Snowleopard's Mammals: A Lifetime List of Species

A narrow, dare I say slender miss! And in this case anything but a miss!! Ahh aren't "armchair ticks" lovely!? My favorite one was realizing I had Cotton's Oribi from scouring my early 1990s photos from San Diego Wild Animal Park a whopping 20 years later. Figures I ended up getting more Oribi's in the wild soon after that, but still fun to have had it captive for all those years without knowing.

I wonder how many more you will come across in this extraordinary endeavor.

My only North American Tarsier was at the Cleveland Zoo in 2006. Did you visit anytime around then?

 

Cotton's Oribi...wow!

I visited Cleveland Zoo in 2010, so missed seeing a Tarsier there. The closest I came was when I was at Ouwehands Dierenpark (Netherlands) in 2019, as the zoo had at least one Tarsier there in 2017 and 2018 inside a small Nocturnal House by the Red Pandas. I only saw two species inside during my visit, but they were Pygmy Slow Loris and Spotted Cuscus and that was exciting.

 

here's the Oribi:
1992 San Diego Wild Animal Park - ZooChat

And Spotted Cuscus is VERY exciting!! One I've seldom seen!! Curious if there will be a Marsupial portion of your thread? I know you mentioned rodents and bats won't be attempted. Do you at least keep a list of which species of those you've seen (if not every zoo you've seen them in)?

 

Dang it! Only one type of Slender Loris then. Damn name variants.

I have spent my life visiting zoos and I didn't have a single overall species list until this year, as I'm basically putting it together in this thread. I have waded through 551 zoo reviews, 30,000 photos and 3,000 zoo maps to help me along the way. It's been a gargantuan task, as I've already invested 6 months just coming up with the numbers that I now post on a daily basis. My early reviews are not detailed enough to include rodents, although I have compiled lists of Beavers, Nutrias and various Porcupines. Those will be in this thread eventually. As for mice, rats, hamsters and even Maras and Capybaras...there's too many to comprehend. I'm not sure that I'll even bother with Meerkats, every zoo nerd's favourite animal.

I've attempted bats and I have a lot of data, but I'm fairly certain that I'm not going to include any of it here because it's not accurate enough. The thread, thus far, is at the point where I'd say it's 95% accurate and I don't want to blow that statistic wide open by tackling bats. All the Mammals of the World (2023) has almost 120 pages packed with bats and my early reviews are far too vague. There's some long reviews from 16 years ago that mention "bat caves" but no species are listed. Or I'll say "flying foxes" or even "fruit bats" and therefore the exact species could be anything. Plus, zoo signage is horribly misleading at many facilities.

Macropods are another conundrum, and at this point in time I might not include them either. We'll see how it goes. But rest assured, I have a massive pile of felines, canines, otters, weasels, bears, pinnipeds, etc., to keep me busy for months. Then there's all the hoofed mammals as well, which will be a huge total thanks to the numerous safari parks I've been to. It will be ungulate mania by Christmastime.

 

Thank you for confirming this. I know it's been suspected for a while but there hadn't been an official word. A terrible loss in my opinion, especially as my understanding is Memphis held red slender loris, while the European population is the grey slender loris.

 

My Primate List: 141 TOTAL SPECIES

Lemurs - 215 zoos (20 species: 184 Ring-tailed, 76 Black-and-white Ruffed, 75 Red Ruffed, 14 Black, 12 Mongoose, 10 Crowned, 10 Red-fronted, 9 Blue-eyed Black, 9 Collared Brown, 9 Common Brown, 9 Coquerel's Sifaka, 7 Red-bellied, 6 Grey Mouse, 6 White-fronted, 5 Aye-aye, 4 Lac Alaotra Gentle, 3 Fat-tailed Dwarf, 1 Crowned Sifaka, 1 Goodman's Mouse, 1 Greater Bamboo, with many zoos having multiple species)

Tamarins - 147 zoos (13 species: 88 Cotton-top, 62 Golden Lion, 23 Emperor, 21 Golden-headed Lion, 14 Red-handed, 9 Pied, 5 Geoffroy’s, 5 White-lipped, 1 Black Lion, 1 Black-mantled, 1 Brown-mantled, 1 Moustached, 1 Weddell’s Saddle-back, with some zoos having multiple species)

Gibbons - 143 zoos and 192 exhibits (9 species: 64 White-handed, 62 Siamang, 36 Northern White-cheeked, 12 Yellow-cheeked, 7 Southern Grey, 5 Pileated, 3 Silvery, 2 Agile, 1 Eastern Hoolock, with some zoos having multiple species)

