger. These two fine exhibits are separated from each other by a long rocky passage for visitors. Inside is the Tiger Tunnel, a glass-walled thin passage above visitors’ heads that connects the two exhibits so that the tigers can cross from one to the other when the gates on each end are open. There are window viewing panels in the rocky passage into each exhibit as well, and next to each window is a capped feeding tube for tiger interaction when keepers are present. In fact, all the exhibits were designed with interaction in mind. I will call the exhibit on the left ‘Exhibit 1’ and the other ‘Exhibit 2’; both can be seen from many viewing areas around their entire perimeters. After exiting the passage, Exhibit 1 is seen again within a nice timber pole viewing shelter around the bend in the path. It has a tall wall of glass that extends below grade to reveal underwater views of a pool contained within rocky ledges. The viewing area steps down to the pool’s floor level to form a mini-seating area to watch the cats frolic in the water but I did not see them use it. Around another bend in the path, visitors can enter a small cave in the rockwork that has a small window into the exhibit. A few feet away is a narrow rocky passage and stairway into a tight cave that provides access to a hexagonal pop-up window within the exhibit; the tigers seem to love to lie on its top a few feet above the exhibit grade while visitors (one at a time) stick their heads up within inches of the striped fur resting on the glass above them! The path continues around to another side of the exhibit, and a feature that is present around parts of the perimeter is most noticeable here: thick simulated bamboo poles form the containment, set in two rows a few feet apart with real bamboo planted between. This occasionally affords exciting obscured views of the tigers. The last viewing area for Exhibit 1 is its most open and impressive: a bridge with rustic wood railings and course rope sides crosses over the exhibit. The other viewing areas are at or just below the exhibit ground level, but on this end rocky ledges and a waterfall drop down to an excavated grassy expanse contained with high rocky walls so that the bridge soars over the habitat. Deadfalls provide climbing surfaces for the cats to travel from one level to the other, and scattered palms provide some interest in the exhibit. The result of all this is an exhibit that is attractive and fun to explore for both visitor and animal; the downside is that the actual space for the tigers is rather small, and there is no place for them to be away from the visitors. This is especially true in the hole-like space below the bridge, where potentially tens of visitors might be hovering over the cats (I did not see them use that space). Exhibit 2 is the sunnier of the two and also features several viewpoints in addition to the rocky passage window. It has a large opening in rocky ledges, framed with a large simulated deadfall on top, that has a wire mesh screen of two layers a few feet apart for containment. A capped feeding tube passes through the screen for interaction here as well. Jungala has a gift shop called Tiger Treasures that has an interior feature of a large simulated tree trunk; a small opening in the trunk can be entered into a little curved window viewing nook that looks into Exhibit 2. Nearby is Tiger Lodge, a building with a roomy interior that has a long expanse of floor-to-ceiling windows looking into the exhibit and educational graphics. Exhibit 2 has a long narrow upper section that adjoins the window and screen viewing areas opposite the Tiger Lodge; then rocky ledges and waterfalls descend to a much larger lower level dominated by a shallow pond that covers much of the groundplane below the lodge and shop viewing windows. Again, deadfalls provide climbing surfaces down the ledges, and scattered palms provide floral interest within the habitat. Unfortunately this attractive scene is also on the small side for a tiger exhibit, especially due to the space that the shallow waterway takes. This waterway actually continues through netting on one end to the orangutan exhibit; the netting is suspended from a wooden boardwalk that offers yet another view of Exhibit 2. The boardwalk has a wood shelter on it and rustic wood railings with course rope containment, and some visitors get their first view of the fine orangutan exhibit here. The habitat has similar tall rocky ledges to the tiger exhibits, ascending in several terraces and forming several large nodes for spatial complexity within the large area. A shallow waterway (contiguous with the tiger exhibit’s) runs through the moat, which is rather deep and narrow on the sides of the exhibit but is very accesible all along the front so that it feels like open exhibit space. Small palms and some dead trunks dot the grassy landscape but it is dominated by three very tall metal shelters with ropes strung between them that the orangutans can climb and traverse for commanding views. This feature is called the Orangutan Vine: the course is 140 feet long and the shelters are 40 