The Lincoln Park Zoo is a small zoo (35 acres?) located close to the downtown of Chicago. This, combined with its free price, makes it a popular destination for many people. I went on a rainy day, and it was still extremely busy. However, it didn’t feel too crowded and was still quite pleasant. The zoo’s layout could be considered haphazard, as the exhibits are very random and it’s not easy to see everything without backtracking. The zoo has both historic architecture and modern exhibits, but was obviously built over many decades, with obvious differences in techniques. I did not note down all the species and will have to rely on memory. I will describe the exhibits from best to worst, in my opinion. Two things I skipped were the Nature boardwalk which travels around the edge of a large wetland area south of the zoo. I also did not visit the Farm exhibit because it looked to be a farm area with cows, goats, pigs, ect. Regenstein African Journey is by far the best exhibit this zoo has to offer. It is a mostly indoor exhibit that travels though rainforest and savannah habitats, displaying a very nice collection of animals. On the northwest end of the building are three dusty paddocks for black rhinos. At the complete other end are exhibits for African wild dogs and warthogs. The warthog exhibit is an average dirt yard, and the wild dog exhibit is pretty nice and somewhat wooded. Between this and the bear exhibits is a large hills savannah exhibit for giraffes, Grant’s gazelles, and ostriches. The indoor section starts with a small lobby with some graphics. The first exhibit is a large netted walkthrough exhibit for Abdim’s stork, hahada ibis, hottentot teal, African spoonbill, and Egyptian goose. Behind this is a black and white colobus exhibit that is also netted. This can only be seen from the walkthrough aviary. The next room is a a beautiful exhibit for dwarf crocodile. It is viewed partially underwater with a waterfall and skylight. There are many small fish that share the pool. Across the path are two insect exhibits. One for hissing cockroaches was undergoing renovation while I was there. The other was a golden orb spider that apparently has no barrier. Up next is a pygmy hippo exhibit similar to the dwarf crocodile exhibit, but larger. Reminds me of Omaha, as it has not enough land area. This is the end of the rainforest area and the beginning of the savannah. The first exhibit is a large aviary with tons of tall rocks for the klipspringers in it. The birds inhabiting it are collared finch-billed bulbul, masked lovebird, and red-billed hornbill. Next is a room with large glass panels looking out into the giraffe exhibit. After this the are two exhibits on each side of the path with short glass walls. One is for meerkats and one is for aardvark. Behind the meerkat exhibit is the indoor holding area for giraffes. In a darkened cave is a view of the aardvarks den. The final exhibit is a large fantastic aquarium for Lake Malawi cichlids. The Regenstein Center for African Apes houses the zoos gorillas and chimpanzees. There are three yards. Two have huge cages around them. The large yard with out the cage is beautiful and naturalistic. This exhibit is viewed from across moats as well as a window. It is for gorillas. The gorillas have another exhibit, and the final one is home to chimps. Inside are three tall bedrooms for the apes; two for gorillas and one for chimps. All the apes were indoors on my visit, so I didn’t get to see them enjoy their exhibit. It is one of the better ape complexes I’ve seen. The Regenstein Small Mammal-Reptile House is a very nicely renovated historic building. The interior is split into two sections. The first has many large terrariums for reptiles, as well as some nocturnal mammals. I did not note down the reptile species, but some of the memorable species are dwarf crocodile, Aruba island rattlesnake, caiman lizard, beaded lizard, black tree monitor, eastern massasagua, European glass lizard, emperor newt, Kenyan sand boa, Henkel’s leaf-tailed gecko, prehensile-tailed skink, and oriental fire-bellied toad. The mammal section has similar, but larger exhibits. Exhibits are La Plata three-banded armadillo, sugar glider/brush-tailed bettong, bushy-tailed jird, and (golden-headed?) lion tamarin. Leading into a cave area are large, rocky exhibits for dwarf mongoose, Egyptian and straw-colored fruit bats, and sand cats. In a tunnel exhibit in front of the bats are naked mole rats. The next room is more jungle like with a high, sky lit ceiling. There are several glass fronted exhibit with tall mesh