Spider Monkeys - 91 zoos and 95 exhibits (5 species: Black-headed, Colombian Brown, Geoffroy's, Red-faced Black, White-bellied)

Marmosets - 89 zoos and 101 exhibits (6 species: 39 Pygmy, 34 Common, 19 White-headed, 4 Silvery, 3 Black-tufted, 2 Wied's, with some zoos having multiple species)

Macaques - 80 zoos and 113 exhibits (12 species: 25 Lion-tailed, 23 Japanese, 16 Barbary, 13 Sulawesi Crested, 10 Pig-tailed, 9 Rhesus, 7 Crab-eating, 4 Bonnet, 2 Stump-tailed, 2 Toque, 1 Booted, 1 Tonkean, including some zoos with multiple species)

Squirrel Monkeys - 78 zoos (2 species: Bolivian, Common)

Gorillas - 74 zoos (2 species: Western Lowland, plus 1 Eastern Lowland at Antwerp Zoo)

Orangutans - 74 zoos (2 species: Bornean, Sumatran)

Colobus Monkeys - 72 zoos (3 species: Angolan, King, Mantled Guereza)

Capuchins - 71 zoos and 81 exhibits (7 species: 44 Tufted, 19 White-faced, 9 Golden-bellied, 5 White-fronted, 2 Crested, 1 Hooded, 1 Wedge-capped, with 10 zoos having two species)

Chimpanzees - 64 zoos

Guenons - 63 zoos and 96 exhibits (13 species: 28 De Brazza's, 15 Diana, 12 Wolf's Mona, 10 Red-tailed, 9 Lesser Spot-nosed, 7 Mona, 5 Blue, 2 L'Hoest's, 2 Owl-faced, 2 Roloway, 2 Sykes', 1 Greater Spot-nosed, 1 Moustached, with some zoos having multiple species)

Saki Monkeys - 58 zoos (2 species: 56 White-faced, 2 Bearded)

Langurs - 48 zoos (6 species: 17 Francois', 9 Dusky Leaf, 8 East Javan, 6 Hanuman, 6 Silvery Lutung, 2 Red-shanked Douc)

Baboons - 41 zoos and 48 exhibits (4 species: 31 Hamadryas, 10 Olive, 6 Guinea, 1 Yellow, with some zoos having multiple species)

Mandrills - 41 zoos

Howler Monkeys - 40 zoos (2 species: 34 Black, 6 Red)

Goeldi's Monkeys - 38 zoos

Mangabeys - 30 zoos (5 species: 11 Red-capped, 9 Black Crested, 6 Golden-bellied, 3 White-naped, 1 Sooty)

Douroucoulis - 22 zoos (5 species: Grey-legged, Humboldt's, Nancy Ma's, Southern Bolivian, Three-striped)

Lorises - 22 zoos and 25 exhibits (3 species: 17 Pygmy Slow Loris, 5 Slow Loris, 3 Gray Slender Loris)

Patas Monkeys - 20 zoos

Titi Monkeys - 19 zoos (3 species: 11 White-eared, 7 Coppery, 1 Red-bellied)

Chlorocebus Monkeys - 17 zoos (3 species: Vervet, Green, Grivet)

Galagos - 15 zoos and 16 exhibits (2 species: Greater, Lesser, maybe more species?)

Bonobos - 14 zoos

Allen's Swamp Monkeys - 10 zoos

Drills - 8 zoos

Geladas - 6 zoos

Northern Talapoin Monkeys - 4 zoos

Pottos - 3 zoos

Woolly Monkeys - 2 zoos

Bald Uakari - 1 zoo

 

With the primate list complete, do you have any overall favorite exhibits or species, or any species you would really hope to see in the future?

 

I'm a massive fan of primates and on many occasions they have been the highlight of a zoo visit. The thing about primates is that they are active, so much more than practically any other type of animal. Lions will hardly move for hours, even memorable mammals such as Giant Pandas and Koalas are often a bust to see because of their lethargy, but primates are constantly shifting around their exhibit space and often draw large crowds. It's why I've seen primates at 292 zoos in total. They are popular and there's too many world-class exhibits to begin to list them all here.

It's difficult to have too many favourites, but of course Gorillas are an iconic zoo animal and mightily impressive up close. It's always a joy to stumble across a real zoo rarity like Geladas, Woolly Monkeys or Northern Talapoin Monkeys, but even seeing a Cotton-top Tamarin for the umpteenth time is a thrill.