feet high. Orangutan Outpost is another viewpoint, this time in an enclosed small building that is built on stilts so that it extends over the waterway at the front of the exhibit. Inside are educational graphics and a floor-to-ceiling window panel and a few interactive features. A simulated deadfall trunk leans from the exhibit ground up to a ledge at floor level of the outpost; the orangutans can climb up to the ledge and be directly next to the viewing window, where a pass-through screen can be opened by keepers. There is also a small hollow tree trunk for small visitors to climb in that is against the glass so that it looks like a portion of the tree trunk outside continues indoors. In a corner, a section of the floor is glass and views down to a rope hammock suspended below that the orangutans can climb to on a series of deadfalls over the water; a capped metal feeding tube descends from the edge of the glass through the floor to the hammock. Another nice outdoor viewing area is on the long side of the exhibit, beneath the dining porch of the Orang Café, that offers the closest views of the higher ground across a deep moat. A course rope netting above the railings may dissuade visitors from throwing food into the exhibit, but the sight and smell of noisy patrons and their meals may be situated too close. While the tiger and orangutan exhibits are located away from the extensive play areas, the other two exhibits – collectively called Kulu Canopy – are not. They are in the thick of a large series of elevated bridges and net-climbing courses called Treetop Trails. However, they are both nice large tall netted exhibits, viewed from two levels. One is for flying fox (unidentified species) and is dominated by a massive simulated tree trunk that acts as the support pole for the containment netting. The viewing area on the upper level boardwalk is through glass panels at eye level, or through mesh above. The group of about 20 flying foxes were all clinging to the netting at the very top. A nice landscape of tropical plantings fills some of the ground far below, but it is mostly occupied by a sloped-bottom pool that is viewed from a few tall glass panels set in rockwork on the ground level. These windows provide a low slice of underwater viewing, but a nearby crawl tunnel of windows beneath the edge of the pool affords kids a more immersive experience. Unfortunately, the gharials that were featured in this pool are off exhibit so a small school of unidentified fish must suffice. Adjacent is the exhibit for white-cheeked gibbon that is viewed from the ground level through netting beyond a wood railing, or from a similar arrangement from the boardwalk on the second level. There is also a tiny shelter with windows reached through short crawl tubes on the second level for kids to get an intimate view. The exhibit is full of simulated tree trunks and branches and vines in a generous volume, with plenty of low tropical plants on the ground and larger ones just outside. What bothers me (but did not seem to bother the gibbons) is that one of the two rides in Jungala passes over this exhibit. It is called Jungle Flyers and is a hybrid zipline-like attraction that is boarded from a tower over the area. Visitors get in a seat suspended from a wire which lifts up and propels them along the wire until losing momentum, then the seat glides backward to the station. It is a very low capacity ride (it launches a few people every 3 or 4 minutes) of three sets of two side-by-side wires; only one set of them is suspended over the gibbon exhibit, but it seems like adding insult to injury when the boardwalk area next to them is already full of running and screaming noise. The lower viewing area of the White-cheeked Gibbon Exhibit in Jungala: Congo features a train station for the Serengeti Express described later, as well as two minor animal exhibits. One of the exhibits is an isolated one seen only from the train (or from a distance in an elevated play structure in Jungala). It is a large fenced yard for a small group of sable antelope, located far from the other hoofstock exhibits described later. It is very utilitarian, fenced with chainlink on one side and wood on the other, shaded by some oaks, and viewed across a dry moat adjacent to the tracks. A simple shelter in the center of the flat expanse shades a feeding station. The other exhibit is located in the queue for the Congo River Rapids ride. On one side of a large timber shelter for the line there is a mediocre habitat for squirrel monkey (you knew the Congo was in South America, right?) The L-shaped exhibit is viewed through large glass panels, above which are mounted garish African-inspired masks and crossed spears and oars. Inside is a poorly simulated rock habitat with a ceiling enclosed by wire in one area and fiberglass in the other. A fair amount of suspended branches provide climbing areas, but the few plants are all painfully sparse and fake. Detailing is far more successful in the next themed area along the park’s loop, Timbuktu, although there are no animal exhibits within it. More to come in Part 2!
