For those that haven't already noticed, over the past couple of weeks I've uploaded over 100 photos from the Minnesota Zoo and close to 120 from the Detroit Zoo. Contained in those totals there are close to 45 shots from "Russia's Grizzly Coast" and about the same from the "Arctic Ring of Life" habitats. It's great to see zoos that have killer, amazing exhibits that stand out from the norm of average, standard enclosures that dominate so many other zoos. Eventually in the future I'd like to upload at least 100 photos from all 20-25 zoos and aquariums that I visit. That will mean another 2000-2500 photos to be added to the gallery!!
My wife and I are now in New York City, staying in the Bronx neighbourhood. We spent a heck of a long time making phone calls (I drove and my wife made the calls) only to find motel after motel charging $300 per night all around Manhattan. That price includes a AAA discount, but also includes taxes and parking rates. So we opted to stay about 25 minutes from Central Park, and we'll be taking the subway, taxis and doing tons of walking in our 5-6 nights here. We are booked for 5 nights at the moment, in a motel that amazingly has free parking and continental breakfast, and is only about $135 per night. We are only about 15 minutes from the Bronx Zoo, and will almost certainly be there all day tomorrow. I can't wait!!!!! We will be buying a CityPass, which includes the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island Immigration Museum harbour tour, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the American Museum of Natural History, the Guggenheim Museum of Modern Art, and the Empire State Building. We will also attempt to get some half-price or fairly cheap tickets for a Broadway play or musical, as well as visit Central Park and the zoo there, Rockefeller Center, Times Square, etc, etc. It will cost a lot, but we might never be back in New York City again...and so it's a once in a lifetime moment.
Cool, hope you have lots of fun in NYC! And can't wait for the Bronx Zoo review. Will you also be doing a review for Central Park Zoo?
The famous Bronx Zoo is where I'll be all day tomorrow, which is a Thursday here in the Northern Hemisphere. And yes I'll eventually post a long review of both the Bronx and Central Park Zoos, which will pop up here in the near future. I'm going to the Bronx with very high expectations, as I have heard it mentioned countless times that there is the Bronx and San Diego...and then everybody else in North America. Some folks here at ZooBeat have been a little critical of San Diego, but the animal collection there is rather astonishing. Plus there are many excellent exhibits: polar bear plunge, sun bear forest, monkey tales and forest trails, ituri forest, gorilla tropics, the bonobo forest, reptile house & reptile mesa, giant pandas, and the list goes on and on. Hopefully the Bronx Zoo can be even better!!
Bronx Zoo Review - 7 hours (Zoo/Aquarium # 9 for the road trip) My wife and I arrived at the zoo just before it opened, and so at exactly 10 a.m. we bought our tickets and ventured inside. Then 7 hours later the entire place was basically shut down for the night, and that was when we left the establishment. It's tough to start a review with a complaint, but being open for only 7 hours doesn't bode well for the hardcore zoo fan. We stopped for lunch in a great location (Baboon Reserve), but had to speed through the last few buildings in order to fit everything in. As it was we skipped the children's zoo and the butterfly garden, as well as the Skyfari ride because it has apparently been closed for about a week due to mechanical complications. If only this great zoo was open an hour earlier, and perhaps an hour later, then I would have still seen everything but wouldn't have had to rush through some of the buildings. This review will be long and comprehensive, as I realize that many fellow ZooBeaters have visited the Bronx Zoo in the past. Those that haven't actually been to this fabulous zoo are sitting there wishing that they could visit it. I think that the Bronx Zoo is a fantastic zoo with many outstanding exhibits, and the diversity of the animal collection is bested only by San Diego in North America. The Bronx is the second best zoo that I've ever visited, as I still would place the San Diego Zoo at #1. Is that a contentious statement? I suppose that I'll find out after people post responses (whether private or public) to this review. The fact that San Diego is open for 11 hours in the summer, in comparison to the Bronx's 7 (or 7.5 on the weekend), allows for time to savour the collection at a fairly reasonable pace. I walked around the Bronx today and found it difficult not to think of San Diego, which has an amazing set of exhibits, a huge collection of animals, much better aviaries, giant pandas, and outdoor enclosures rather than many "houses" or "pavilions". The idea of being able to drop into San Diego any day of the year, and apart from the Reptile House be outdoors the entire time, is massively appealing. At the Bronx there are at least 8 major animal buildings, and I know from past visitors that in winter the experience is nowhere near as exciting. Review: Congo Gorilla Forest - the best set of habitats at the zoo, and just about the best single set of exhibits that I've ever seen. Detroit