A genuinely exciting primate to see in a zoo is any type of gibbon, as they are larger than typical monkeys and lemurs and thus their size is eye-catching. They are arguably more active than all their ape peers, and can be noisier as well. It's no surprise that I've visited 143 zoos with gibbons and seen close to 200 gibbon exhibits. For size, activity and noise, it's tough to top a gibbon.

One thing that has been touched upon several times on this thread is the alarming lack of primate diversity in many AZA zoos. It's worth mentioning one more time that in non-accredited zoos there are far more primate species that are simply never at the accredited facilities. Europe is leagues ahead, albeit with more zoos, but there's clearly not been the big reduction overseas as there has been in North America.

I could list approximately 35 primate species that I've only ever seen either once or twice in my lifetime. It's astonishing to note how many rarities I've come across that I've never seen again. For example, it's going to be a sad future for North American zoo nerds if they can only readily see Japanese Macaques and not a single other macaque species in AZA zoos. If there's a lack of space, then make more space! Do we only want to offer conservation opportunities for a single species? Or have only a handful of common lemur species and the rest be almost nonexistent? Of the 13 guenon species I've seen, how many are flourishing in AZA zoos? Zero. The same could be said for mangabeys. At least in Europe, there's a larger population base for many primate species, with more zoos in the EAZA, and a willingness to maintain species before they die out forever.

 

Since you have already tackled elephants, will hyraxes and manatees be next or are you saving that for a future day?

 

I will say that, with a few exceptions, I am overall very optimistic about the future of primates in AZA zoos. While I know this isn't necessarily the most common opinion, let me explain why:

• While I greatly value diversity in zoo collections, I find the "big-picture" diversity matters more than the specific diversity within groups. In this regard, the AZA still manages a wide variety of primates that encompass large parts of primate diversity. Three gibbon species are managed, and each are from different genera, so while at first that may seem like not a lot of gibbon species, it allows zoos to highlight these really cool animals that have a lot of education potential. While a part of me would love it if the AZA was able to manage four or five gibbon species, it'd be impossible to make the space to manage that many species sustainably, so choices need to be made. With a few exceptions, most major groups within primates have at least one species with a rather robust population, meaning that the "big-picture" diversity of primates is largely available for zoos to highlight.

• I don't see the value in comparing the primate diversity in zoos to that of a time when zoos used vastly different philosophies. While being able to see, say, thirteen guenon species in zoos, sounds awesome, the reality is that if zoos are to focus on sustainable populations of species that don't rely on wild-caught imports, more space needs to be dedicated to a fewer number of species.

• At the cost of diversity, the US has gained so many incredible primate exhibits. The reason unaccredited zoos tend to have lots of primates is that their enclosures are often abysmal. It takes a lot of space to house species correctly, and I don't know about you but I would much rather have one impressive large gorilla exhibit than three small, inadequate exhibits for different ape species on the same footprint. To the extent diversity within zoos is declining, it is often as a result of building much larger, more naturalistic enclosures.

• There has been growing international cooperation between US and European zoos in recent years. Bonobos are now being managed as a Global Species Management Plan, meaning that a more genetically stable population can be maintained than with strictly one continent's holders. There have been imports and/or exports of numerous primate species in recent years too, with the US populations gaining new founders from Europe for callimicos and bearded emperor tamarins, while Europe has gained a completely new species in Coquerel's sifakas, just as a few examples (there are more). Sometimes, these imports allow institutions to manage species that otherwise it'd be very difficult to- such as San Diego and Bronx working with EAZA to maintain geladas.

• The AZA's TAGs are doing their jobs well. While space is certainly limited, the TAGs have been doing a lot of work to ensure that space is being used as effectively as possible. Most of the times, zoos aren't picky when it comes to the specific species they display. Many zoos, for instance, may want a "gibbon" exhibit, but don't care what gibbon species they house there. The Ape TAG and Gibbon SSP has done a great job ensuring that the species housed in these spaces are balanced between the three managed species, so that no species becomes so popular it pushes another program out. There are a few exceptions to this- Guereza colobus and ring-tailed lemurs are both overly popular, debatably taking spaces that'd be better used for other primate species, but these examples are few and far between.

• Regardless of how many species were historically managed, there is still a lot of primate diversity successfully maintained in US zoos. African monkeys, macaques, and nocturnal species are a few exceptions to this, but there are still strong populations of gorillas, chimpanzees, both orangutans, three gibbon species, two species of colobus, mandrill, Francois' langur, Japanese macaque, three tamarin species, Geoffroy's marmosets, common squirrel monkeys, white-faced saki, Bolivian grey titi monkeys, black-and-gold howlers, two spider monkey species, ring-tailed lemurs, both ruffed lemurs, Coquerel's sifaka, mongoose lemurs, Moholi bushbabies, and pygmy slow lorises. Just right there I listed 29 species that I am confident have a strong future in US zoos, barring something tragic happen (e.g., lion-tailed macaques were once one of the most common primates prior to the herpes scare). These 29 species cover almost every major group of primates and includes a wide variety of species to fill all sorts of institutional needs.