Part 2: Nairobi is the park’s other themed area that is composed primarily of animal exhibits and is its largest as well. It would be even larger if the other two themed areas described later were not divided as they are on the park’s current map because several features of them overlap, blurring the boundaries between them. Nairobi has most of the park’s larger habitats for hoofstock, the first of which is for Asian elephant. Yes, here again is an example of a geographic boo-boo, but the park does not have African elephants. The habitat for the herd of five females is viewed on one long side from the main park walkway across a small dry moat. The moat and the low back walls are fairly realistic rockwork with planting above. It is a nice exhibit although it is mostly bare earth with a few deadfalls, and does not appear to be very large; however, it is deceiving because the habitat is actually an elongated doughnut shape and only one side is seen from the walkway. Also along the walkway, near the mostly out-of-view barn, is a small gated area that is opened only during elephant interaction demonstrations. A rather stark large modern awning structure provides most of the shade for one area of the habitat near the middle. There is another way to view the habitat: a ride called Rhino Rally (the awning structure matches the queue and loading station structures for the ride nearby) travels across an elevated wood bridge above one end of the doughnut shape and through the elevated center island of the habitat, then exits through a tunnel at the other end into a cave passage below the other end of the doughnut shape. Riders see the other side of the exhibit that is beyond the walkway’s sight lines, and also see the large waterhole at the end that the elephants can enter. The waterhole design is great, with a large sloped beach for easy entry and a generous area for deeper bathing. A submerged concrete barrier prohibits them from going past a certain point into the larger body of water with which it is contiguous (and is part of another habitat). In fact, the other field exhibits in Nairobi feature some nice barrier techniques that also expertly blur the line between habitats, although not as extensively as those in Disney’s Animal Kingdom’s Kilimanjaro Safaris ride. Rhino Rally is sort of Busch Gardens’ answer to Kilimanjaro Safaris in nearby Orlando; it is a quickly-paced narrated tour through animal exhibits in open-sided trucks. The trucks have five rows: four seat four visitors each, while the front is for the driver and one visitor to ride ‘shotgun’. The queue and loading station are contained in a series of open-air tent shelters with several parked mock trucks and truck equipment (such as tires and gas cans) scattered inside. The premise is that all this has been set up for the ‘34th Annual Rhino Rally’, a fictitious truck race through the savanna on an off-road course, although the trucks do not actually race together. After leaving the station, the course starts with the Asian elephant habitat described above; the waterhole is actually viewed from the next habitat, a nice large grassy savanna scattered with trees and boulders and a few rock-lined waterways. (It can also be seen from the Skyride that crosses above it…more on that later.) This area contains scimitar-horned oryx, Grant’s zebra, and flamingo (I’m not sure which species). Across a long lake is another similar roomy savanna that the twisting road does not enter: it is for cape buffalo (yea!) and impala. Next, the course fords a simulated stream and crosses a small bridge to enter an adjacent habitat – this one dustier and with larger boulders scattered around and a denser backdrop of acacias – for white rhinoceros. The rhino I saw was just feet away from the truck! Next the truck enters a roadway that is submerged in a few feet of water with a low rocky ledge emerging above the surface, which is the barrier between this and the adjacent Nile crocodile exhibit. The part of the exhibit next to the roadway is a small lake, so that it appears that the truck is traversing the huge reptile’s waterway. A generous riverbank area with grassy slopes behind and a few deadfalls compose the far side of this nice exhibit. After hauling back up onto dry road, the truck turns a corner and the ‘race’ is over and it arrives at the loading station. Originally, there was a further section of this ride where the truck attempted to cross a rickety low bridge above a low waterfall and the bridge ‘collapsed’ into the river on a pontoon, where the truck actually floated down the river past another waterfall and eventually ran aground to a point where the truck could drive off it onto dry land and continue back to the station. This section, which did not have animal exhibits along it, was recently closed to make way for some rollercoaster track for a new ride described later. Although the adventurous nature of the ride has been greatly diminished and the length truncated, the animal exhibit portion is still satisfying. However, like Kilimanjaro Safaris at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, it is frustrating that only the elephant exhibit can be seen for more than a few minutes at a time. While Kilimanjaro Safaris predates Rhino Rally, the opposite is true for Nairobi’s largest animal exhibit: Serengeti Plain. It is a 65-acre grassy savanna habitat that opened in 1965. It is scattered with stands of acacias and palms as well as native oaks, similar to Kilimanjaro Safaris, and has occasional rocky outcrops and waterways and berms that again make it hard to distinguish where the