As far as I can tell (using advanced search feature), there is no thread yet for this zoo. So it is time to start one! Here is a nice article on the history of the zoo, which opened in 1983. Keep CALM and thrive on: The history, and future, of our zoo
snowleopard and Blackduiker have toured it; both of them have pictures in the gallery (not sure what road trip thread snowy's review is in - 2011?). Next time I pass through Bakersfield I need to check it out.
I was surpised to read in the history that it has been open that long. I don't know why I never knew about it when I lived in Los Angeles.
Here is my full review from my 2011 road trip thread, including a species list of the Reptile House (that includes some rarely exhibited small mammals): California Living Museum is located in Bakersfield and it was founded in 1980. Although not AZA-accredited it received accreditation from ZAA in 2010 and only focuses on flora and fauna native to California. The zoo is located within Kern River County Park and is home to over 80 species of mainly unreleasable animals. In addition there are hundreds of animals that are rehabilitated annually and then subsequently re-released back into the wild. THE BEST: Raptor Complex – There are 5 fairly large aviaries for rehabilitated birds that are spacious and would not look out of place at a major zoo. Species list for the 5 aviaries: bald eagle; golden eagle; common raven/common crow; red-tailed hawk; barn owl/long-eared owl/Cooper’s hawk. Desert Habitat – This is a bizarrely-shaped structure that looks like a pyramid from a distance and there are green metal poles holding up a combination of wire and mesh. There are 4 species located in the spacious enclosure (roadrunner, turkey vulture, burrowing owl and desert tortoise) and the densely-planted habitat has a cool feature for a visitor that involves a covered pathway that showcases the viewing windows at the bottom of the large aviary. There the inhabitants are easier to spot as their burrows and holes can be clearly viewed through the glass panels. THE AVERAGE: Cats of California – This complex just opened a few months ago and the staff is still thrilled at the endeavor as there are numerous posters and signs up near the front entrance. There are two mesh-covered enclosures with a few terrific viewing windows, and one exhibit houses 3 bobcats while the other has 2 cougars. For a zoo of this stature the enclosures are modern, but while the rock backdrops are excellent (I saw a bobcat and a puma up on high ledges) the chain-link fence sections, the obvious keeper doors and the relatively barren enclosures are all major negatives. Large Mammal Exhibits – A black bear/red fox enclosure is grotto-like yet covered with natural substrate; a coyote enclosure is decent except for the ugly chain-link fence surrounding it; and black-tailed mule deer have a standard yard with wire fencing obscuring the view of visitors. Reptile House – I was surprised to find that such a small establishment had an air-conditioned, temperature-controlled reptile house with exactly 40 exhibits and 43 species. All of the terrariums are of average quality. Species list: chuckwalla, desert tortoise, western pond turtle, Mojave desert sidewinder, southwestern speckled rattlesnake, Mojave rattlesnake, northern Pacific rattlesnake, red diamond rattlesnake, southern Pacific rattlesnake, rubber boa, coastal rosy boa, desert rosy boa, gila monster, desert millipede, desert centipede, desert hairy scorpion, California tarantula, black widow, southern alligator lizard, western fence lizard, side-blotched lizard, western whiptail, desert night lizard, desert iguana, desert spiny lizard, western redtail skink, Santa Cruz garter snake, western aquatic garter snake, great basin gopher snake, western longnose snake, bullfrog, Pacific tree frog, banded gecko, California newt, California toad, desert glossy snake, California kingsnake (with an albino specimen), desert kingsnake, Sierra Mountain kingsnake, Tipton’s kangaroo rat, Heermann kangaroo rat, whitetail antelope ground squirrel and lodgepole chipmunk. THE WORST: Small Mammal Exhibits – There are tiny chain-link cages for these species: raccoon, badger, western gray squirrel, striped skunk and ringtail. Also, a round-house, C-shaped style set of 5 enclosures (think of the hideous 20 or more C-shaped enclosures that are found at the Los Angeles Zoo) contain these 5 species: coati, red fox, gray fox, San Clemente Island fox and San Joaquin kit fox. Lastly, near the entrance is a tiny enclosure for a North American porcupine. Bird Exhibits – Across the grounds there are small metal aviaries for these species: American kestrel, western screech owl, scrub jay and black-crowned night heron. An American white pelican and herring gull share a watery grotto that used to also house a beaver, and there is a waterfowl pond/shore bird section that appears to be partially under construction. OVERALL: CALM (California Living Museum) is a facility that has a large off-exhibit area devoted to rehabilitated animals, and most of the creatures on display could not ever be released back into the wild. Knowing that information, and the fact that there are a lot of volunteers that help out this small establishment, I feel as if I can cut it some slack in terms of being hyper-critical in regards to some of the exhibits. The new Cats of California complex has been heavily promoted and hopefully it is a sign of things to come as I found a news article from 2006 discussing the addition. It certainly took the facility a long time to complete its star attraction! I would recommend venturing to Bakersfield to tour CALM if you are a looking to tick off another zoo on a lifetime list, or if you are someone who is curious about the small establishments that are sometimes surprisingly worthwhile. We spent an hour and a half there and it was an unannounced addition to the road trip. There are not a lot of high quality enclosures but the animal collection is decent considering the size of the place and without facilities such as California Living Museum many injured animals would not have very long lifespans.
I recently made a quick stop at the CALM zoo and figured that I would give a short update to @snowleopard 's review. Not much seems to have changed. The waterfowl pond/shorebird section that snowleopard referred to has been complete for some time and I believe there are pictures of the enclosure posted by @ThylacineAlive. There is a North American Beaver now exhibited in the exhibit in front of the reptile house. There were a total of three North American Porcupine during my visit, one of which was in the tiny enclosure at the front of the zoo; the others were in one of the raptor exhibits that had signage for four animals: Barn Owl, Red Shouldered Hawk, Coopers Hawk, and the North American Porcupine. I only saw the porcupines on exhibit, however, so I believe they rotate these species. That or all the birds were well hidden. There is no longer a fisher at the zoo (at least not on exhibit). During my visit, the cat exhibits were still very barren with a few tufts of grass around some rocks. I did see that the media posted by ThylacineAlive showed the exhibits a little more green so it would seem that during certain times of the year more grass grows in, but other than that, there is little to no plants. The zoo was not advertising any future plans for renovations or the like, but while I was there the coyotes were off exhibit with a sign that read, "Sorry we missed you, our exhibit is under renovations, Poppy & Zuko" Hopefully that means more than just a few minor modifications, but I won't hold my breath.
I did post a photo of the waterfowl/shorebird aviary yes. Is there anything in the old Fisher enclosure? ~Thylo
I'm not certain which enclosure the fisher was in, but if it was the one to the right of the kit fox exhibit, then they moved a raccoon into it.