• Even outside the 29 species I mentioned above, there are many more species that have smaller populations that still have a high chance of success and have dedicated holders (sometimes only one holder- thanks Duke Lemur Center). Some of these include bonobos, three guenon species, patas monkeys, Hamadryas baboon, gelada, Nancy Ma's night monkeys, callimico, three Eulemur species, aye-ayes, and grey mouse lemurs. While none of these thirteen species have as certain a future as the 29 listed above, they remain species I am hopeful will continue to be maintained in US zoos for decades to come. Crab-eating macaques might also fall into this category- as Indianapolis has had some breeding success and exhibit a large group.

• The possibility exists for new primate species to take hold in zoos in the future too. Fort Wayne Children's Zoo and Greensboro Science Center both collaborate with international zoos on Javan gibbons, meaning that if interest in gibbons spike there is a possibility of adding this as a fourth managed gibbon population. Europe has large populations of species such as Lac Alaotra bamboo lemurs, pygmy marmosets, diana monkeys, lion-tailed macaques, and Sulawesi macaques that could be sources of future imports if zoos are interested. The AZA has also accredited more zoos in primate-range countries- such as Cali Zoo in Colombia and Temaiken in Argentina, so there's always the possibility of native species entering these zoos and then the greater AZA population too. While I don't expect all (or even most) of these to happen, there's a strong chance that at least one interested zoo will take the initiative to import and work with a rarer primate species- and hopefully have it catch on from there.

 

Since you did elephants, can you please do Nile Hippos next now that you are done primates? I would love to see the number of zoos you saw Nile Hippos that no longer have them or have since gotten a new exhibit.

 

I can imagine how many hours all of this takes, so I understand when you feel you may need to draw the line. I also want to reassure you there's never been much bat species variety in North American Zoos. The Zoobats Collections (N. America) thread has under 20 species listed now, and a bunch of those are in only 1 or 2 collections. With the wealth of knowledge among all the members on zoochat, I bet you could at least piece together which species you've ever seen (although I guess that's different than an exhaustive list of every place you've seen them). Europe only has a few additional species (especially if you aren't specifically seeking them out) plus I'd imagine your notes are more detailed from those recent trips.

I'm holding out hope for Macropods and the rest of Marsupials. Again not too many species options in North America and only a few extra goodies in Europe (excluding Hamerton- have you been there?)

Oh also curious what Primates would be on top of your wishlist?? Maybe 5 or 10 if you have them in mind?

 

@Smaggledagle and @Nile Hippo Expert Now that primates are done and dusted, and all 141 species have been counted, it's time to tackle Felidae as part of the first phase of 'Carnivores'. Bring on the cats!

@Neil chace I enjoyed reading your positivity and in truth you made many excellent points. You provided 8 bullet points and I found myself, for the most part, agreeing with most of your comments. I do, however, wish to stress that the lack of primate diversity is much more dramatic than perhaps any of us realized before I began this thread. There hasn't been a gradual deterioration of primate diversity in American zoos over several decades, but instead the vast bulk of my data has been from 2008 to 2023...a mere 15 years. In that time span, a LOT of primates have literally disappeared from AZA zoos. It's great to see modern, expansive exhibits being built, and I'm fine with losing some species along the way, but there's been a tremendous loss in those 15 years and it's definitely worrying.

I really enjoy discussing zoos and their past/present/future, and it was truly eye-opening for me to embark on two European trips in 2019 and 2022. I've talked at length about the differences between North American and European zoos on those road trip threads, with one key contrast is that I didn't come across the junky roadside collections in Europe that I have done in the United States. The smaller, privately-run European zoos that I saw, admittedly all in wealthier Western European nations, had a lot of primate diversity and in better quality exhibits. There has been stronger management of primates there and not the constant regression of species such as has been the case in North America. For instance, having a healthy number of maybe 4 or 5 lemur species in North America seems pitifully small to me, with so many species struggling along or nonexistent. And, again, a lot of the losses have occurred in a relatively short span of 15 years. But, nevertheless @Neil chace I always value your opinion and I agree with quite a few of your points. In the end, I simply do not feel the optimism that you do when it comes to phase-out species and vibrant primate populations.