exhibit spaces begin or end. I am not sure, but after visiting and looking at a satellite image of the property I think the exhibit is actually two equally sized habitats (with some smaller holding yards in the middle and on the far edges). A portion of the North one is crossed by the Skyride, a suspended small bucket gondola type that is boarded in Stanleyville or Cheetah Hunt. Adjacent to the Serengeti Plain is the turning station, where the Skyride ends one section and angles to begin the other section; next to the building for this turn is an average fenced grassy paddock for ankole cattle that provides a close view of them below. The Skyride also provides a view of the primary way to see the Serengeti Plain: The Serengeti Express. This steam train with long open-sided observation cars has stations in Stanleyville and Congo as well as a Dutch colonial-inspired one in Nairobi. It makes a 2-mile circuit through the park, but its highlight is the long section of it that passes over cattle guards and directly into the Serengeti Plain habitat(s). I am embarrassed to admit that on this recent visit I ran out of time and did not ride the train, so I have little to report on the animals within! Suffice to say that it is a very fine habitat for hoofstock, and a partial species list posted at a viewing point described later lists reticulated giraffe, Southern eland, addax, impala, and Grevy’s zebra. There are certainly more species than those listed, and note that those might only be in the Southern habitat if they are indeed divided! Another way to see the Serengeti Plain is by purchasing a keeper-style truck tour for an additional charge. The various tours enter the habitats on dirt roads and include feeding opportunities. These tours have been available for years, but recently a new booking and reception building was built for them, and a new loading dock called Serengeti Safari Base Camp for multiple trucks was opened on the edge of the final field exhibit. Actually, this field exhibit is older but recently divided in two by a new path and bridge and reduced in size due to the new rollercoaster track described later. The alterations are so new that the field exhibit was still empty when I visited. I spoke with a keeper that said that they were planning on re-introducing the blesbok and Thompson’s gazelles into it that formerly inhabited it. It can be divided in two by a fence beneath the bridge so that the species can be separated if the need arises. The habitat is a nice large sloped grassy yard dotted with acacias. It is contained by low simulated riverbank walls in places, hidden fence in others, and a dry moat along the front that has masses of papyrus (probably the largest planting of it I have ever seen) that are so thick that they hide the actual fence within. This exhibit is very important visually because it runs along much of the park’s main path through Nairobi and is the landscape seen from the train station here; it will be important to re-establish an occupied animal exhibit in this location! Rhino Rally's habitat for scimitar-horned oryx, Grant's zebra, and flamingo: Nairobi also has a series of adjacent exhibit complexes for smaller animals that are less impressive than the field exhibits described above. One is not yet open: the Animal Care Center, which will open in January 2012 and will be an African-themed building for visitors to observe veterinary care for the park’s animals with operating rooms behind glass viewing windows. Unfortunately, it is replacing an older large rocky exhibit yard that was for the elephants before their current one was built, and then was for black rhinoceros. Nearby is an aging but nice large exhibit yard contained in a low wall of timber poles for Aldabra tortoise. It has a bare earth groundplane, slightly sloped, with a simulated stream and shallow pond for unidentified wading birds as well. Scattered bushes and rocks add interest. Like many of the waterways in habitats at the park, there seem to be more native white ibis interlopers visible than intended residents! Jambo Junction is a mediocre complex nearby for many of the park’s ‘animal ambassadors’ as well as its largest collection of reptiles and amphibians. What it lacks in aesthetic merit and modern exhibitry it makes up for in a concentrated experience of many animals. The first part of it is centered on a simple modern barn-like building surrounded by a few small open yards with simple low fencing and a tiny pond in each. The first is for crested screamer, the second for a variety of flamingos (keepers give visitors bird pellets to hand feed the flamingos over the fence at select times of day which is fun), and the third is for a Reeve’s muntjac. Nearly all the signs for animal ambassadors in Jambo Junction are identical, stating the species first and then the resident’s name and some facts about them. It is nice to see permanent and consistent signs here. The barn-like building itself is not entered by visitors, but a walkway beneath its porch travels around it on three sides and glass windows provide a view into each of the little cubicles within that are open to the volume of the room inside. The center of the main room has all the food preparation and veterinary care counters. Each cubicle is an animal exhibit and is very basic; each is flexible so that a tank or cage can be added, or a partition removed for combinations, depending on the species. These were the inhabitants in each display at the time of my visit: aardvark; two-toed sloth and three-banded armadillo; red-footed tortoise and macaw; rock hyrax; another rock hyrax; empty; two-toed sloth; American alligator; ground cuscus; greater bush baby; fennec; Flemish rabbit; opossum; and striped skunk. On one side of the building and between the next building are a series of poor small metal cages grouped together. Each has timber poles at the corners of their octagonal shapes with dry palm fronds thatching the roofs. Ugly assemblages of perches and shelves are crammed inside above mostly bare dirt floors. The unlucky inhabitants here were: white-necked raven; red-ruffed lemur; unidentified vulture; Burmese python; Southern ground hornbill; coatimundi; and serval (this cage is about twice as large as the others). The final part of Jambo Junction is an adjoining building with poor-to-average reptile and amphibian wall exhibits viewed from a sheltered porch on the outside. 