Best enclosure / exhibit design for lesser known smaller mammals.

No, don't worry @Julio C Castro , I don't think what you've said comes across that way at all.

Yes, I can see what you mean about the risks of some people perhaps being litigious and how this would cause big problems for a zoo.

Yes, I agree, I think that is a good idea for sure.

I've seen staff do this (in terms of reminding visitors of rules and discouraging certain behaviours) at the Clore pavilion at the London Zoo in their walkthrough tropical house. In this particular exhibit they have a couple of Rodrigues fruit bats and several other species too which could potentially give a nasty bite or stratch if provoked by a visitor.

 

That’s amazing, it’s always a good thing to have employees/volunteers who are in these certain close encounter/walkthrough exhibits to make sure no one acts up and follow the rules set forth. And I can imagine the needle like teeth of a bat sinking in would hurt so badly, I work with rescue animals and have had my fair share of battle scars Yet I’m glad that in the Eastern side of the world are more understanding and relaxed in general with these sort of settings, allowing for close interactions without the presence of a barrier that can put anyone closer to animals otherwise would be not accessible. I’ll take some photos of small mammal exhibits I think are well done and report back on here

 

Oh I definitely think that the teeth of a fruitbat could cause some damage and would be very painful indeed but if I remember rightly I don't think there were staff posted in these walkthroughs where I have seen them in zoos like Bristol and Drusillas in the UK (I think these have been in operation for quite some time too).

 

Perhaps it is due to people being much more civil and well behaved on the eastern side of the world compared to some out here in the states haha

 

It could be, I have no idea, but if that is the case then it is a bit of a loss for US zoos as these kind of immersive enclosures are brilliant in terms of educational value.

I seem to remember in a thread on this site someone mentioning that lemur walkthroughs are not really used in the USA either which strikes me as so strange as they are very big in Europe and are catching on in Latin America too.

 

You just reminded me, I completely forgot that the SDZ Safari Park has a lemur walkthrough only containing ring tailed lemurs I think in certain cases it could be written off as precaution for their species. Like in the Lemur Walk exhibit, there is always an attendant at the entrance and exit, as well as one more inside to make sure everything goes into accordance. It could be a mix of precaution for their animals and to make sure no one oversteps their boundaries in the Lemur Walk. I don’t know of others of the top of my head but I do 100% agree that it’s a shame that they aren’t as readily available or utilized, it’s an experience that is unmatched when you can share the same space.

 

I think lemur walkthroughs are excellent immersion exhibits.

My only issue with them is that I wish they would have a more varied range of lemurs kept rather than ring tailed but I've seen some fantastic use of these with all kinds of species in a couple of zoos.

The one that comes to mind as being particularly good is Parc des felins in France where they had black, red ruffed, crowned, ringtailed, mongoose, red bellied and black and white ruffed lemurs.

I'm sure there may be walkthroughs out there that hold even more lemur species.

 

That sounds like a jaw dropping experience to be amongst such a plethora of lemurs I was told recently that during the warmer months, the SD Zoo they have Golden Lion tamarins mixed into the Parker Aviary yet haven’t experienced it first hand.

 

Is the Parker aviary a walkthrough exhibit ?

 

Indeed it is and I forgot to write that it, it’s a smaller sized aviary yet densely planted and humid like the rainforest. Perhaps when spring rolls by next year, the tamarins will be placed but maybe not due to COVID protocols.

 

Well golden lion tamarins can be successfully mixed with a whole range of species from other primates and mammals to birds and even some reptiles so it wouldn't suprise me if they are given the run of this aviary you mention.

On the subject of Callitrichids I'll post another one of my favourite enclosures / educational exhibits regarding lion tamarins.

 

I personally believe a group of active small mammals can be some of the most engaging and memorable zoo animals, and if zoos can find a way to keep these animals consistently active in front of visitors then these can be a favorite exhibit of those who visit. In my mind some of the most memorable individual exhibits are exhibits like these. Some that come to mind immediately are the Cactus Mice at Lincoln Park, the Feathertail Gliders at Columbus, and the American Badgers at Henry Vilas.

 

While not exclusively used for small mammals, I think the tunnel between the Bush and the Desert in Burgers' zoo has some immersive and unique exhibits for some North American desert species.