@Giant Eland I have not been to Hamerton and my only taste of England is a few hours at Heathrow Airport back in 2003. I didn't see any macropods by the luggage carousel.

My primate wish list would include the following: Proboscis Monkey, any of the 17 species of Red Colobus, Indri, some kind of Tarsier, a Snub-nosed Monkey, a Dryas Monkey, maybe a Grizzled Langur, etc.

 

Haha, reminds me of landing in the Azores they had a huge photo of a breaching whale I at first thought was a Beaked Whale. It actually was a juvenile Sperm whale at an odd angle, but either way pretty cool to see above the luggage carousel.

Fantastic primate list. As species almost never kept in captivity the Indri and Red Colobus had featured high on my wish lists until I was lucky enough to track them both down wild (3 species of Red Colobus so far). Then I've seen 5 Tarsier and 3 Snub-nosed Monkey species. I hadn't heard much about Dryas Monkey or Grizzled Langurs until just now, so thanks for sharing and adding them to my wishlist haha. Such a shame you didn't see Proboscis at Bronx before they were gone from there! Did nowhere in Europe have them when you went? Maybe Singapore could be in your near future?

In the theme of this thread, I believe I've seen Proboscis Monkeys at the following 7 Zoos:

1. Bronx Zoo (USA) 1980s
2. Taman Safari Bogor (Indonesia) 2018
3. Batu Secret Zoo (Indonesia) 2018
4. Singapore Zoo (Singapore) 2018
5. Taman Safari Prigen (Indonesia) 2022
6. Faunaland (Indonesia) 2022
7. Ragunan Zoo (Indonesia) 2022

 

It is worth noting that a lot of the losses in those fifteen years were species that were never common to begin with. Furthermore, given that some primates are extremely long-lived animals, many losses reflect species that were phased out decades ago. Gibbons are a great example of this: a number of rarer gibbon species still have a small presence in US zoos (e.g., Mueller's, pileated, buff-cheeked), however their presence may not at all reflect any recent breeding and/or a decision made in recent years- seeing as there are still some gibbons in US zoos that were wild-caught in the 1960's!

Some others as well represented dwindling remains from a different time- Los Angeles Zoo's bald uakari was 39 years old when he passed away, Philadelphia Zoo's douc langur was 21 years old, and when Joel Sartore visited Louisville Zoo in 2014 their two woolly monkeys were already the last two in a US zoo (and they lived there at least another eight years), Zoo Atlanta is the final holder of drills in the US and all four of their drills are over twenty years old. It takes a long time to phase out a primate (or a bear, cetacean, elephant, etc.) due to their long lifespans- if the AZA decided to phase out some rare species of mouse the same day they decided to phase out drills that species would have disappeared from zoos twenty years ago, while drills may still be around in five or ten years.

 

If I'm going to kick-start the Felidae family, then the 'King of the Jungle' seems like the best choice to begin things with. I've seen Lions at a whopping 179 zoos. I was born in 1975 and all through the late 1970s and early 1980s I would visit the Alberta Game Farm in Edmonton, Canada, which had a name change to Polar Park and then eventually closed down in 1998, and that's my first experience with Lions. This big cat is typical of most zoos, being found across the board in every kind of zoological facility one can imagine. If you look at this list carefully, you will note that I've seen Asiatic Lions on 9 occasions, 8 at European zoos and once at Audubon Zoo in the USA. That's what they had on all their signs, but were those cats actually Asiatic Lions?

There are FOUR summer road trips where I saw a heck of a lot of Lions:

2008 = 23 new zoos with Lions
2010 = 30 new zoos with Lions
2015 = 22 new zoos with Lions
2019 = 29 new zoos with Lions