Zoo's "Arctic Ring of Life" has perhaps been vanquished. In my 60 or so zoos and aquariums that I've visited (including those that I'll be seeing on this trip) I've rarely been immersed in the surroundings as I was in this Congo forest complex. The 7 minute film was informative, and when the curtains pulled aside to review the best gorilla habitat I've ever seen there were gasps from behind me. The 24 apes were a blast to watch, and if the zoo only remained open for longer hours then I could have stayed there all afternoon. Every other gorilla complex now pales in comparison to this one, and to top it off the DeBrazza's monkey/mandrill/red river hog enclosure is equally brilliant. The okapi exhibit, interactive signs and various tanks and aquariums were all outstanding. No wonder this section of the zoo is so highly regarded around the world. All you Aussies who have raved about the Melbourne Zoo's gorilla habitat (which is very good) might as well bulldoze it now, as the Bronx's apes are in paradise in comparison. JungleWorld - brilliant rain forest building, but with several faults. The malayan tapir/turtle/ white-cheeked gibbon/prevost's squirrel habitat is beautiful to gaze upon. The small-clawed otters, including 4 babies, were a delight to watch, and the silvery leaf monkeys were active and inquisitive. However, the black panther (leopard) exhibit is too small, and the ebony langurs were crammed into a space that didn't have a lot of actual land space. At first glance they were in a gorgeous exhibit, but then take away the large expanse of water, the mural on the wall, the hot-wired side plants...and the space is too tiny for them. This building is slightly better than Brookfield's TropicWorld, perhaps because it is much more realistic. Tiger Mountain - very good tiger exhibits, and amongst the best of their kind for the siberians that inhabit them. There are wonderful opportunities to view the tigers up close, either swimming in their pool or lounging by the wide windows. Madagascar! - excellent renovation job of the 1903 lion house. The spongey floor and beautiful signs (the best signage in the zoo) are outstanding, and all of the exhibits are colourful and attractive. The spiny forest section with ring-tailed and collared lemurs is unique in the zoo world just because it is so damn good, and the sifaka's were a delight in a smallish enclosure. The pair of nile crocodiles and the two fossas were fantastic to see, and the building as a whole is expertly done. Perhaps this could challenge Minnesota Zoo's "Russia's Grizzly Coast" for the AZA Exhibit Award? I'd like to see Minnesota win, as that zoo's new set of habitats is brilliant and they could use the acclaim more than the Bronx. Wild Asia - this monorail ride is so-so, and alike so many others of its kind. It is frustrating to see asian elephants for perhaps 1 minute, indian rhinos for maybe 45 seconds, red pandas for 35 seconds, etc. The guide kept mentioning the breeding record of the Bronx Zoo, and yet there are 2 female asian elephants (but the zoo is phasing out elephants anyway), 2 female indian rhinos, 2 female babirusa, and 4 female mongolian wild horses. Where is the breeding going to come from? The paddocks in this section of the zoo are all spacious and naturalistic, but there is understandable frustration at seeing amazing animals for mere seconds at a time. Someone mentioned something on ZooBeat about how there might be a reworking of this area in the future, but how does an old zoo reinvent a 40-acre section of the zoo? There could be many more walking trails incorporated into the Asian area, but the zoo already takes an entire day to see and so any more trails would turn the establishment into a 2-day adventure. Monkey House - ancient building with a large number of small monkeys in so-so exhibits. The zoo as a whole has a bewildering collection of marmosets, tamarins and other small monkeys, and perhaps there is no other zoo in North America with such diversity of tiny monkeys. In terms of apes there are only one species of gibbon and the gorillas, but in terms of monkeys few zoos can compete with the Bronx. Himalayan Highlands - 4 snow leopards in 3 different exhibits of varying quality. One was large and one of the best that I've ever seen, one was average, and one was terribly small and disappointing. The red pandas were nowhere in sight, but the exhibit is very lushly planted and full of sneaky hiding spots. African Plains - the greatest exhibits stand the test of time, and this 1941 set of enclosures still holds up fairly well. Giraffe, Grevy's zebra, blesbok, lions, african wild dogs (a newer enclosure), and various species of antelope all are in spacious and attractive paddocks. The one major flaw is the puny size of the giraffe indoor quarters. Do these magnificent animals spend 50% of their lives in a tiny, concrete barn? Do they spend days and weeks on end inside during the winter? What they wouldn't give to be transferred to a zoo in a warmer climate... World of Darkness - nocturnal house that is very well done. Not the best that I've ever seen (that would be the Alice Springs Desert Park in the middle of Australia), but this is one of the better nocturnal houses around. World of Reptiles - fairly standard exhibits, although to be fair many of the tanks were bigger than what is shown in the