5 slightly larger and more detailed exhibits are seen first: Javan humphead lizard; tentacled snake; Oustalet’s chameleon; eyelash viper; and basalisk lizard. Then a window is viewed that shows the behind-the-scenes area that supports the exhibits to follow, a nice touch. The next large window is subdivided with decent graphics to reveal 6 reptile exhibits: Mojave rattlesnake; canebrake rattlesnake; pygmy rattlesnake; Eastern diamondback rattlesnake; coral snake and scarlet kingsnake, separated in one exhibit; and Florida cottonmouth. Another similar-sized window is subdivided with graphics to reveal 12 amphibian exhibits: green and black dart frog; dyeing dart frog; Madagascar mantella; South American horned frog; Southern toad; salamander; mossy tree frog; Kweichow crocodile newt; Puerto Rican crested toad; Panamanian golden frog; red-eyed tree frog; and tomato frog. The last window shows another behind-the-scenes area, filled with terrariums for amphibian breeding. It is nice to get this view, and the small amphibian collection here is impressive. Curiosity Caverns is the final exhibit complex in Nairobi and is mostly an indoor attraction but it starts with 4 mediocre aging small outdoor exhibits set in rocky backdrops and shaded by a tropical forest. They contain: Asian small-clawed otter (viewed through glass panels including underwater views of a decently-sized pool); American alligator and unidentified turtles (again with underwater views through the glass containment panels); bald eagle (in a wire mesh-enclosed grotto); and empty (a much smaller yard behind a glass panel). These lead into the building entrance, which is covered with the simulated rockwork of yesteryear (1960’s?) and into the caverns themselves, essentially a loop path through a dark nocturnal house with 14 exhibits viewed through glass panels set in a ‘cave’. The exhibits vary in size but most are small room-size habitats with average detailing. What they have in common is their identification: this exhibit has some of the best graphics in the park. Each species sign is backlit and states a common myth about the animal, then a paragraph of information is offered to refute the myth. The exhibits are: pixie frog; California kingsnake; ratsnake; reticulated python; two-toed sloth; anaconda; sugar glider; greater bush baby; another greater bush baby; leaf-nosed fruit bat; Honduran milk snake; mongoose lemur; cottontop tamarin; and Gila monster. Cheetah Hunt is the newest themed area and is named after the park’s newest rollercoaster. I would prefer they called it Cheetah’s Hunt but that is not the case. When I first heard about this addition I was dismayed; it is a very long course that runs through the park’s most concentrated area of field animal exhibits. It runs alongside Edge of Africa (described later), the blesbok and Thompson’s gazelle reconfigured exhibit, Serengeti Plain, and Rhino Rally exhibits (replacing that ride’s finale). It is also very close to Myombe Reserve’s gorilla exhibit but thankfully it is undetectable from there. Although it does not ruin the animal exhibits entirely, my fears were partially realized: the track is a visual distraction among the recreated African landscapes and the noise of the rollercoaster and screaming riders detracts from the immersion. Fortunately, the track is reportedly one of the quietest ever created and the course relies on launched speed over low ‘bunny hops’ and near-ground curves rather than lots of extreme drops and loops. It is a good ride, it is remarkable how little animal exhibit space was lost considering its length, and it is to be commended for not crossing into any exhibits; but I still wish it was not built. It is interesting that the massive 60’s-era open-air two-story shelter with ugly rock columns that also houses the Skyride station was repurposed for the station of Cheetah Hunt (it used to be for a suspended monorail ride that was demolished). The good part about this new addition is that a new animal exhibit was created, and it is a fine and memorable one: Cheetah Run. It replaces a barn and exhibit for clydesdale horses, the mascots of the park’s former corporate owner. It is located across the path from the ride’s station, and only a small section of the first part of the track runs adjacent to it. The habitat is a long narrow one but probably has more detail than any I have seen for this species. The back of the exhibit is contained with a fence obscured by thick bamboo plantings; in front of that is a grassy flat ground plane with a long straight dirt course (almost the entire length) for running demonstrations. Patches of fountain grasses interrupt the flat area, which is the upper elevation of the exhibit; large masses of simulated rock and a simulated deadfall trunk and roots form