Bonita Springs Aquarium and Bird Park

I'll start detailing a few exhibits. Obviously one that would be of interest is the tiger exhibit. So, the tiger exhibit would be a 10,000 square feet area, housing at most three tigers. The shelters for them would be 12x12x8 each, with four shelters in the enclosure. The off-exhibit holding space would be 600 square feet. One part of the enclosure would be a large grass yard, with a few large rocks and trees in it. There would also be a small thing that would look like ancient ruins, potentially some kind of altar or statue. On the other side of the exhibit, there would potentially be a "safari jeep" that has been gutted and made safe for the cats to climb on. The shelters would be wooden ones, made to look like villager huts, so to speak. There would be a large river going through the entire exhibit as well.

So you've seen the tiger exhibit, might as well see the leopard exhibit right? This would not be nearly 10,000 square feet, this exhibit would be about 1,500 square feet. It would be a bit more densely planted than the tiger exhibit, with a lot of drooping grassy plants and small trees (around 4 foot in height). A few larger trees would also be present. Instead of wooden shelters, there would be structures made from fake rock (filled with insulation) modeled to look like caves. There would be a large stream/river in the middle, like the tiger exhibit. A few large wood pieces for them to climb on would also be in here. Holding is 300 square feet. This exhibit would house 1 or 2 leopards at most.

Please let me know which other exhibits you'd like to see

 

The Florida invasive aquariums will be discussed next, I'm interested to share these next.

The first one would be about 600 gallons. This would be our cichlid tank. The substrate would be a muddy/sandy bottom, exactly like what you would find in a pond in South Florida. There would be one very large branchy wood piece spanning pretty much the entire length of the tank, and a few smaller ones on the bottom, as well as one large pile in the back. A carpeting-like plant would cover much of the bottom, with algae all over the rock pile that holds down the branch and acts as a structure point. This tank would house 4 butterfly peacock bass, 2 mayan cichlids, 2 midas cichlids, 2 oscar cichlids, 2 jaguar cichlids, 3 sailfin plecos, and 1 marbled swamp eel.

The next tank is the tilapia tank. This is a simple tank, around 350 gallons in volume. It would look like underwater in a large reservoir in Florida - sandy gravel all over the bottom with a tiny bit of crushed shells even, and a bit of wavy vallisneria-like plants. It would house 4 blue tilapia and 4 spotted tilapia.

The final freshwater tank would be a mock swamp underwater - large roots hanging out at the back, and sand/mud bottom, with plants littered around randomly mixed in with dead leaves. This tank would be about 400 gallons (a bit more actually) and house 6 bullseye snakeheads.

The final tank would be saltwater. It would be about 400 gallons, and have large-grain sand on the bottom, some rockwork in the tank, and plenty of tan macroalgae in there for hiding places. It would house 6 common lionfish

 

Marbled swamp eel! I like the way you think. I'd be interested in anything about the African and Asian birds, especially secretary birds. If you want to breed s. birds, though, you need a very large flight area for them, don't forget.

 

No need to worry there, the savannah exhibit and the tropical african aviary will be massive, because of the hoofstock in them. The Asian and Australians won't be so large, but they'll still have some size to them hopefully. I'll do those here soon, about to hop in the shower and get ready for the day

 

Alright, let's do this savannah exhibit. This is a large mixed species exhibit housing hoofstock, gamebirds, waterbirds, fish, and reptiles. It is actually two exhibits (sorry, couldn't edit my post, I was a few minutes late), with the smaller one being home to a rather large animal that wouldn't do to well in with the other animals.

So the main exhibit houses all of the hoofstock (but one species), a few gamebirds, plenty of waterbirds, two species of fish, and two species of reptiles. The main feature of the exhibit is the massive "river". The deep part is about 10 feet wide from front to back, and the shallow part would be about another 4 feet from front to back. The deep part would be sloping downwards, but would be about 6 feet deep at the deepest - the shallow part would be a solid 16 inches deep all around. This river is only in the large exhibit, not the smaller one. The whole exhibit is to be 6 acres (about 260,000 square feet), and the length of it is to be about 1,000 feet long and 250 feet wide (do these numbers sound good?), meaning that once we calculate this out, the whole river's volume will be about 310,000 gallons (1.2 million liters). That's a lot of mozambique tilapia, zebra tilapia, and african helmeted turtles that can live in this exhibit. Now, the glass won't be nearly this long - the glass viewing will be around 25-30 feet in length, maybe a bit more, mostly above the water as well.

