Detroit Zoo Detroit Zoo

I believe the state passed a law allowing large carnivore breeding at accredited zoos last year.

 

I’m glad about that then.

 

A few updates. I do not have a link to the Master Plan anymore, I lost it a while ago. It's also not available on Google anymore for some reason, though it was before. Most of the things on the Master Plan were confirmed, or at least said to be likely when I volunteered there for a few years. The tiger exhibit has come fairly far, and there was s rumor it may pen this summer. It looked decently, or maybe pretty far along when I was there two weeks ago.

 

You never saved one as a PDF-copy?!?

 

Here's some coverage on the zoo's economic impact.

Detroit Zoo boosts economy by $167M in 2018, study finds

 

The Polk Penguin center will be closed from September 9th 2019 to June 2020. Just received this email:

Polk Penguin Conservation Center to Temporarily Close September 9

Because you are a valued Member of the Detroit Zoological Society, we want you to be among the first to know of our plans to temporarily close the Polk Penguin Conservation Center beginning September 9 through June of 2020 to make necessary repairs due to faulty waterproofing by the construction contractor.

Unfortunately, the building was not waterproofed according to the architect’s specifications, resulting in groundwater seeping into the basement. We only learned of the errors that were made – as well as the general contractor’s failure to correct and communicate them – through an independent investigation as well as through legal action.

The safety of the building, animals, staff, volunteers and visitors is not a factor; regardless, repairs are needed to properly waterproof the foundation. The penguins will live in the former Penguinarium while their home is being repaired, where our animal care and welfare staff will continue to provide the same great care; however, that facility will not be open to visitors. In the meantime, the penguins can still be seen this summer at the Polk Penguin Conservation Center swimming, waddling and simply being adorable.

We know this temporary closure will disappoint you, and we share your disappointment. Your membership is important to us, and therefore we would like to extend an invitation to you to visit the Detroit Zoo an hour before it opens to the general public on weekends from October through March of 2020. This will allow you to spend more time enjoying the many other wonderful habitats and experiences at the Zoo, including the new Holtzman Wildlife Foundation Red Panda Forest and the soon-to-open Devereaux Tiger Forest.

We promise to keep you up to date on the temporary closure through Zmail and Habitat, and we thank you for your understanding and ongoing support of our mission of Celebrating and Saving Wildlife.

 

I may be visiting this zoo in a few days. Any tips?

 

Wazi the wolf died during surgery.

Detroit Zoo mourns loss of beloved gray wolf who died during surgery

 

No big tips, just get there early and you'll have no problem seeing the whole zoo. The one thing that a lot of people miss is that you can go in the Rhino house, which is the former Elephant house. I find it pretty cool - the plaques are still up for the elephants donated back in the 40s and nobody is ever in there. The entrance is between the Rhinos and Snow Monkeys, all the way back by the fence. Across from there to the right is the sloth and bats which are also kinda hidden. Keep an eye out for the baby camel, baby snow monkey and baby chimpanzee.

 

Unfortunately, I will not be able to visit this zoo this year. Last minute plans change.

 

Have you visited the zoo before? Personally Detroit is one of my favorite zoos, and I might have the chance to visit in a couple of weeks.

 

I have never visited before.

 

Detroit Zoo envisions plans for large aquarium downtown
If you didn’t know already the Detroit Zoo is planning on building an Aquarium on the riverfront in the downtown area. This will be great because there aren’t many aquariums in Michigan. The Article is a little outdated but I thought it was exciting

 

Hopefully I will actually be getting here this week. Any more tips?

 

First of all, it’s great to see you’re finally making it to Detroit. The Detroit Zoo is one of my personal favourites and I have no doubt you’ll have a great visit.

As for tips, I’d say definitely visit the Polk Penguin Center first as it’s the zoo’s marquee exhibit and can get very busy. Then I’d say visit the Arctic Ring of Life as it’s also a great exhibit and you’ll have a better chance of seeing the Polar Bears active. I made the mistake of visiting in midday and the only Bears I saw were sleeping. As someone else said, don’t miss the Rhino House, but also don’t forget that you can also go into the great ape house as it’s not clear if you can go inside it (I missed it). The upper right side of the zoo as a whole is a little confusing so be prepared to back-track if necessary. The films in the theatre are pretty nice if that’s your thing and a lot of exhibits are pretty massive so be prepared to look hard to see some of the smaller species.

One final question, how long are you visiting Detroit for? The zoo is probably a 5-7 hour visit (depending on how many photos you take) so that probably takes up a full day, but are you visiting for multiple days? If so, I’d highly recommend the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, which is a massive and incredibly interesting place with a recreated 18th century village also on the property. It’s well worth a visit and can take up most of a day.

 

Yeah, it probably takes about that long to see a sufficient portion of the park without rushing, but in my personal experience, when going with my crabby family I’ve had to squeeze it into as a few as 2 hours.

 

The newest exhibits to the zoo are the new Japanese Giant Salamander exhibit in the Amphibian house, the hangout located behind the rhinos and snow monkeys, and the red panda forest. Depending on which day you go there may or may not be construction on the new tiger exhibit which is supposed to open soon. Otherwise there is no other construction. Over the 17 years that I’ve lived in Michigan and gone to the Detroit Zoo there are some exhibits that I used to forget about. Especially the warthogs who are located in the back area of the zoo, and used to not be talked about a lot at the zoo. There are also smaller enclosures near the farm and carousel which most people walk by. You will need to see the Arctic Ring of Life and the Polk Penguin Conservation Center because they are the best exhibits at the zoo. But on September 9th the PPCC will be closing because there is problems with the sealing.

 

Updates from my visit on Friday:

• Only the King and Gentoo Penguins are still on exhibit.
• A Speckled Mousebird was hatched.
• One of the first things I did on my visit was head to the National Amphibian Conservation Center. I got to the mantellas and was told that the rest of the house was closed due to flooding! I came back after I had done the rest of the zoo and found that the rest of the house had opened (except for the Japanese Giant Salamander room).

 

The zoo is installing wind farms next year:

Detroit Zoo to be powered entirely with wind energy by 2021 | CBC News

 

Any update on the king brown that was out for renovations?