08-01-2012
The number of exhibits accurately listed on this map is a very small number, and I was not too impressed when I toured this zoo last summer.
An excerpt from my 2011 review:
Zoo Map – I study zoo maps constantly and when touring a zoo for the first time I look over the map at least once every 5 minutes, and so in our 3 hour visit I must have studied the map a minimum of 60 times! I collect maps and I have around 500 different maps from zoos and aquariums all over the world, and Santa Barbara’s is easily one of the worst I’ve seen in my life.
At first glance the map appears to be quite impressive, but that is misleading as only 11 “must-see exhibits” are listed. There are no other animals listed anywhere. Unbelievable! For example in section “E” a snow leopard enclosure is labeled and in actual fact there are at least a dozen exhibits in that zone of the zoo and none are mentioned on the map. Section “H”, according to the map, is California Condors but in actuality there are two huge aviaries, a small rattlesnake building, a fox exhibit and several open-air reptile enclosures that are only tiny pictures but are unlabeled on the map. For such a map aficionado such as myself it drove me completely bonkers and I never quite knew when a certain area was complete as tiny exhibits are tucked away in all sorts of nooks and crannies. A zoo map does not have to label every single enclosure, but to only list 11 animals is ridiculous and amateurish.
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