1- Alberta Game Farm/Polar Park (Canada) – African Lion – 1975
2- Alberta Wildlife Park (Canada) – African Lion – 1975
3- Calgary Zoo (Canada) – African Lion – 1986
4- Perth Zoo (Australia) – African Lion – 1987
5- Woodland Park Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 1996
6- Greater Vancouver Zoo (Canada) – African Lion – 1998
7- Zurich Zoo (Switzerland) – Asiatic Lion – 2003
8- San Francisco Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2006
9- San Diego Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2006
10- San Diego Zoo Safari Park (USA) – African Lion – 2006
11- Denver Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2006
12- Taronga Zoo (Australia) – African Lion – 2007
13- Crocodylus Park (Australia) – African Lion – 2007
14- Adelaide Zoo (Australia) – African Lion – 2007
15- Monarto Zoo (Australia) – African Lion – 2007
16- Melbourne Zoo (Australia) – African Lion – 2007
17- Lincoln Park Zoo - Illinois (USA) – African Lion – 2008
18- Brookfield Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2008
19- Toledo Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2008
20- Detroit Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2008
21- Toronto Zoo (Canada) – African Lion – 2008
22- Bronx Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2008
23- Smithsonian’s National Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2008
24- Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium (USA) – African Lion – 2008
25- Columbus Zoo and Aquarium (USA) – African Lion – 2008
26- Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden (USA) – African Lion – 2008
27- Indianapolis Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2008
28- Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium (USA) – African Lion – 2008
29- Memphis Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2008
30- Knoxville Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2008
31- Zoo Atlanta (USA) – African Lion – 2008
32- Fort Worth Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2008
33- Oklahoma City Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2008
34- Phoenix Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2008
35- Los Angeles Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2008
36- Emperor Valley Zoo (Trinidad & Tobago) – African Lion – 2008
37- Disney’s Animal Kingdom (USA) – African Lion – 2008
38- Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens (USA) – African Lion – 2008
39- Zoo Miami (USA) – African Lion – 2008
40- Oregon Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
41- Wildlife Safari (USA) – African Lion – 2010
42- Cheyenne Mountain Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
43- Sedgwick County Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
44- Tulsa Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
45- Kansas City Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
46- Saint Louis Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
47- Mesker Park Zoo & Botanic Garden (USA) – African Lion – 2010
48- Louisville Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
49- Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
50- Milwaukee County Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
51- Akron Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
52- Cleveland Metroparks Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
53- Buffalo Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
54- Philadelphia Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
55- Maryland Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
56- North Carolina Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
57- Riverbanks Zoo & Garden (USA) – African Lion – 2010
58- Birmingham Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
59- Montgomery Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
60- Audubon Zoo (USA) – Asiatic Lion – 2010
61- Houston Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
62- Caldwell Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
63- Dallas Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
64- Cameron Park Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
65- San Antonio Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
66- Gladys Porter Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
67- El Paso Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
68- ABQ BioPark Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2010
69- Zoo Boise (USA) – African Lion – 2010
70- Oakland Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2011
71- Santa Barbara Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2011
72- Reid Park Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2011
73- Wildlife World Zoo, Aquarium & Safari Park (USA) – African Lion – 2011
74- Sacramento Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2011
75- Blank Park Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2012
76- Potawatomi Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2012
77- John Ball Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2012
78- Potter Park Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2012
79- Erie Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2012
80- Rosamond Gifford Zoo at Burnet Park (USA) – African Lion – 2012
81- Franklin Park Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2012
82- Virginia Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2012
83- Naples Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2012
84- Busch Gardens Tampa Bay (USA) – African Lion – 2012
85- Little Rock Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2012
86- Dickerson Park Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2012
87- Topeka Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2012
