@ANyhuis: I'm assuming that you have been to all 10 zoos in the worldweb.com link that I posted a few messages ago. Interesting list, as Quebec's Granby Zoo is on there and the list itself appears to be more of a geographical overview rather than the ultimate 10 best zoos. The earlier link, with 15 zoos on it, is also contentious for many zoo visitors. I suppose that we can all debate over which zoos are the best, and often it comes down to exhibit design, animal collection, rare species, etc. The nice thing about that list is that it encompasses the globe rather than a specific continent. @NZ Jeremy: your friend has pointed out all of the weaknesses of the San Diego Zoo. There are still a lot of well-laid out exhibits, and the animal collection is outstanding.
Of the zoo's I've seen, i rate Prague the highest. It's also the only one of the "15" zoo's mentioned at the start. The only zoo's that i would estimate coming close to it are Rotterdam (collection) and Antwerp (History). Haven't been to chester, berlin, beauval or vienna, but i expect a lot from them as well. Perhaps too much, but we'll see. Emmen en Apenheul are in a totally different league, allthough they are among the VERY few zoo's i know that do not suffer from crappy exhibits mixed in with very good ones. They only have decent, good or very good exhibits. But their collection is way too limited to be among the top zoo's in the world. Amsterdam has the same "old" atmosphere as Antwerp, but not the collection or space to match it. A zoo not mentioned here but rated very highly on the dutch forum was the Paris Zoo...
http://www.zoobeat.com/2/your-top-10-zoos-9585/ Perhaps we could collate all the answers from that thread and create a Zoobeat Top 10 Zoos...?
Hi Allen - did you really mean Amsterdam and not Rotterdam, which in my opinion definitely belongs on the list, with imaginative exhibits, a good collection, and an impressive building programme? Barcelona - ok but nothing to get excited about. Quite a good record for breeding reptiles. Mainly famous for Snowflake who was as ugly as sin but unique. The power of a well written website: I had really drooled over henry doorly zoo as it certainly pumps itself up on its website, but I've got my doubts now from what I've heard here. It's not easy to get to from Europe either. Re Hancocks: did he really mean that he hates zoos as a concept, or was it more a statement that the general standard of actual zoos worldwide could be so much higher? Surely the latter as he has been a director of zoosand seems passionate about the good aspects of them.
I like the part in the Bronx Zoo section that refers to the "Congo Monkey Forest". That really made me laugh.
I think that the Calgary Zoo should be added to that list. They are by far a very interesting and well looked after zoo.
@Pygathrix: Before I went to Omaha, I took more than a look at their HP and therefore had really high hopes. But the actual zoo and especially the tours behind the scenes kind of deflated me... And judging from the opinions of my international colleagues back then and afterwards, I wasn't the only one thinking so. And yes, it's difficult to get there; I involuntarily spent a long, long time at the Boston and Chicago airport when trying to get to Omaha... About Hancocks: I agree with Your assumption-and Rotterdam should indeed be mentioned, too!