So you know about the river, the main feature. There is a waterfall on one side of this, this is how the water flows back in (it also comes in through a pretty strong pump at the bottom that guests can't see - this keeps water from getting too stagnant). There would be a large imitation baobab tree in the savannah, along with plenty of smaller (but still large) trees for shade. The main viewing for the savannah is a large platform that gives a nice view about 15 feet up of the entire exhibit. Granted, the water birds right below you may be difficult to see but other than that, everything will be in plain sight. The shelter up there will have thick wooden fence/railing, and will have a straw roof to make it feel "authentic". Lots of informational signs will be here as well. If you go under here, there is a one-way mirror facing towards the river so that guests can see a close-up of the birds. A large "Safari jeep" will be gutted and put in here just for decoration. Lots of large rock piles will be littered through the exhibit, and of course grass will make up the bulk of the plant life in here. I have not yet determined where it will be accessed for feedings. This is the largest exhibit in the entire place, easily. Aside from the tilapia (mozambique and zebra) and helmeted turtles in the river, there are pink backed pelicans, sacred ibis, saddle billed stork, grey necked crowned crane, lesser flamingo, marabou stork, secretary bird, african spoonbill, goliath heron, southern ground hornbill, african darter, helmeted guineafowl, ostrich, sable antelope, grevy's zebra, bontebok, gemsbok, red hartebeest, reticulated giraffe, and spur thighed (sulcata) tortoise. We would definitely try to get shoebill storks as well.

The attached exhibit is our 25,000 square foot (bit over 1/2 an acre) black rhino exhibit, housing one pair of black rhinos. There is a ton of grass covering everything in the exhibit, a few palm trees, and they will have a large pool that they can soak in full of duckweed. They live with two species of birds - cattle egrets and yellow-billed oxpeckers.

In a separate aviary next to the savannah exhibit (opposite the rhinoceros paddock), there is a population of lappet-faced vultures. They have a pool they can wade/bathe in if they choose, a few large dead trees, large rocks near the bottom, and medium to low-lying plants all over the ground.

Sorry for these species all being added in, I'll post a full species list per exhibit (in actual list form) once I've finished descriptions of the exhibits. So far, fish and turtles have been added to the savannah, plus the rhinos and vultures are all-new. There are more species to come too.

 

Not part of the large savannah exhibit, but in the Africa complex is the pygmy hippo exhibit. This is a 4,000 square foot exhibit, housing a pair of the pygmy hippos along with our black and white colobus monkeys (moved from the African safari lodge). There is a large water area, but it has no underwater viewing. The whole background area of the exhibit has a rocky face, and there are a LOT of tropical plants around the whole area. Many are planted into the sides, and many near the front where they cannot reach them. There is a decent-sized open area where the hippos can come out to just chill if they would like. There are a few large trees for the monkeys in here as well. Both species are able to move freely around the exhibit.

I guess I'll do the African walk-through aviary here too. This would be at least 6,500 square feet, and 12 foot high. The walk-through would have wooden logs as rails with glass panes below them to keep visitors on the path. The okapi and bongo in here will be pairs of each. The zebra duikers, black duikers, leopard tortoises, and radiated tortoises will also live in here, unsure of numbers though. There is nice lush, green grass all on the ground here, and a few fallen trees litter the area. Tall, likely artificial trees with plants all over them will be in here, and there are a LOT of plants in here. Waterfalls are present throughout the exhibit, and a large lake is present that visitors cross a wood bridge to get over. After visitors leave the exhibit, they have the option to go on a path that diverges, and goes up to a restaurant. For an extra price, visitors can be seated at the top deck of the restaurant, that is actually inside of the exhibit! Visitors will get an excellent overhead view of the exhibit like no other. Bird species inside of here are masked weaver, grey headed kingfisher, african pygmy goose, great blue turaco, congo peafowl, madagascar crested ibis, superb starling, white faced whistling duck, south african shelduck, african grey parrot, senegal parrot, violet turaco, knysna turaco, african green pigeon, red and yellow barbet, von der decken's hornbill, african grey hornbill, mangrove kingfisher, african pygmy kingfisher, purple grenadier finch, speckled pigeon, and red cheeked cordon bleu finch.

 

Well let's see, there are a few different aviaries that we could talk about for birds of prey next. One would house palm-nut vultures (if they can be obtained), with lots of low-lying plants, a sandy/grassy bottom, plenty of fallen small/medium trees for perches, and a few taller leafy trees. A small watering hole in the center would be present as well. Breeding would be attempted with these birds, as it would with almost all the other animals in the park.

Another exhibit would be for martial eagle. This is a large aviary, with a decent-sized pool surrounded by rocks in plain view. Multiple large, leafy trees provide perching space, and on the lower levels a few ferns and some grass would be present. Other than that, the area would be pretty open.

The african pied crows live over here as well. An interesting combination (also done by the Puy du Fou zoo in France) of pied crows and african fish eagle will be done in this, now large exhibit. Many large dead trees would provide perching places, with branches also intertwined at the upper levels of the cage in the corners for other perches. Many green, leafy trees that are too small to be perches will be present in here, to spruce up the looks of the aviary. There is, finally, a waterfall that empties into a rocky pool for a water feature in here.

Let's not forget out last large aviary, for bateleur eagle. A pretty large rock outcropping along the back would provide a perching area, and water would leak out of holes in it for a mini waterfall - this goes into a rushing stream as well, and empties into a small pool. Lots of medium sized rocks and tall grasses litter the hillside area of this exhibit in the foreground, and a few shrubs would be around the side, with a tall tree or two at the very back.