the plateau of a grassy sloped area that descends into a lower level, essentially a dry moat contained with rock that falls below the extensive visitor viewing area along most of the length. A small rocky waterfall and pond is also featured here. The viewing area across the moat can hold a large amount of people to witness the presentations, and a small rocky promontory juts out over the moat for keepers to stand on at these times. There are also areas at both ends of the exhibit that offer closer window views at ground level set in exotic bazaar-like architectural shelters that allude to the cultures of the cheetah’s range without being specific. Excellent graphics, including some fancy touch-screens set in themed interpretive displays, compliment what must have been a very pricey exhibit to build. I did not see any running presentations, but did hear very informative and educational amplified talks given outside the exhibit. There were five cheetahs in the exhibit when I was there (females, I think they were all sisters?) and they were a joy to watch as they used every part of the habitat and enjoyed running and chasing. They have at least one other young cheetah that has a dog companion, and apparently different combinations of the inhabitants are rotated through the exhibit. Cheetah Run: Egypt is the last themed area and is a dead-end spur off the main park loop. The heavily-themed village and temple area at its core does not have animal exhibits, but one of the park’s best animal exhibit complexes has been lumped together on the map with it because they are adjacent. That complex is Edge of Africa, and it has much more in common with the Nairobi and Cheetah Hunt areas adjacent to it than Egypt. I suspect that after a few years the map will no longer list Cheetah Hunt as a separate area and will include it and Edge of Africa back in Nairobi where they belong. Edge of Africa is a fine immersive twisting path that encounters open animal exhibits along the way and can be entered from three points; I will describe it from its entrance near the Cheetah Hunt station. In general the path is shaded with mature trees and thick vegetation that evokes a forest on the edge of a savanna and is scattered with tasteful safari camp details (including several obligatory parked safari vehicles with simulated tire tracks in the nicely themed concrete paths). A simulated rock outcrop begins the path, with several bronze statues recreating a lion pride that visitors can climb and pose for photos. Around a bend is a thatched timber shelter with roll-up fabric sides that contains some introductory graphics. A small rocky cave can be entered that is dominated by a large viewing window for the ring-tailed lemur exhibit. It is a nice open grassy yard with boulders and palms and deadfalls and a small wood shelter and platform. It is contained by a long rocky water moat on one side, beyond which is a backdrop of plantings and a view of the Skyride that passes parallel to the habitat. Simulated riverbank rockwork contains the moat as well as a slight terrace in the habitat, and is used elsewhere along the path in this area to good effect. One area also has a slope into a small lake, which is actually the adjacent river hippopotamus exhibit; I am not sure but I believe the lemurs can actually enter it because the only thing that separates the two along the backside is a series of spaced timber poles set in the ground. The poles prohibit the hippos from leaving their beach, but I saw the lemurs hopping from one pole to the next! So the lemur exhibit actually forms the backside of the hippo one, which is rather small in land area but features a fantastic pool. The visitor path leaves the lemur cave area and makes a few bends as it descends to arrive at a long themed shelter covered with a connected series of seemingly dilapidated timber buildings with tin roofs. This forms the underwater viewing area (the surface is at adult eye level) for the long pool that swarms with cichlids and has a rocky bottom of various depths for the hippos. Some rocky outcrops beyond the pool form a backdrop as well as two beach areas for this fine exhibit. Adjacent to it is a nice exhibit for Nile crocodile, again with underwater viewing panels seen from the same shelter, that has a similar look and surface level so that the two habitats appear to be one at first glance. They are actually separated by a rocky wall. The crocodile’s pool is smaller and the beach area more intimate; it also differs because the visitor path leaves the impressive viewing shelter and ascends a curve to view the backside of this exhibit from a glass and timber railing area set above the surface. The lone croc in this habitat is HUGE. After a few more path turns, the junction of the second entrance path is reached which connects the complex with the path that bisects the blesbok and Thompson’s gazelle field exhibit in Nairobi described earlier. Continuing on, Edge of Africa reaches a small simulated native mud-and-timber shelter that stregthens the cultural theme of the exhibit. Across the path from it is a larger thatched hut that can be entered to reveal a large viewing window into a predator exhibit; spotted hyena or African lion are rotated between this one and the next (actually the signs only listed hyena for this one so that may no longer be the case). This habitat is fairly large and is mostly open and grassy, with a sloped center that falls away to a tree and tall grass landscaped area that effectively hides the back containment. In the center is a low rocky open den. Unfortunately, the glass