majority of zoos. The many poisonous snakes, including several species of cobra, were a highlight. Baboon Reserve - gelada baboons, rock hyrax and nubian ibex in a massive hilltop enclosure. Lunch at the Somba Village Cafe while watching the baboons graze (I found out today that geladas mainly eat grass!) was a real treat. Such a simplistic enclosure, and yet highly effective for both animal and visitor. Mouse House - what an absolute delight! Rodents that are normally crammed into nooks and crannies at other zoos are given an entire building to themselves. Huge cloud rats, tiny egyptian mice, etc are all loaded in stylish tanks. A unique environment and a set of habitats that totally caught me off-guard. There is no other zoo that I know of that has such a diverse collection of rodents. Some people might scoff at the notion of glancing at rodents, but they are quite entertaining. Major disappointments at the Bronx Zoo: Bear grottoes - there are so many wonderful exhibits at this zoo, and yet they only have 2 of the world's 8 bear species and those unfortunate animals have crappy bear pits. There was a grizzly bear pacing in a mainly concrete grotto, while the polar bear "exhibit" is as bad as any other in an American zoo. How does such a great zoological institution have such a god-awful polar bear concrete prison? Hopefully the two bear grottoes will be bulldozed in the near future, because this zoo is too good to showcase great animals in such atrocities. I might sound harsh, but after hours of seeing marvellous enclosures it was depressing to see the polar bear lying in utter boredom in an exhibit that would even be regarded as poor in Japan. Birds - the collection at the Bronx Zoo is one of the most diverse that I've ever seen, but there are countless average to below-average cages. The "Birds of Prey" section are typically tiny metal cages. The row of pheasant aviaries are ugly, tiny, metal cages. The "Aquatic Bird House" is average at best. The "World of Birds" is an antiquated building that doesn't have a single standout exhibit. The "Sea Bird Aviary" was the best of the lot, but the handful of penguins and other sea birds still didn't have the best surroundings. My wife and I aren't really huge bird fans to begin with, but it is truly puzzling that the zoo has hundreds of different species of birds and arguably nothing but discouraging habitats. Where's the innovation for featherered animals? I do have to admit that the two flamingo pools and some of the waterfowl and stork/crane outdoor habitats were pleasant to look at, but more should be done for the birds. Overall: The Bronx Zoo is a fabulous zoo and the second best in North America. I believe that the San Diego Zoo has poor exhibits in Bear and Cat Canyons, but other than that almost the entire zoo down in southern California is unbeatable. The Bronx Zoo has the Congo Gorilla Forest, which is arguably better than any other zoo exhibit in existence, and many other outstanding and spacious enclosures. But San Diego's vast bird aviaries, sun bear forest, hippo pool, monkey trails and forest tales, gorilla tropics, bonobos, koalas and Australian animals, polar bear plunge, Ituri forest, upcoming Elephant Odyssey, reptile house & reptile mesa, etc, all are the equal or better than many of the Bronx's stellar habitats. I was swept off my feet by many exhibits at the Bronx Zoo (Congo Gorilla Forest, Madagascar!, JungleWorld, Tiger Mountain) but I feel that San Diego has more on offer and edges it ever so slightly in "the battle of the great zoos". If my wife and I do travel up the coast of California on this road trip then maybe I'll have a chance to see my favourite zoo once again. Forgive the final comparison with the San Diego Zoo, but there aren't any other zoos that are in the same league as these two in North America. I love the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle, as 80% of the exhibits there are excellent, but the collection is quite small. Calgary and Toronto in Canada are both worthwhile, but neither is in the same ballpark as the Bronx or San Diego. The Denver Zoo has an enormous collection and a bright future, but for now they too are in the second banana position. Detroit is a great zoo, but still can't compete with the big guns financially. The Sydney and Melbourne Zoos in Australia are the best that country has to offer, but they also aren't even close to the Bronx or San Diego.
Will you be added pictures of the Bronx Zoo? I would love to see them since I have not been in a while. Its too bad that the majority of all bear exhibits are not that great. But with the "Polar Bear Crisis" I don't think that the Bronx Zoos Polar Bear exhibit will stay that way, since they are amazing in keeping other tropical species, they should just phase out the bear and aquire more exotic species. The Bronx Zoo does have great exhibits however when I was there last bout 10 years ago there were a couple ugly, and horable exhibits. I think that they enlarged the snow leopard exhibit in the past 10 years to more than triple the size, but I may be wrong. Overall, the Bronx Zoo is an outstanding zoo and from the pictures I have seen the zoos Madagasgar Exhibit, and the Arctic Ring of Life exhibit should both win the AZA Exhibit Award. BTW, do you knwo if these zoo's have but in the applications for it yet?