The last exhibit over here (not including the safari lodge, coming next) is the African penguin exhibit. I'm not sure of the size of this yet, however it would likely exceed AZA standards. There is a massive pool, with a few fake rock islands inside of it. The perimeter (except for the viewing area) is lined with overhanging palm trees, and at least one of the three large islands would have a few trees and bright green shrubs on it. Underwater viewing is of course available. Aside from the african penguins, there are other birds sharing this exhibit - silver gulls and australian pelicans (2-5 of them) would live in here as well. Adding to the collection of "exotic" seabirds, boobies would be (hopefully) exhibited. The species that exist are masked, nazca, brown, blue footed, red footed, and peruvian. I would be willing to exhibit all of these if I could get my hands on them - which would you suggest? Red footed, brown, nazca, blue footed, peruvian, and masked are my personal favorites in order.

Safari lodge to come, and that will finish the African collection.

 

I like it . I'm currently really into large birds of prey/vultures for some reason...
I don't know of any facility with boobies of any species, sorry.

 

The Safari Lodge is the final part of the African complex in the park. This is a large building, ovalline in shape, with many many exhibits inside of it, all housing native African animals from all over the continent. I'll detail each exhibit for you. In no particular order, here they are:

One aquarium here would be for Lake Tanganyika cichlids. This would be about 100 gallons, with a 3D rock background, plus rocks all over the bottom and a sand bottom. A wood piece or two is present here as well. Species housed are Paracyprichromis nigripinnis, Altolamprologus compressiceps, Altolamprologus calvus, Synodontis multipunctatus (a catfish species), and Lamprologus meleagris.

Next is a tank around 200 gallons with a hard fake mud bottom and sides, and fake reeds in it housing african lungfish. A few rocks would also be in here for the fish to hide behind.

Next is a planted congo tank housing senegal bichir, delhezi bichir, marbled bichir, ropefish, african brown knifefish, jewel cichlid, leopard ctenopoma, congo tetra, ocellated synodontis catfish, Paratilapia polleni, featherfin squeaker catfish, sixbar distichodus, and kribensis cichlid.

Next would be a small tank with leafy soil in the bottom, ferns, a wood background, a small rock cave, and lots of moss housing emperor scorpions.

Next is a tank a bit larger with a large, obvious rocky pool in the middle. There would be a rocky background with planters inside with drooping plants inside. A few low-lying plants would be at the bottom, but not too many. There would be soil on the bottom, and this would house african bullfrog

A small tank with soil in the bottom plus a few dead leaves, and a small rock pool of water would house african giant black millipedes.

One of the larger exhibits here is one with fake rock all around the enclosure, including one heated cave for the inhabitants. A large soaking pool would be in the middle, and there would also be more rocks around the enclosure. A small palm tree or two would also be in here, and this exhibit houses african rock python.

The next exhibit, housing eastern green mambas, has rocky backgrounds with drooping plants growing in them. Leaf litter covers the bottom, and many branches are present here. A simple small pool is the water feature here.

The next enclosure is an arid exhibit, with succulent plants and a rocky background. A piece of extremely dry wood, and a few dry rocks would also be in here. This enclosure houses shield tailed agama.

The exhibit housing tropical girdled lizard has got a sort of crushed gravel on top of sand substrate (sorry, can't think of a better way to describe it), with a large succulent plant and a pile of slate rocks provides shelter for these lizards. A large piece of wood also provides an elevated basking spot.

The next exhibit is rather tall, with rock ledges all around the tank. There are tons of caves everywhere for the inhabitants to hide in, sand at the bottom, and a few plants on the ground and on the ledges. This enclosure houses plated lizards.

The next exhibit has got a sandy/rocky bottom, decent-sized rock pool, a huge fake log hide, plus a thick, tall tree inside for inhabitants to climb. This houses ball pythons.

The next exhibit is a bit larger, with grass growing on the bottom. A few taller leafy plants, maybe even mini palms, will litter this exhibit. A pool near the back will be the main water feature, and this exhibit houses hingeback tortoises.

The next exhibit is themed like a desert, with large rocks along the back and front right forming an L shape. A large authentic Egyptian pot will also provide another hiding spot, and a few patches of tall grass will be present. This will house banded egyptian cobra.

The next exhibit is for african dwarf crocodile and african helmeted turtle. It is a large aquarium, with gravel on the bottom, plus a few rocks. There is a rocky background, with a waterfall of decent size. There is a massive driftwood piece in here that is partially in and partially out of the water, and acts as a basking spot for the inhabitants.

The next exhibit, for gaboon viper and rhinoceros viper, has got leaf litter and soil in the bottom, a rock pool at the back, a few small rocks scattered around, a log or two, and plenty of randomly-placed plants.

The next exhibit is by far the largest seen here, and is home to the nile crocodiles. A very large pool has a few large rocks at the bottom, and is home to the same combination of mozambique tilapia and zebra tilapia. At the back, there is the land section made from fake rock. Plenty of bright green plants litter this area and give it a tropical feel. Other than the plants, it's relatively unobstructed so the crocodiles have their proper haul out space.

There is an exhibit next for african mudskippers. There is a rock background with a waterfall, a sloping rockpile in the 6" water, plants growing along the back, and a few pieces of driftwood made to look like mangrove roots for the fish to come out of the water on.

Next is a small mammal exhibit with a large grassy "lawn" covering the bottom, plus a few large logs for them to play around with. There is a small pool for them, and a large cave made from fake rocks. This houses african crested porcupine.