netting for primates and birds. These exhibits are home to Asian small-clawed otter/Prevost’s squirrel, dwarf caiman/white-faced saki, black howler monkey/green aracari, and Hoffman’s two-toed sloth/cottontop tamarin. On the other side of the path are three desert themed exhibits for fennec fox, parma wallaby, and Patagonian mara. Inside a tree trunk are exhibits for leaf cutter ants and Chilean flame tarantula. At the end of the exhibit is a second story balcony that allows views of the jungle exhibits. Overall, it’s a very nice complex that displays a wonderful variety of species. The McCormick Bird House is one of the oldest structures on the grounds. However the interior is very modern and beautiful. A hallway leads through the building passing by many small exhibits, as well as going through a large walkthrough aviary. The exhibits are very evenly spaced, so it is not at all chaotic. The exhibits are these cape thick-knee/green wood-hoopoe/emerald starling, Asian fairy bluebird/lesser green broadbill/Jambu fruit dove, red knot/piping plover/black-necked stilt, Nicobar pigeon/tawny frogmouth/bleeding heart dove, and snowy egret/hooded merganser/scarlet ibis. There is also a large walkthrough rainforest room. Species in here include: American avocet, hamerkop, sunbittern, Inca tern, crested wood partridge, nicobar pigeon, and Mandarin duck, among others. The path passes by the snowy egret exhibit again, and then passes by a few more small exhibits before exiting: Guam kingfisher/Guam rail, Papuan hornbill, and laughing kookaburra/masked lapwing. It is one of the best bird houses I’ve been to, with a modest collection but a very simple and organized way of displaying them. Pritzker Family Children's Zoo has a few childish play structures but isn’t completely geared towards them and makes for a good experience for adults as well. There are two large forested outdoor exhibits for red wolf and American black bear. The bears even have a pool. These exhibits are beautiful, but viewing is a little limited, with only a small glass panel, and a chain fence around most of the exhibits. There is a large building with an interesting hanging climbing structure for children to climb on. There are also some small terrariums for American toad, Blanding’s turtle, eastern box turtle, midland painted turtle, mudpuppy, smooth green snake, spotted turtle, and wood turtle. There are two cages at one end for eastern screech owls and American kestrels. At each end of the building is underwater viewing for American beaver and North American river otter. Both of these exhibits can also be seen from several places outside as well. The beavers share their exhibit with wood ducks. Easily my favorite children’s zoo, and I’m not even sure why its called a “children’s” zoo. Blum-Kovler Penguin-Seabird House is a low building that really blends in to the landscaping. Inside are two slightly above average exhibits. The first one has a large rocky land area with underwater viewing. In here are king, chinstrap, and western rockhopper penguin. The next room is for auks, and has a tall rocky cliff on the back wall. Species are tufted puffin, common murre, and razorbill. This is a fun little building, that is cold and smells like fish Regenstein Bird of Prey exhibit. It is made up of three flight cages. On the far end are some smaller ones for bald eagle and snowy owl. The third one is probably three times larger than the other two combined. It houses Eurasian black vulture and white storks. They are all backed by a large rocky wall. The Antelope and Zebra area is located at the south end of the zoo. It is a series of yards in a circle backed by the holding area. Species here are alpacas, Thorold’s deer, takins, Grevy’s deer, red kangaroos, and Bactrian camels. It’s a pretty basic area. All exhibits are seen from across moats, so that is a nice alternative to class or chain that is common around this zoo. The Kolver sea lion pool is a large round pool for a single grey seal. There are a few land parts, but the majority is water. There is a very large underwater viewing room that surrounds the majority of the exhibit. Nothing special, but defiantly not a bad exhibit. The Hope B. McCormick Swan Pond is a small wetland exhibit near the Small Mammal-Reptile House. It is kind of sparse on waterfowl. Species are ruddy duck, hooded merganser, northern pintail, and trumpeter swan. Nearby is another pond that supposedly houses flamingos and swan geese. McCormick Bear Habitat is a series of three bear grottos. Two are rather small and for Andean bears and sun