Glad to hear that the Bronx zoo is outstanding, I am a little surprised that they only had two female Indian rhinos as they have been one of the main players in the US with this species for a long time, Thanks for your review
@Quartz92: I have over 300 photos from the Bronx Zoo, but I'm not sure how many I'll actually upload and when that will happen. So far I've managed to add almost 250 shots from the Minnesota and Detroit Zoos, but by the end of this road trip there will many more zoos and aquariums with hundreds more photos. Also, for the AZA exhibit award Detroit Zoo's "Arctic Ring of Life" already won in 2001. You must have been referring to Minnesota Zoo's "Russia's Grizzly Coast" versus the Bronx Zoo's "Madagascar!". There will be many other exhibits that might be in contention, but of course not every zoo applies and there are apparently some politics involved as well. @Mark: I too was surprised when the guide mentioned the two female indian rhinos. The interesting thing about the Bronx Zoo is that there is an enormous collection of over 4,000 animals (and 500 species) but there are a number of notable animals that are NOT in the collection. Tons of people don't pay the extra $5 for the Asian monorail, where the only 2 elephants and only 2 rhinos are. There are no rhinos or elephants in the rest of the zoo, and no hippos, orangutans or chimpanzees as well. Those are some famous creatures that aren't represented at such a massive institution. The Bronx Zoo also shocked me with the lack of North American animals in the collection, as most zoos on the continent are loaded with representatives from the northern section of the Americas. But the Bronx has no pronghorn antelope, wolves, coyotes, black bears, badgers, wolverines, weasels, fishers, raccoons, white-tailed deer, martens, cougars, lynx, bobcats, porcupines, beavers, river otters, musk ox, caribou, elk, etc, etc. Intriguing... P.S. On a side note, the ring-tailed mongoose in the Madagascar house was amazing to watch zip around the exhibit. I'd never seen one before, but the bright red body and black-and-red ringed tail was astonishing to see at high speed.
Hi Snowleopard, reading your reviews is like revisiting or actually visiting a particular zoo. For the first time as is often the case. You might want to try to visit Gorilla Haven if they are haveing a open day around the time of your visit to Atlanta. gorillahaven.org I gurantee you will be overwhelmed by what they have achieved. Looking forward to your next post. Stuart R Webster
Great review of the Bronx Zoo! I like your reviews because it's like I'm actually visiting that specific zoo. I also like your honesty when writing your reviews. Can't wait for the next review
Bronx Zoo Great review of Bronx, Snowleopard! I think I agree with you almost word-for-word in your comparison of Bronx and San Diego. And wow, you brought up something I hadn't thought of -- Bronx's short hours. You're right, that WAS a real difficulty for me too. It especially stands out when San Diego is open until 8pm on summer nights! You say San Diego and Bronx are clearly the top 2 zoos in North America -- well, I have to add that Omaha is now a contender for the #2 position. This past weekend I visited the Henry Doorly Zoo, as well as the Minnesota Zoo and 3 smaller zoos. I was blown away by the excellence of Omaha's great and massive exhibits! Kingdoms of the Night IS the best nocturnal exhibit anywhere! The Desert Dome is the best desert exhibit outside of Arizona, and the Lied Jungle hasn't lost a thing -- it's still amazing! (with all due respect to fans of the Aussie zoo pessimist) I agree with you on San Diego, but I'm not sure which zoo I'd say is North America's #2. I'll be back at the Bronx next month to get another look.
Anyhuis, Would you consider doing a review on the zoos that you just visited, I for one would really like to known the nuts and bolts of these two zoos ,
@snowleopard -I'm on vacation but had to check in on your progress. I agree with everything you wrote about the Bronx. Comaprisons between a northern zoo and a sub-tropical one are not apples-to-apples (well, obviously they are apples-to-oranges!) but I see why it's hard to avoid. Many of the exhibits that disappointed you are original to the beginning of the 20th century. The ones you enjoyed are what began in 1940 and continues to this day. Give them another few decades to complete the renovation. An exhibit such as Congo Gorilla Forest is unimaginably expensive!
Just to add some technical notes: The Bronx Zoo has a small herd of 3.5 Indian Rhinoceros and as of July 2007 had 4.8 Babirusa. As for a North American collection, the Bronx Zoo is part of a network of zoos in New York City called the Wildlife Conservation Society. They opperate the Bronx, Central Park, Queens, Prospect Park Zoos and the NY Aquarium on Coney Island. The Queens Zoo is solely representative of speices from the Americas.
there are off exhibit enclosures available to many species in most zoos. i'm sure the bronx has its share of them.
Minnesota & Omaha Snowleopard has already posted a very good review of the Minnesota Zoo, so there's not much to add -- though I may add some later. When I get a chance, I'll post a brief review of Omaha. But should I do so here? I feel like I'm crashing Snowleopard's party. Until I do post these reviews, they were thoroughly covered in our book, America's Best Zoos: A Travel Guide for Fans & Families (2008, Intrepid Traveler) -- available on Amazon.com.