The next exhibit is a desert, with aloe vera-like plants all around the exhibit, a fake rock cave, and a few rock basking spots. This is home to fennec foxes.

The next exhibit is mostly water, but this water is 100% open. There are fake rock haulouts on either side, with a large log bridging the gap between the two. A few tall plants are found at the back, and this houses african softshell turtle.

The next exhibit is rather large, with a large fake rock island at the back. This has a few large rocks and driftwood pieces on the island, as well as in the water. It's home to african spot-necked otters.

The next exhibit is also a bit large, and is a multi-species exhibit. There are rock ledges and caves at the back, a rock pool at the front, and a very large expanse of sand at the front. There are also desert-like shrubs growing all along the rock ledge. It houses pancake tortoise, rainbow skink, african girdled lizard, schneider skink, and gorongosa girdled lizard.

The next exhibit is a large aquarium, with gravel at the bottom, and save for a few fake rocks is pretty empty. It houses african tigerfish, goliath tigerfish, african arowana, giraffe catfish, and nile bichir.

The next exhibit is again large, with branches all over and tropical plants all over. Leaf litter, an artificial stream, and logs cover the bottom. This is home to jackson's chameleon and fire skink.

The final exhibit in this building is a small mammal exhibit, housing cape genet. There are rock ledges, and two large dead branchy trees with vines and ropes between them. A fake stream flows through the middle, and plenty of plants grow in here, all low-lying. A cave also exists in the rock ledge.

 

Yeah, I've been getting into birds of prey as well. African birds of prey are perhaps my favorite. But really any big birds of prey are pretty awesome IMO.

I did some research and still haven't found anything about boobies in captivity. However, they don't seem to be too pelagic (they would be able to be kept in captivity it seems) and they're obviously not all from the Galapagos, actually a few can even be found in the Caribbean. I posted a thread on this as well.

 

Alright, now I will do the other "random" exhibits. There are a few added that haven't been discussed before, so pay attention!

Off the back of the entrance building is a very large exhibit with a rocky background, a slow stream, leaf litter, and lots of bamboo in it. This houses none other than the king cobra.

Next would be a long one with thin winding branches all around it, and after those are placed plants will fill in every single available space. The walls, the ground, everything. There will be a small, shallow rock pool as well. This will house golden poison dart frog, strawberry poison dart frog, and golden eyelash viper.

Next is a medium-sized enclosure with a sandy substrate, thin grassy plants, a few rocks, a small dead tree (that fills most of the enclosure), and a small pool. This houses black mamba.

Next is another large exhibit, with rock ledges on the back wall. Tall trees (nearly to the top of the enclosure) are found in this exhibit, as well as a few smaller, broad-leaved plants and a few tall, green grasses. There is a large fallen log that the inhabitants can go inside of, and a very large pool near the back. This houses yellow anaconda and green basilisk lizard.

Next is a large exhibit, with about 4 inches of water in the bottom, mostly filled with plants - this will resemble a PNG swamp. There are a few rocks sticking out of the water, many branches covering the top for basking spots, and palm trees around the edges (obviously ones that will fit in the enclosure). Land plants are planted in the islands created by the rock piles. This will house green tree monitor, black tree monitor, and blue tree monitor.

Next is an exhibit with a background made to look like an Amazon flooded forest, with a few fake tree root structure going into the water. Inside of the 6" or so of water in the exhibit, there is sand and a few amazon swords, plus cardinal tetras. There are many land plants like pothos in the upper part, plus a few thick perches for the resident waxy monkey frogs.

There is a pond housing ornamental koi, australian black swans, and painted storks. This is just your run-of-the-mill pond, with cattails and water liles and such. There is a wooden railing around the pond so that nobody enters.

 

Next section is the birds of prey. Pay attention here, as the species have been greatly improved.

First up in this is the andean condor exhibit. This is a 2,000 square foot exhibit that is 25 feet high for the large birds inside of it. There is a large pool, that these birds can walk inside of and clean up if they want to. There are large perches if they would like to perch, a large grass lawn, large fallen trees on the ground, and many full-size live trees in here as well.

Next is the king vulture exhibit. There are two large rock ledges at each back corner, and a waterfall is made out of each of them. They all flow into a large pool in the middle. There are a few plants and large rocks at the bottom, and a few smaller trees in here as well.

The next exhibit is our turkey vulture and great horned owl exhibit. There are plenty of dead trees for them to roost on, and the whole back and side walls are fake rock, with, of course, a waterfall. There are ivy and vines growing all over this wall for some live plant life.

Next is a very simple exhibit with a pool, large grassy lawn, a few dead trees for perches, and lots of shrubbery. This houses southern caracara.

The harpy eagle aviary comes next. This is rather large, with lots of tall grass at the bottom (most of the other lawns will at least be trimmed, this one will be incredibly overgrown and pretty much never trimmed), plenty of huge dead trees as perches, more shrubs and ferns, and a decent sized pool. One thing I have forgotten to mention is that each enclosure will have more than one of each kind of animal (most all of them), so the necessary breeding structures will be added in here, such as nest boxes.