bears. They are the typical rocky bear grottos with a large cliff at one that seems a little precarious. There is a much better polar bear exhibit with a huge pool and nice rocky land area. There is also underwater viewing, making this a very decent polar bear exhibit. The Helen Brach Primate House is a typical outdated series of indoor exhibits for primates. It isn’t terrible, but certainly isn’t good for this monkeys. The only outdoor exhibit is am attached rocky cage for white-cheeked gibbons. Indoor exhibits are for black howler monkey, Bolivian grey titi and geoldi’s monkey, black and white colobus, pied tamarins, white-cheeked gibbons, Francois langur, and DeBrazza’s monkey. Though this exhibit is outdated and should be torn down, it seems like paradise compared to the final exhibit I will describe. The Kolver Lion House is one of the worst exhibits I’ve ever seen and should be emptied as soon as possible. This exhibit is home to many large cats and smaller carnivore species. Inside are tiny exhibits with harp wire barriers. Outside are more tiny cages for pumas, jaguars, and leopards. On the other end are decent yards for tigers and lions. One thing particularly annoying is a gift shop in the building that is taking up valuable space the cats could use. Species in here are: Lion, tiger, jaguar, Amur leopard, puma, jaguar, Eurasian lynx, Pallas cat, serval, red panda, and snow leopard. Overall, this is a great zoo and a must see for people coming to Chicago. Not quite as good as Brookfield, it still provides a pleasant experience, and could probably be seen in 3-4 hours. African Journey, the Center for African Apes, and the Small Mammal-Reptile House are all top-notch, while the Primate House is bad and the Lion House is terrible. Though small, it has a good collection and nice, historic exhibits.
Thank you for a fine and balanced review. I visited LPZ many times when i lived and studied in Chicago and it special to many people in Chicago. Actually a rainy day is a good time to go in summer, since on Sunny days the crowds can be tough.LPZ is more than 100 years old and considering it has so many historical buildings,I agree with you that most of the zoo is quite good.I have visited other zoos with historical heritage buildings like Paris and Buenos Aires and i think LPZ comes out great as a place that shows great care for its animal collection as well as its heritage. Your assement on the faults of LPZ is correct. The primate house could be greatly improved simply by building more outdoor exhibits like the gibbon exhibit.There is space there. However the old lion house is terrible.Maybe only the moated spaces for lions and siberian tigers should stay.The souvenir stand in the lion house is ugly.Again,one problem is that both the lion house and primate house are historical buildings and may not be torn down. One of the saddest events in LPZ was when the elephants left.Sad because the old elephants did not survive the move.Of course,the elephant space in the african space was not really adquate,yet since LPZ and brookfield zoo have no elephants now, the nearest ones are in Milwaukee Zoo.
Tatima, Peaches and Wankie, a trio of very mature african elephants were brought to Chicago in 2002 from San Diego Animal park. They were all kept in the African large mammal building ( now African Journey). In 2004, both Tatima and Peaches died. Under severe pressure from attacks by PETA, LPZ in 2005 decided to move Wankie quickly to Hogle zoo in Utah, sadly Wankie died on arrival. I suppose that other zoochaters like SHOWMEELEPHANTS have more info on this sad affair.
Very good review KCZoofan and we're glad you enjoyed it so much.As far as the Kovler Lion House goes we completely agree with it possibly being the worst major exhibit at an AZA zoo.Carlos77 is right there is no way they would tear this building down.In our opinion the interior should be closed to the public and renovated to only house lions,tigers and maybe snow leopards.However the money to do a project like this is simply not there.Turning it into a cafe like in Toledo would also be a cool idea. Team Tapir
Thanks to you both for the kind words. I didn't much like the outdoor gibbon exhibit as it was almost all rocky surface. http://www.zoochat.com/577/primate-house-white-cheeked-gibbon-exhibit-155978/ Turning it into a cafe or some other guest ammenity would be, imo, the smartest idea. The outdoor lion and tiger exhibits could stray, though. It was a little wierd visiting two zoos without elephants. I had to go to the KC zoo the day after I got back just to see some