88- Rolling Hills Wildlife Adventure (USA) – African Lion – 2012
89- Tautphaus Park Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2012
90- Cat Tales Zoological Park (USA) – African Lion – 2014
91- Roosevelt Park Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2014
92- Lake Superior Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2014
93- Como Park Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2014
94- DeYoung Family Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2014
95- Northeastern Wisconsin (NEW) Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2014
96- Timbavati Wildlife Park (USA) – African Lion – 2014
97- Henry Vilas Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2014
98- Racine Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2014
99- Niabi Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2014
100- Peoria Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2014
101- Great Bend Brit Spaugh Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2014
102- Lee Richardson Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2014
103- Pueblo Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2014
104- Riverside Discovery Center (USA) – African Lion – 2015
105- Tiger Safari (USA) – African Lion – 2015
106- G W Exotic Animal Park (USA) – African Lion – 2015
107- Amarillo Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2015
108- C.A.R.E. Center for Animal Research/Education (USA) – African Lion – 2015
109- In Sync Exotics Wildlife Rescue & Ed.Center (USA) – African Lion – 2015
110- Wild Wilderness Drive-Through Safari (USA) – African Lion – 2015
111- Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge (USA) – African Lion – 2015
112- Alexandria Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2015
113- Tiger Creek Wildlife Refuge (USA) – African Lion – 2015
114- Ellen Trout Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2015
115- The Texas Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2015
116- Animal World & Snake Farm Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2015
117- Austin Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2015
118- Capital of Texas Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2015
119- Abilene Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2015
120- Out of Africa (USA) – African Lion – 2015
121- Lion Habitat Ranch (USA) – African Lion – 2015
122- Siegfried & Roy’s Secret Garden/Dolphin Habitat (USA) – African Lion – 2015
123- Sierra Safari Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2015
124- Great Cats World Park (USA) – African Lion – 2015
125- West Coast Game Park Safari (USA) – African Lion – 2015
126- Discovery Wildlife Park (Canada) – African Lion – 2016
127- Six Flags Discovery Kingdom (USA) – African Lion – 2017
128- Monterey Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2017
129- Fresno Chaffee Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2017
130- Project Survival’s Cat Haven (USA) – African Lion – 2017
131- Forever Wild Exotic Animal Sanctuary (USA) – African Lion – 2017
132- America’s Teaching Zoo: Moorpark College (USA) – African Lion – 2017
133- Border City Petting Zoo (Canada) – African Lion – 2018
134- GarLyn Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2018
135- Wilderness Trails Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2018
136- Washington Park Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2018
137- Wisconsin Big Cat Rescue (USA) – African Lion – 2018
138- Jo-Don Farms (USA) – African Lion – 2018
139- Animal Haven Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2018
140- Special Memories Zoo (USA) – African Lion – 2018
141- Artis Royal Zoo (Netherlands) – African Lion – 2019
142- Landgoed Hoenderdaell (Netherlands) – African Lion – 2019
143- Diergaarde Blijdorp (Netherlands) – Asiatic Lion – 2019
144- Maubeuge Zoo (France) – Asiatic Lion – 2019
145- Zoo Antwerp (Belgium) – African Lion – 2019
146- Planckendael Zoo (Belgium) – Asiatic Lion – 2019
147- Pakawi Park (Belgium) – African Lion – 2019
148- Pairi Daiza (Belgium) – African Lion – 2019
149- Safari Parc Monde Sauvage (Belgium) – African Lion – 2019
150- GaiaZOO (Netherlands) – African Lion – 2019
151- Mondo Verde (Netherlands) – African Lion – 2019
152- Frankfurt Zoo (Germany) – Asiatic Lion – 2019
153- Zoo Neuwied (Germany) – African Lion – 2019
154- Cologne Zoo (Germany) – Asiatic Lion – 2019
155- Wuppertal Zoo (Germany) – African Lion – 2019
156- ZOOM Erlebniswelt (Germany) – African Lion – 2019
157- Duisburg Zoo (Germany) – African Lion – 2019
158- Dierenrijk (Animal Kingdom) (Netherlands) – African Lion – 2019
159- Beekse Bergen (Netherlands) – African Lion – 2019
160- ZooParc Overloon (Netherlands) – African Lion – 2019
161- Ouwehands Dierenpark (Netherlands) – African Lion – 2019
162- Burgers' Zoo (Netherlands) – African Lion – 2019
163- Tierpark Hagenbeck (Germany) – African Lion – 2019
164- Erlebnis Zoo Hannover (Germany) – African Lion – 2019
165- Serengeti-Park (Germany) – African Lion – 2019
166- Osnabruck Zoo (Germany) – African Lion – 2019
167- Allwetterzoo Munster (Germany) – African Lion – 2019
168- Wildlands Adventure Zoo Emmen (Netherlands) – African Lion – 2019
169- Dierenpark Amersfoort (Netherlands) – African Lion – 2019
170- Givskud Zoo (Denmark) – African Lion – 2022
171- Ree Park Safari (Denmark) – African Lion – 2022
172- Jyllands Park Zoo (Denmark) – African Lion – 2022
173- Aalborg Zoo (Denmark) – Asiatic Lion – 2022
174- Odense Zoo (Denmark) – African Lion – 2022
175- Kolmarden Wildlife Park (Sweden) – African Lion – 2022
176- Parken Zoo (Sweden) – Asiatic Lion – 2022
177- Boras Zoo (Sweden) – African Lion – 2022
178- Kristiansand Zoo (Norway) – African Lion – 2022
179- Copenhagen Zoo (Denmark) – African Lion – 2022