Next is a smaller aviary with a small pool, plenty of small trees, and a ton of perches for the resident birds. Tree stumps will also be in here for resting places. This will house spectacled owls.

Next will be our barn owl exhibit, with a model of an old, run down barn with tools, crates, barrels, etc inside. Ferns, mosses, and a few small trees will be in here, and there will be plenty of roosting spots in the barn for the owls.

The great grey owl aviary will be a large square aviary with a single big tree in the center, and plenty of green plants everywhere. A few fallen logs will be in here, as well as a small pool.

I don't want to go too far into detail about the next aviary because the species would be near impossible to obtain - the philippine eagle. Let's just say if I had the opportunity to get them I would

Next would be a large aviary, with plenty of chillers on it, a rocky stream/pool, plenty of pine trees, and fallen branches for a northern feel to it. This would house steller's sea eagles. One feature in here would be a very large simulated nest.

The next series of aviaries would look pretty much the same, with decorations arranged differently. They wouldn't be all in order, so that it's not so boring. There would be a few plants, and one decent sized tree that the birds can perch on. A small pool would be near the front, and there would be some grass all on the ground. Each aviary would house a different species - black and white hawk eagle, ornate hawk eagle, and black hawk eagle.

Next would be two identical aviaries, one for red shouldered hawk and one for harris' hawk. Lots of juvenile trees and large fallen logs would be in here, plus tons of moss and ferns. A few large dead trees would be in here for the main perches as well. Water would be a small pool.

Next is a small aviary with grass on the bottom, plenty of droopy grasses, and a few large dead trees. A small pool would also be present. This houses american kestrel.

Next is a medium sized aviary with dead trees, a large rocky pool, and a few large rocks throughout the exhibit for peregrine falcon.

Finally, there is an exhibit with african pygmy falcon. There is a large hay/straw nest at the top of a tree, and lots of small medium to low lying plants near the ground. There's also a waterfall. Sorry about this, I forgot to put it in the African section. It will be near the end of the walk-through aviary.

 

I'm impressed your dedication. I think you could fix some mix that make no sense, like chameleons and skinks. Chameleons don't do well even with their kind, especially if is a male.
It isn't recommended to mix different species of poison dart frogs, and that forgetting the viper...
Yellow anaconda with green basilisk also isn't a good idea.

I devoted myself to study fishkeeping for a little while, and I saw a really cool idea of a african fish aquarium (mostly Congo River aquarium) in a brazilian forum.
List of species that are and have been to the aquarium:
. Polypterus senegalus
. Polypterus delhezi
. Erpetoichthys calabaricus
. Xenomystus nigri
. Hemichromis bimaculatus
. Ctenopoma acutirostre
. Phenacogrammus interruptus
. Synodontis ocellifer
. Paratilapia polleni
. Amatitlania nigrofasciata
. Synodontis eupterus
. Distichodus affinis
. Polypterus palmas
. Pelvicachromis pulcher

 

Alright, so I might as well do the rest of the Everglades complex next. We will start with the manatee lagoon. There are a bunch of fake cypress trees that go to the very bottom of this exhibit (which is 6 feet at the deepest), and a few large rocks at the bottom of the man-made lake. This eventually slopes to an area that is a bit more shallow with tall bog plants for the birds. There are lots of plants in the deeper parts as well. There are a few logs out of the water, mostly for the turtles, but also for some of the birds. This is massive, at least 6,500 square feet for the massive bird population and for the few manatees in here (I am thinking about 5 manatees, maybe a little bit more but not too many). Aside from the west indian manatees, there are spotted gar, florida gar, longnose gar, channel catfish, largemouth bass, bowfin, grass carp, bluegill, redear sunfish, and florida softshell turtle in the water section. Bird species are wood duck, belted kingfisher, sandhill crane, red winged blackbird, purple gallinule, anhinga, baltimore oriole, white ibis, roseate spoonbill, black crowned night heron, yellow crowned night heron, great blue heron, green heron, tri colored heron, little blue heron, great egret, snowy egret, cattle egret, and wood stork.

So of course there are other exhibits in the Everglades complex, next we'll talk about one of three other large exhibits here. The first one is for american crocodiles, and there are a few tree stumps in the water, and a fake rock haulout at the back of the exhibit. Blue spotted sunfish, banded sunfish, black banded sunfish, and banded pygmy sunfish all live in the water as well. There are a few low-lying plants in the water for the sunfish to hide inside of.

The second large exhibit is for american alligators, along with a few fish. This is a very large exhibit, with a few simulated cypress stumps in the water, with a small fake rock haulout. The water has got a bunch of plants in it, as does the land section. Aside from the alligators, there are alligator gar, blue catfish, golden shiner, and redear sunfish.

The last one is a multi-species turtle exhibit, with a haulout at the back that's got pine straw substrate, a few short trees, some palm leaves, and a few fake cypress trees. In the water, there are a few plants, medium sized rocks, and a few pieces of wood that lead up to the haulout. There are western mosquitofish in the water, and free to roam through the exhibit are mississippi map turtle, western pond turtle, florida cooter, barbour's map turtle, suwannee cooter, yellow bellied slider, peninsula cooter, and florida red bellied turtle.