viewing windows adjacent to the shelter are much taller than it and poorly simulated tree trunks form the brackets between the windows that tower above, with just bare-edged glass revealed at the top, about 20 feet tall. After the shelter is an open viewing area of the same habitat with a severe rocky moat in front; the rockwork then adjoins a large rocky cave that can be entered and has two windows set within to view the exhibit. The concrete ground just inside the exhibit in the shadow of the rocky overhangs has simulated hyena pawprints, and a pile of simulated antelope bones resides in a rocky nook. A group of three hyenas was in the exhibit when I visited, but three years ago I also saw them in the next habitat, which is also viewed from this cave on the other side. Leaving the cave, a similar deep rocky moat separates the next habitat from an open viewing area along the path until a tall long tented structure is reached which features floor-to-ceiling viewing panels into the exhibit – which this time had African lion. A simulated safari truck is located on each end of this long viewing area, and each is situated to be halfway in and out of the exhibit; visitors can climb inside and view the animals right through the windows when they approach closely. I like this kind of adventurous feature, and like most of the features in this complex they are detailed in a realistic and rustic way rather than a cartoon-y one. The habitat itself has much variety, with low grasses and shrubs and some taller trees and deadfalls, with a slight slope. It also has a rocky containment on one side, formed by the viewing cave described above. Unlike the previous habitat, this one has an open backdrop; like the rest of the exhibits to follow, it borrows scenery from the adjacent massive Serengeti Plain exhibit very effectively. Visitors can watch the lions in front while seeing giraffes and zebras in the distance and not realize that there is a hidden barrier between the two. A few small tents are passed with tables for informal presentations before arriving at a clearing covered by large acacias and other shade trees. One exhibit here is a low open rocky-walled habitat for African white-backed vulture with a simulated cape buffalo skeleton and a rocky perch within. Next to it is a viewpoint for looking at the expanse of the Serengeti Plain and includes the species identification signs mentioned earlier. Next to that is a tall simulated termite mound, and then a low rocky-walled exhibit for meerkat. It is an average sandy exhibit for this often-highlighted species, but what makes it stand out is the view of the Serengeti Plain on its other side, where hoofstock can walk within feet of the landscaped back wall. The path then curves around a lobe of the Serengeti Plain and approaches a very nicely detailed waterhole lined with various shallows and deadfalls and boulders. There is no barrier between the waterhole and the savanna, and the waterhole’s deeper point is contained with a rocky wall that is right next to the path, acting as a water moat in this area for the hoofstock. Signs here list a nice selection of (pinioned) birds, although I am not sure if they like to spend time elsewhere in the 65 acres or stick to this area. The species include pink-backed pelican, white pelican (whoops!), brown pelican (whoops again!), Abdim’s stork, sacred ibis, Egyptian goose, vulturine guineafowl, helmeted guineafowl, marabou stork, gray crowned crane, and Masai ostrich (certainly a few of those range all over the savanna!). The last exhibit is a shallower waterhole adjacent to the other with tall grassy land areas that is actually fenced separately; it is a scenic one for lesser flamingo and also takes advantage of borrowing the view of the Serengeti Plain just behind it. The path then leaves the exhibit area and encounters the third entrance with yet another themed timber shelter (the ‘Park Ranger’s’) with introductory graphics and a parked safari truck. This path leads into the core of Egypt, but the excellent Edge of Africa complex clearly has closer ties to the Nairobi area. Serengeti Plain waterhole viewed from Edge of Africa: Busch Gardens Tampa is certainly a major zoo and worthy of a full-day visit. I rank it at number 11 of the 58 zoo facilities I have visited. If I had a list of the three combination zoo/amusement parks I have seen, it would be number 2 just behind Disney’s Animal Kingdom and FAR above Six Flags Discovery Kingdom. I rank Edge of Africa very highly in my list of top 50 themed exhibit complexes at number 11; it is excellent but what lifts it up is its location ‘borrowing’ views from the Serengeti Plain adjacent to it. None of the other complexes make my list although Jungala might if it was not integrated in a play area and Myombe Reserve might if it had a more diverse set of exhibits besides the apes. For individual exhibits top 25 lists, the river hippopotamus exhibit in Edge of Africa is #10 for aquatic mammals, Serengeti Plain is #22 for large mammals, the first tiger exhibit in Jungala is #25 for large mammals, and the Nile crocodile exhibit in Edge of Africa is #10 for reptiles. General adult admission is $79.99 which is about 55 bucks overpriced for visitors only interested in the animal attractions, but of course the park has many more features for amusement park fans and is probably fairly priced for that group. Online and combination discounts are abundant however, and any trip here should be planned in conjunction with the park’s sister SeaWorld Orlando park for better value. I have posted additonal pictures in the gallery.