I took this photo in May 2006 at San Francisco Zoo (USA):



A truly memorable African Lion exhibit was at Monarto Zoo (Australia) in 2007. The enclosure was absolutely massive and when coming across a pride of Lions it was like being on an African Safari. This particular photo used to be at the top of every ZooChat page...back when it was called ZooBeat. A classic image:



@Simon Hampel

Sometimes there are vast alterations to existing enclosures. Here's what was a boring old grotto for African Lions at Lincoln Park Zoo (USA) and I took this photo in 2008.



How things have changed!



@ZooNerd1234

I first saw African Lions at Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium (USA) in 2008, in a mediocre exhibit connected to the old Feline House. Going back to the zoo in 2012, I again saw Lions in the same old enclosure. But by 2018 the zoo had its sprawling, 28-acre African Grasslands complex open and the Lion exhibit there is one of my all-time favourites. There's actually a Lion 'perched' on top of a rock in my photo:



A portion of the huge African Lion exhibit in Omaha:



Another enormous Lion exhibit is the one found at Wuppertal Zoo (Germany), where I trekked up a very steep pathway to the top of the zoo, and then saw three male African Lions strolling across their savanna-like habitat. Brilliant!





San Diego Zoo Safari Park (USA) has long had a fantastic exhibit for African Lions and it's one of the highlights of that world-class zoo.



@pachyderm pro

Along with Omaha and SDZSP, arguably America's third best Lion exhibit is to be found at Fresno Chaffee Zoo (USA). When I met up with the director (at the time) Scott Barton in 2017, he said that the zoo gave its Lions 24/7 access to both the indoor and outdoor exhibits almost every night of the year. If I'm not mistaken, that is still a rare occurrence in ultra-conservative American zoos.



Of course, this post would not be complete without me highlighting some of the absolutely appalling Lion exhibits I've seen in roadside zoos.

In rural Oklahoma, I toured Tiger Safari (USA) with @BlackRhino back in 2015 and some of the big cat cages there shocked us. This image shows a male and a female African Lion, both sleeping, but the fence has zero hotwire anywhere and is suspiciously low. It was honestly a bit scary even standing there!



Just as alarming was this low fence, again with zero hotwire, for a young African Lion at Wild Wilderness Drive-Through Safari (USA) in Arkansas. What the heck is going on here? Again, I wasn't keen on hanging around this part of the zoo.



Capital of Texas Zoo (USA) with a big male in a home-made enclosure:



Apparently this photo I took has a 'Lipard', a cross between a male Lion and a female Leopard, in with a white Tiger at G W Exotic Animal Park (USA). Yeehaw cowboy! Welcome to Oklahoma!



Beekse Bergen (Netherlands), being a safari park type of zoo, has huge exhibits in all directions and is a top tier place. I think that they might even have 3 or 4 African Lion enclosures in total, as it's common for Beekse Bergen to have multiple exhibits for the same species.





Photos by @KevinB

When Givskud Zoo (Denmark) opened in 1969, the zoo only had Lions and no other species. Driving into the area (pop. 600) in 2022, I saw two large Lion statues at the entrance to the town. It's a zoo with almost exclusively mammals, like many Scandinavian zoos, and I enjoyed it immensely. Givskud has what is arguably the largest penguin exhibit of any zoo in the world, at 1.2 acres in size. There's a superb Giant Otter House that was added in 2013, and they have the world's largest Andean Bear complex with three exhibits in one corner of the zoo. But the zoo is still very proud of its Lions and they are housed in a drive-through exhibit that is many acres in size. They had 6 African Lions there when I drove through the gargantuan habitat, but at times in the past there has been 20+ Lions around the vehicles.



@Toddy

It's not my favourite way to see big cats, but perhaps the most unique African Lion experience I've ever had was at Kolmarden Wildlife Park (Sweden) in 2022. Opening in 2011, this 30-minute gondola ride is free with zoo admission and it's a very long ride by any standards. There's loads of African and European ungulates that are seen from the high heights, as well as Brown Bears and African Lions and other creatures.



There's a half-dozen African Lions in this photo:

 

This is an insane photo, almost comically so. What's even crazier is that this lion shared the enclosure with a small dog and there were a pair of giraffes in a tiny yard next-door, separated from the lion by extremely minimal fencing. Was there any sort of standoff barrier preventing guests from walking right up to the fence? I just browsed the gallery of this now closed (thankfully) facility and it is not for the faint of heart. This place had to have been one of the most wicked US zoos at the time of its closure.

I'm currently taking a class on companion animals and just this week we had a lecture on private ownership of exotic pets. Joe Exotic's infamous facility was brought up, as well as the Zanesville, Ohio incident in which the owner of private animal farm released his collection of 50 large carnivores before committing suicide. Nearly all of them had to gunned down by law enforcement and now Ohio has some of the most strict exotic animal ownership laws in the US. I am constantly flabbergasted at what some places are able to get away with in this country and it's shocking that the incident wasn't enough to provoke stronger laws at a federal level. I'm sure @snowleopard will present many more deplorable enclosures as we continue our way through big cats in the coming days, because he's crazy and actually went out of his way to visit these awful roadside hellholes.

 

The ones in Europe are Asiatic Lions sure enough - they are managed fully separately from the generic/African population. Whether Asiatic Lions are truly separate taxonomically is another question, but those lions are derived from the Indian population.

 

Damn, I got a photo of five lions at once at Africam Safari Puebla in 2019, and I thought that might be the most, but you have beaten me! I just want to ask how many zoos have you visited that DIDN’T have any lions at all (not that you just did not see any, the zoo actually has none)?