The nocturnal house in Antwerp was an absolute gem and I still can't believe they closed it. Nocturnal houses in general are always a nice addition to most zoos. The most memorable one to me is the one in Zoo Berlin, but that's mostly because it's got a collection that's unmatched by any zoo in Europe.

For small cats, few zoos can compete with Parc des Felins in France. It's got an astonishing collection and its enclosures are clearly built on a budget, yet they more than provide for the cats' needs. Another collection I'd like to highlight is the Kleinkatzenkomplex at Tierpark Chemnitz. Even though this is a small zoo with a limited budget, they've managed to put together a dozen or so interconnected aviaries home to several different species of small cat. I saw Pallas' kittens there, which was very cute.

I agree that as far as meerkats go, there's no better place for them to be than in Cologne.

 

Thank you for your comment @Penshet !

I agree with you about the small cat collection at Parc des Felins. It is probably the most impressive I've seen and all of the enclosures are superb as are the educational staff who I got to speak to quite a lot with during my visit there a good few years ago.

I loved how the cats have access to wooded areas where they can feel more at ease and display more naturalistic behaviours and that none of the cats are shut out of their indoor shelters.

I don't think I saw any of the cats kept there displaying any kind of stereotypical behaviour which was highly unusual as I see it almost everywhere else where big or small cats are kept which says a lot about the attention paid to their husbandry.

I was particularly impressed with the sand cat enclosures / glass houses there but I think the species that I found most interesting at the park were the Asiatic golden cats as this was the first time I had ever seen this species.

 

I’ve never seen such mixture and I can’t wait for to be able to to see them next time they are out! Such underrated and beautiful species they truly are.

 

I'd say the Burgers' desert enclosure for ring-tailed cats applies for this. It's not huge but also not small, the interior is well-furnished (including sand in the front and extremely realistic mock-rock in the back) and they actually manage to breed the species. The only problem I see is that they don't have such nice separation enclosures. For a complex 26 years old however I believe it's aged very well.

I'd say the Rio Negro hall in Duisburg is one of the nicest exhibits for Southern tamandua, they also breed there on the regular. It's also great for the sloths and monkeys in there (including the rarely seen in zoos Mico melanurus, which was a delight to see previous winter with their two cubs).

 

Thanks for the comment @Jarne !

These are some great enclosures that you mention but how about for species that are specifically of conservation concern ?

Can you think of any enclosures for small endangered mammals at zoos that you have seen that have particularly impressed you in terms of enclosure design and educational value ?

 

In terms of size, the rio-negro exhibit also houses golden-lion tamarin. In terms of education it's not that special, but after all the main inhabitant is the boto not the monkeys.

There aren't that many endangered small mammals that I have seen yet. In the past the grey slender lori exhibits in Antwerp were great exhibits, but they are gone now together with their entire nocturnal house. Their Balabac mouse deer enclosure was also much better than the tiny one in Blijdorp. Sadly enough not only a species to disappear from Antwerp but most likely from Europe as well in the near future.

 

Yes, the famous boto "baby" is a resident at Duisberg.

What was great about the grey slender loris exhibits at Antwerp that you mention ?

Also, that is a shame about the end of their mouse deers. The chevrotains are such very interesting little creatures and I wish their was more emphasis on them and particularly the Philippine mouse deer in zoos but I know there have been issues with establishing them within captivity.

 

Their size, their breeding records and also the education about the danger of "photos with a lori" and pet trade in Asia.

The last years they had about 10-12 animals, and with almost yearly breeding they were a main workforce of the breeding program. I even believe they kept biggest population of any European zoo for the past few years until they closed the nocturnal house. In both exhibits there were also mouse-deer (Javan and Balabac).

Now the species is still present behind the scenes (albeit likely in much lower numbers and smaller enclosures). There are ideas to bring back some on-show in the monkey-house.

Some photo's of these exhibits. Notice the dept of this one.
Enclosure Balabac mouse deer - Slender loris - ZooChat
Mouse deer and Slender loris exhibit - ZooChat

And the width of this one, all three windows are part of one single exhibit.
ZOO Antwerpen - Nocturama (Slender loris) - ZooChat

Even though the nocturama was 50 years old, by combining several smaller exhibits they actually made a very decent nocturnal house with spacious enclosures for most species. It's a real pitty it's gone as it housed several interesting species: rakali, two species of mouse-deer, lori, sloth, tamandua, night-monkey (one of the last of it's species in Europe), aardvark, springhare, three-banded armadillo and bats.