The smaller exhibits are:

First is a tank with sand in the bottom that slopes down into a pool of water at the front side, with a few beach plants at the back. There are also a few pieces of driftwood in here, and this is home to land hermit crabs.

Next is a tank with cypress mulch in the bottom, pine straw, spanish moss, a small rock pool, and a few pieces of a broken tree stump for florida pine snake.

Next is a full-on aquarium with sand, medium rocks, small logs, and tall-growing plants in it housing two-toed amphiuma.

Next is an enclosure with a rock background, cypress mulch substrate, a small rock pool at the corner, a large perch structure going across the middle, a basking rock, and a few pine tree saplings. This houses grey rat snakes.

Next is an enclosure with a rocky background, small waterfall, leaf litter, and tall growing plants inside. This is for green tree frogs.

Next is a tank with gravel in the bottom, a few slate rocks, and a few plants. There is also a small driftwood haulout for the loggerhead musk turtles inside, however they won't likely use it much. There are also western mosquitofish in the water.

Next is a cage with a sandy soil substrate, a huge fallen log, and a bunch of randomly scattered pinecones. This houses eastern diamondback rattlesnake.

Next is a bit taller cage with branches, mini palm trees, a large tree stump, sandy soil, pine straw, and some tall grasses. This houses corn snakes and yellow rat snakes.

Next is a tank with a rock background, a few branches, gravel at the bottom, and even a few plants - this houses alligator snapping turtle.

Next is an exhibit that we haven't yet done, one that has to do with humans. One side of the cage is old, authentic wood - the edge of an old shed, to be specific. There other side, the majority of the exhibit, will be the outside of the shed. There will be lanterns hanging from ropes, coiled up ropes on the ground, an old pair of work boots, and an old tire. There will also be pine straw all over the place. This houses water moccasin (aka cottonmouth)

Next is a natural exhibit, with dead leaves all over the place, a hollow log, a large thick climbing log, a small rock pool, and some pine straw for everglades rat snake.

Next is a multi-species exhibit with leaf litter and a bit of soil in the bottom, plus grapevines on the walls, a small magnolia tree, and a large tree stump. This is for timber rattlesnake and copperhead, my two favorite native venomous snakes.

Since the black rat snake is so commonly encountered by people, it gets a "human" enclosure as well. This will be like a farm, with a big shovel, an antique milk jug, an old pallet, an old hammer, and for water, an old, beat-up metal cat water bowl.

The next exhibit has got sandy soil, plenty of well-spaced, thin climbing branches, and a hide made from slate pieces - this houses my favorite native non-venomous snake, the coachwhip

Whoops, I forgot when I said there are three large exhibits at the top - there are four. The fourth is for american river otters. There are two parts to this exhibit, the den and the water. The water is a large aquarium with plenty of rocks inside, where I imagine the otters would spend a lot of their time. There is a tube leading to the den (that visitors can't see), and the den has got a rock background, plants like ivy growing on the walls, and a few hollow logs they can go inside of.

The gopher tortoise exhibit is bigger than any other "small" exhibits, but isn't exactly big enough to be considered large. There's sandy soil in the bottom, moss growing everywhere, some grasses, dead trees, and a rocky water pool that takes up lots of the enclosure.

Next is a tank about 1/2 (maybe a bit less) filled with water, with fine gravel at the bottom, pothos hanging over the rock background, and a few large wood pieces coming out of the water for the frogs. This houses southern leopard frog, american bullfrog, and greater siren.

Next is an exhibit with a large mudflat at the back, and water at the front. The mud is contained, and the water is heavily filtered so that it stays relatively clear (still with a brown tint to it). There are marsh grasses growing in the mud. This houses diamondback terrapin, fiddler crab, marsh periwinkles, mummichogs, and sheepshead minnows.

That concludes the natives, however the only invasives I have talked about are the fish. Go to page 3 at the bottom to read about that, if you haven't already. Here's the exhibits for the other animals:

There would be a large, floor to ceiling exhibit with a glass front, sandy soil in the bottom (in case you haven't yet noticed this is a common theme ), weeds (no, not marijuana, stuff like crabgrass) growing at the front, and then at the back lots of shrub-like plants and a few juvenile trees at the far back. There are wild boars in here, along with european starling, rock pigeon, house sparrow, and house finch. Most people don't even know that these are actually invasive species, and none of these are native to Florida.

The next tank, for giant african land snails, would have a tiny bit of grass growing on the bottom, and would essentially look like under a house. There would be cinder blocks, pieces of 2x4s, pipes, random pieces of caution tape attached to things, and wires.

Next would be for rats - gambian pouched rats to be specific. There would be stuff from a dump in here - firstly, mud everywhere. There would be a broken up toilet, pipes, pots, and half of a bicycle in here.

Next is an exhibit with a large water section at the front, with gravel in the bottom and other than that, it's empty. On the land section, there is plenty of hollow logs, rocks, and grass filling in everything else. This is home to nutria and muscovy duck.

There would be a glass-fronted exhibit with a model of the top part of a phone line tower, with a fake nest for the birds inside. There are mini palms in here as well. This houses monk parakeets.

The boa constrictor exhibit has tree trunks standing vertically in here, spanish moss, mini palms, various sticks, and pine straw.

