On my recent visit to the San Diego Zoo, the Tiger River habitat was no where near as lush and green as it was on my first visit to San Diego Zoo in November of 2007. I realize this is due to the three cubs residing in the habitat, but does anyone know if when the cubs move out to different zoos they will replant the exhibit again?
Cascade Canyon? Does anyone here remember--or better yet have photos--of the exhibit that was built in the 1970s on the site now occupied by Tiger River: "Cascade Canyon"? I remember it being the best exhibit at the Zoo at the time--beautiful waterfalls, streams, wooden bridges and plantings. It housed Sitatunga, possibly some other hoofstock and some large wading birds. I remember being disappointed that the Zoo chose to tear down one of its best exhibits as it began the total renovation of the zoo that began with the Kopje exhibit and continues to this day.
My first visit to SDZ was in 2007 and I wasn't alive in the 1970's yet (lol), so I don't know anything about Cascade canyon. I do know that Tiger River was covered in grass and foliage in 2007, but the cubs destroyed everything when I visited last week! I guess that is the downside to having little cubs, they destroy every thing in the exhibit because they are so young and experiment with everything!
My first visit to San Diego (that I remember) was the year Tiger River opened. I do have a video tape that was produced by the zoo that has Cascade Canyon footage. I think I have a few books with photos of it as well. It looked really nice, but if I recall the species mix was a bit of a geographical amalgamation. I don't remember the exhibit firsthand. I do however remember Hippo Canyon, and in a weird way I'm kind of nostalgic for it.
I have seen a couple of pictures of cascade canyon in the book by eric bartay and elizabeth hardouin-fugier. It looks so lush that at first I thought it was an indoors exhibit!