Thanks for yet another highly informative review. The $80 price tag is scary, but this zoo is one that I have yet to visit and somewhat annoyingly I still have 3 zoos that I have not toured out of America's 60 best (if one adheres to the list in the book "America's Best Zoos"). The exhibits for gorillas and chimpanzees in the ZooChat gallery look amazing, and I'll eventually get around to visiting Busch Gardens, Lowry Park and Honolulu. Geomorph, if I remember correctly you rank the state of Florida quite high in terms of zoos/aquariums, and would it be your #1 state for captive wildlife attractions? Also, do you have an updated list of your top ranked zoos?
Nice review, geomorph. I also visited Busch Gardens in 2008 and loved it. Unfortunately, my visit was a week before Jungala opened! Also, I had arrived late at about one in the afternoon, so I only had time for the Serengeti Safari (which I took the jeep tour into the exhibit), Edge of Africa (spectacular habitat), an acrobatic show, lunch, the Rhino Rally area, and a few other scattered exhibits, such as the gators. Based on your review, though, it seems like I didn't miss out on any other fantastic animal exhibits besides Myombe Reserve (looks good based on the pictures) and Jungala. Because of this review, I really want to return to Busch Gardens sometime in the future and see the new additions - the cheetah and kangaroo exhibits sound cool! (It's ranked #3 in my list of 12 zoos)
Thanks for the review. What I find disturbing about this park is that any conservation value that it has seems to be diminished by running cheapo thrill rides through it (the cheetah coaster, the rhino racing vehicles, the zip line across Jungala). I fear for the welfare of the animals too with the attendant noise and visual disturbances. This park seems more like a circus than a modern conservation-themed zoo. What is even more disturbing is that this model seems to be where the San Diego Zoo is possibly headed as they infest their park with 4D theaters, ziplines, and who knows what next. I joked in another thread that maybe the new koala exhibit would have a koala themed roller coaster running through it, but after reading what is going on at Busch Gardens, maybe it isn't just a joke...
Busch Gardens has always been an amusement/theme park first and foremost.That being said they have always exhibited animals and do a very good job of it as Jungala and Myobe Reserve are some of the best individual zoo exhibits we have visited.Its just not realistic to think that BG is not going to always focus on visitor attractions first and conservation second. Team Tapir
Good point. My main concern in bringing this up is that the Busch Gardens model (zoo absorbed by theme park and circus elements) seems to be where some of our major zoos like San Diego and Lowry Park may be headed. Is this a bad thing? Is it necessary in these economic times? I don't know, but my gut feeling is that I don't like it as it seems to be tearing down progress that zoos have been making in transforming themselves into the conservation organizations that they state they want to be.
snowleopard, I do indeed rank Florida as my favorite state for animal attractions! I don't think my ranked list of zoos I have visited has changed much since last posting it on that other thread, especially since i have been to so few zoos this year...and that probably explains why I went hog-wild on this review. I had to split it in half because when I went to submit it, it refused to post it in one post, saying that it exceeded the 50,000 character limit! Anyway, my zoo and aquarium visits in the past year were: California Academy of Sciences, SeaWorld Orlando/Aquatica, and Busch Gardens Tampa. I had been to all of them before, so hopefully this year I will find myself somewhere new with a zoo!
Thought I would clear up some of the unidentified species geomorph was talking about. The species of flamingo on Rhino Rally is Caribbean Flamingo (BGT really needs to exhibit animals better in terms of geography.) Here is a list of the birds in Kookaburra's Nest: Kookaburra's Nest: A Bird Identification Guide (Part 1) | Busch Gardens Tampa Also, some other species on the 65 acre Serengeti Plain exhibit are White Rhinos, Grant's Zebras, Hartmann's Mountain Zebras, and Wildebeest. I also think there are Scimitar-Horned Oryx. On Rhino Rally, I know I've seen Hartmann's Mountain Zebras as well. Perhaps the two species of zebras are rotated on exhibit?