The veiled chameleon enclosure has plenty of green leafy plants in it, with a few branches for them to climb. The ground would also be covered in plants - nothing except green will be seen (pretty much).

A large sandy exhibit (there's that sandy soil again) with a bit of pine straw and very low-lying plants and dead leaves inside of it is home to an argentine black and white tegu (or two, or three). There is a large hide made from a pile of sticks as well.

The african rock python exhibit will be like a residential apartment complex - square brick floor for most of it with moss growing in between the bricks, and on the wall, a spicket with a hose attached. There would be a pile of cardboard boxes (somehow attached together so they don't get constantly moved) for a hide.

The green iguanas would live in an exhibit like someone's balcony, with wooden planks for the floor, plus railings, and potted plants and a lawn chair. An end table would also be in here

The burmese python exhibit is actually the everglades - water in the whole thing, reeds everywhere, and a large piece of driftwood coming out of the water for a basking spot.

The nile monitor exhibit is very simple - a residential neighborhood pond. There would be the water at the front, and sloping upwards at the back would be a grassy lawn, and at the back some bushes landscaped to look like they would be around a pond.

Cane toads would be housed in an exhibit like the side yard of someone's house - the wall at the back, one of those boxes that people keep garden hoses in (complete with hose ), tall grass, and a few ornamental garden plants.

The basilisk lizards and knight anoles would be housed in an exhibit that looks like a run-down residential community - a broken segment of chain-link fence, random broken chunks of concrete that look like rocks, dead leaves, twigs, sandy soil, and weeds everywhere. There would be a large pool in here as well.

The brown anole and cuban tree frog exhibit would be simply a large magnolia tree, with smaller mini palms and ferns on the ground littered in the pine straw. The animals receive heavy misting daily, and the enclosure will be very moist.

What do you know, that's the last of the Florida Everglades exhibits. That was fun. More birds and stuff to come and then... the aquarium!

 

First up, I love the congo tank idea and I will definitely add that in. I love the fish selection, and I am an aquarist (along with herps and parrots) and feel that bichirs, one of my favorite group of fish, aren't represented enough in public aquariums.

I have to disagree with you on the mixes - chameleons do fine in an enclosure with their own kind - if they have enough space. They will not even give a second thought to each other if they have the proper room, this applies to almost all animals - granted, it is a TON of space (the max here would be 2 or 3 female jackson's chameleons in a 10' long cage, all hatched and introduced at the same time), but it can be done. And there is no reason they would not do well with fire skinks - jackson's chameleons are pretty much strictly arboreal, whereas fire skinks are strictly terrestrial.

Again, with the "proper space rule" for the dart frogs. They certainly can be mixed, but only in a massive enclosure. Each individual frog needs plenty of space, and if the space is provided it will work out just fine. I doubt an eyelash viper in captivity would eat a poison dart frog for two reasons - one, they are fed regularly. Animals learn at one point or another in captivity where their food is and, if given it at a strict time of day, when they're going to get it. Second, in the wild, an eyelash viper wouldn't eat a poison dart frog. Nothing would really eat a poison dart frog. This is also a mix that has been successfully done before as well.

Anaconda and basilisk has been done plenty of times before. Anacondas don't want small, fast lizards they want larger mammals so they can be sustained for longer periods of time.

 

Alright, I guess next comes the seabirds and sea turtles. There is a large sand beach, with trees and beach grasses growing on it. A few rocks on the beach, along with a model of an old, weathered dock provide resting spots for birds if they choose. Along the right side of the exhibit, rocks form almost like a jetty that the birds can go out on. After a few feet of shallow water, it drops off, and underwater there is a large rock expanse along the back wall of the dropoff. Near the front, there is artificial reef structure so that the fish come close up to the viewing windows. Sea turtle species are green sea turtle and hawksbill sea turtle. Birds are brown pelican, american white pelican, double crested cormorant, herring gull, royal tern, american oystercatcher, laughing gull, and black skimmer. Fish species are bermuda chub, grey triggerfish, creole wrasse, royal gramma, beaugregory, spanish hogfish, bluehead wrasse, french angelfish, four eye butterflyfish, blue chromis, anchovies, and slipper lobsters.

 

What better thing to discuss next than the aviaries? The large South American one is not walk-through, but does have glass viewing. The main feature here is a large waterfall, complete with ledges and caves for the birds. This empties into a large pool, that the waterfowl can swim in. Plants are all over this exhibit, and a very large dead tree is smack-dab in the center for birds to perch on. Andean cock-of-the-rock, spangled cotinga, red capped cardinal, crimson bellied conure, blue throated conure, scarlet ibis, orinoco goose, red foot tortoise, and yellow foot tortoise all inhabit this enclosure.

Next is a large dome-shaped aviary, seamlessly divided by invisinet netting. The first side, the Australian side, has got sandy substrate, but tropical plants like palm trees in it. A pond surrounded by rocks and low-lying plants is the main water source, and many larger rocks and tree stumps are found throughout the exhibit. Dead trees for perches are also found in here, as well as some more low-lying trees (4 foot or so). Cockatiel, budgerigar, rainbow lorikeet, red lory, dusky lory, bourke's parrot, eclectus parrot, australian king parrot, crimson rosella, zebra finch, gouldian finch, star finch, diamond dove, and matschie's tree kangaroo all live in this exhibit.

