I made my first return visit to the Louisville Zoo in over 10 years this past Saturday while spending the weekend visiting a friend, and have added a handful of photos to the gallery. I'm afraid that I cannot provide a comprehensive update on the zoo, as I was not on my time, but rather my friend and her boyfriend's, so I spared them and refrained from fully indulging in the experience That said, I do have some updates! 1) The zoo recently received a pair of one-year-old common warthog brothers, named "Digger" and "Riggs", from the Erie Zoo. 2) The zoo's 23-year-old male Komodo dragon, "Big Man", was recently euthanized after suffering from severe tetraparesis. 3) The last two brown woolly monkeys in North America have been taken off display to make way for the renovation of their exhibit into a new exhibit for colobus, which was supposed to open this year although there appears to have been no construction work do so far at all. That said, you can still catch a glimpse of them in a cage behind the giraffe barn and the wattled stork exhibit. 4) This was my first visit to the zoo since the opening of Glacier Run, and I have to say, I was quite impressed! The rotational bear exhibit is very nice, and the pool is spectacular! The Steller's sea eagle aviary is also very impressive and a huge improvement over their previous home in the giraffe barn; although it does not quite offer nearly as many true flight opportunities as the aviary in Cincinnati. The pinniped exhibit and underwater view was rather average, but the views into the bear exhibit were very nice, indeed. I thoroughly enjoy Louisville's commitment to the rotational exhibits; however, I wish that there would have been another bear yard instead of just the indoor bear exhibit - especially with how many bears they have. 5) I also got to see their brand new little blue penguin exhibit, which just opened this past summer. While none of the penguins were out during my visit, I can say that the exhibit is still very nice - undoubtedly the best little blue penguin exhibit I have ever seen. It is a very large, netted exhibit with sandy beaches, rocky patches, and clusters of beach grasses. The pool seems a little on the shallow side (I've honestly never seen a very deep pool for this species), but it is surely large enough in size. Unfortunately, I was unable to get any photos of the exhibit because this was the last exhibit we toured before leaving for the day, and we had reservations to make. These are the biggest things that I noted on my quick visit, but if anyone has any more specific question I might be able to answer them as well.
Thanks for the update! Two more questions: What did you think of the renovated elephant exhibit? I hope it was better than it looks in the pics. Also was there any construction going on or any news as to how the zoo will implement their master plan?
My apologies for the late reply - I just haven't had much time for anything as of late. That said, the elephant exhibit is actually something I meant to talk about in my initial post! I don't know how I forgot it. That said, honestly, the elephant exhibit expansion does really not look any better than it does in pictures. While the elephants have access to significantly more room than they did previously, including several full trees, big piles of sand, and some puzzle feeders, the exhibit just isn't up to modern standards. Although I do believe that it is perfectly adequate for Punch and Mikki, it could not house any additional elephants and still be acceptable. The training wall is a nice addition, I believe, and I am sure that it is quite a draw for visitors and should be a brilliant way to build a connection and appreciation for elephants. The master plan calls for the elephants to be a part of a greater set of rotational African savanna exhibits with a new barn to be built for them as well, so it will be interesting to see how that development plays out in providing a more modern home for elephants at the Louisville Zoo. That said, I did not see any actual construction going on while I was there, although there was some general maintenance here and there.
I'm seeing the new Penguin exhibit for the second time and "until renovations are over", rockhoppers will take the place of blue penguins. This means half of the Islands Pavilion is closed, cutting off the walk through aviary, of course the Penguin exhibit, and the porcupine exhibit.
Two female maned wolf pups were born: http://www.courier-journal.com/stor...le-zoos-maned-wolf-pups-doing-well/100173608/
For the first time in the Zoo's history, Steller's sea eagles hatched. http://www.courier-journal.com/stor...rare-sea-eagle-born-louisville-zoo/100665234/
A naming contest is taking place for the maned wolf pups. WAVE : Naming contest held for Louisville Zoo's newest additions
A change in the gorilla troop: male Casey (already mentioned in the Audubon thread) and a female (nothing specified other than from an AZA-accredited zoo) will be arriving. Male Mshindi is off to an unspecified AZA-accredited zoo. Louisville Zoo welcoming new gorillas, saying goodbye to 1
Azizi, a female Hartmann's mountain zebra, arrived. http://www.courier-journal.com/stor...lo-lousiville-zoos-new-zebra-azizi/387534001/
Masai giraffe, Baridi, has arrived from San Diego Safari Park. The zoo's other male, Silvester, will be leaving soon. http://www.courier-journal.com/stor...-giraffe-makes-new-home-louisville/440384001/
With the arrival of gorillas Casey and Bandia (new as of earlier this week, and from Audubon Zoo), the Zoo is hoping to form a new gorilla troop. https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.courier-journal.com/amp/754892001
Kenya the male lion was euthanized. Louisville Zoo euthanizes its 18-year-old lion after months of declining health