The other half of the exhibit is the Indonesian side. The whole perimeter is fake rock, with waterfalls all over the place. Plants grow in the crevices. Plenty of tropical trees are in here as well as the main perches. At the end of the trail, there is a pond for painted terrapins. Throughout the exhibit, we have victoria crowned pigeon, pesquet's parrot, bali mynah, jambu fruit dove, luzon bleeding heart dove, rhinoceros hornbill, knobbed hornbill, satyr tragopan, temminck's tragopan, asian fairy bluebird, java sparrow, silver pheasant, burmese black mountain tortoise, and forsten's tortoise.

Also over here is a large enclosure with glass viewing. There is a fake rock divider in the middle, and the front is water and the back is land. The water's got sand at the bottom and grassy plants like vallisneria. The land has got flowering plants at the bottom, and the whole bottom is covered in plants. There are a few dead trees for perches, none of which hang over the water. This is home to gang gang cockatoo, fly river turtle, australian lungfish, boesman's rainbowfish, and praecox rainbowfish.

 

I forgot to suggest African elephant fish and African butterflyfish in the African aquarium.

You look like the species of Galápagos. I don't remember if it was you who commented on a post and said that you would like to see more species of Gálapagos like Sally lightfoot crabs, Bobbies, Frigates, Sea lions, Penguins and Iguanas in captivity. If yes, you plan on doing that?

 

Revising: Dream Big, Plan Small

Bonita Springs is now going to be (almost) solely an aquarium. Like the title of this post says, it's good to dream big but realistically, it's better to plan small. This is something that I actually would like to someday do, so I think it's better to just plan a bit smaller. Now, this will definitely still be a large aquarium - just not the size that the whole entire thing was going to be.

There are three main parts to this aquarium: the Oceanic Aquarium is the main aquarium building - there is also the Glass Pavilion and our Discovery Center. For now, I'm just going to list out short descriptions of each exhibit, and the next post will be the updated (and sadly, shortened) species list.

The Oceanic Aquarium
This is a large, tall building - there are an impressive 6 levels to this building, the top level being made from entirely glass panels. We will go through by level.

Level 1: Sharks and Rays
This is the first level, and is at ground level and has viewing for two tanks - the large shark tank, and our smaller (but still very large) ray tank. The shark tank Is home to large gamefish, along with all of our larger sharks, and the ray tank is home to a few assorted sharks and plenty of large rays. On this level, there is underwater viewing for both tanks. There is also a tunnel for the large shark tank on this level, as it is right on the bottom.

Level 2: Sharks and Rays
This level has above-water viewing for the ray tank, and more underwater viewing for the shark tank. There is also a large hall, with a 3D movie theater, and an entrance to the Glass Pavilion. There is also a hallway to the Discovery Center.

Level 3: Florida: Lakes to Ocean
This is our Florida native section, and there is also a viewing panel for the shark tank here - the uppermost viewing for this tank. There are plenty of small wall tanks here, for reptiles, amphibians, freshwater fish, then brackish fish, and then up to saltwater fish.

Level 4: ?
This section is undecided, but will very likely be birds and reptiles. This very well could be our Animal Ambassadors section - I have no clue though. I guess we'll find out in the species list won't we? There is a touch tank here with our warmwater sharks and rays as well.

Level 5: ?
This is our random tanks, so I'm not exactly sure of a name for this section. Tanks include the giant pacific octopus, pacific reef tanks, and the Amazon river tanks (ones housing fish and ones housing reptiles/amphibians). We've also got a touch tank with coldwater sharks inside here.

Level 6: Rainforest
This is our walk-through rainforest. The entire walls and roof here are a dome, made entirely from glass. This has got a lot of South American birds inside, and a few scattered terrariums around.

The Glass Pavilion
This section is our African section. The first floor has got a very large freshwater aquarium. When you go up to the second floor, it is a walk-through aviary with a large waterfall and plenty of plants. The third floor is 2.5 stories high. There is a sloping ground with pathways throughout the exhibit. There are terrariums, aquariums, and a few birds (ones that couldn't be kept in the walk-through aviary for safety reasons) in here. To get back out, there are escalators that take you back down.

The Invasive Gallery and Discovery Center
The invasive gallery is the long hallway between the main building and the Discovery Center. The walls are lined with large exhibits housing Florida's various invasive species.
The Discovery Center is two massive tanks - the shark lagoon and the manatees/seabirds. The manatees are now in a saltwater tank. The manatee tank has underwater and above-water viewing (aka shore viewing for the birds), and is on the upper floor of this 2.5-story exhibit. This area is 1 story high. The lower level is 1.5 stories high, and has the shark tank viewing and the jellyfish exhibit.

Swamp
The three building are arranged in a triangle shape - if you wish to, you can actually dine inside of our natural swamp. There is netting spanned between the three buildings and over the top, and plenty of large native animals, mostly birds, live inside here. Cypress trees are in here, and the restaurant is themed like an Everglades outpost.

Species list to come. Hope you like the new idea.