The Topeka Zoo is small, and has seen better days. However, it is still a pleasant little zoo to spend a few hours at. It is home to the first domed rainforest, as well as the first tunnel through a gorilla exhibit. Like most small zoos, it has no super rare species, or amazing exhibit, but it is laid out very well, and has some beautiful grounds. Tropical Rainforest This small rainforest has been surpassed by much larger buildings at zoos such as Omaha and the Bronx. Outside is a small fishing cat cage, which also has a spacious indoor exhibit in a small, dark room (a Standing’s day gecko also has an exhibit in here). A small loop leads visitors around the building, as well a tall overlook of the exhibit. There are several nice exhibits for dwarf caimans, Asian small-clawed otters, rhinoceros iguana, nine-banded armadillo, and red-kneed tortoise/Malayan chevrotain. There are several interesting free-roaming animals, such as a two-toed sloth, Chinese muntjac, flying foxes, and even a tamandua. The large number of free-roaming birds includes blue-throated piping guan, gray-necked wood rail, crested wood partridge, white-faced whistling duck, ringed teal, yellow-billed cardinal, bali mynah, scarlet macaw, gray parrot, scarlet ibis, hammerkop, and white-crested laughing thrush. The small building is full of lush, mature foliage, as well as a pool and waterfall. I find it to be about as nicely done as possible for a building its size, and has a nice mixture of birds and small mammals. Black Bear Woods Black Bear Woods can be seen from an elevated boardwalk. Two enormous aviaries allow plenty of room for golden and bald eagles to fly. A pronghorn antelope can be seen from above, or from behind glass in a large, very grassy exhibit. An arctic fox lives in a densely planted enclosure in the center of the area. Two groups of two American black bears live in a large exhibit with plenty of trees and even a small pool. Like the pronghorn, the bears can be seen from above, or at ground level behind glass. It is the zoos best single species exhibit, and much better than many bear exhibits (grottos and pits) at huge zoos. Discovering Apes Discovering Apes is one of the first exhibits built at the Topeka Zoo. As you walk in, you can see the Sumatran orangutan exhibit at tree level from behind glass, it is the same quality of most indoor orangutan exhibit at large zoos across the country. Below the path is the indoor exhibit for leopard and African spurred tortoises. The orangutan room is sut up to feel like you are walking in a treehouse. A small room houses a tropical aquarium and terrariums for anoles and poison dart frogs. A tunnel leads between two average-sized gorilla exhibits. One exhibit can be seen from outside across a moat. Orangutans also have a fantastic, large outdoor yard with climbing structures. Animals & Man Animals and Man building serves as the indoor holding area for the zoos hippos, elephants (African and Asian), and giraffes. The giraffes have a large yard on one side of the building, while the hippos have a good and elephants have an average exhibit on the other side. Other exhibits in this building include Mexican beaded lizards, prehensile-tailed porcupines, African cape porcupines, prehensile-tailed skinks, Burmese pythons, and sugar gliders all in very large and tall glass fronted exhibits. Other Exhibits Small, circular cages around the zoo house black and white ruffed lemurs, scarlet macaws, red-tailed hawks, North American porcupines, Pallas cats, and a bobcat. Two sizeable ponds are home to waterfowl such as nenes, black-necked swans, trumpeter swans, bar-headed geese, swan geese, as well as wild mallards, wood ducks, and Canada geese. A small children’s zoo has 3 pens with domestic goats and sheep, as well as a playground. African spurred and leopard tortoises live in an exhibit near the giraffes in the summer. Lion’s Pride is a very nice exhibit for African lions, which can be seen from behind glass, in a cave, or through mesh. Nearby is a spacious Grant’s zebra exhibit. Spotted hyenas should be coming soon to this area. Jungle Cats is two (smallish) side-by-side exhibits for African black leopard and Sumatran tigers. Both exhibits are lushly planted, and the tigers have large pool to swim in. The exhibit is too small for my liking, but very nicely done. Kansas Carnivores is two side by side exhibits. The first is a small but nicely planted mountain lion exhibit. The second is for North American river otters. It is quite large, but the pool is rather small. Summary A nice little zoo, with some pleasant exhibits. They have 7 species of cats, as well as both elephant species. I would recommend it to anyone in the area. It would make a good day when combined with nearby David Traylor Zoo in Emporia, or Sunset Zoo in Manhattan.
I have a better, and more up-to-date review of the Topeka Zoo is anyone is interested. Could a moderator possibly replace the original text with this? * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * The Topeka Zoo is small, and has seen better days. However, it is still a pleasant little zoo to spend a few hours at. It is home to the first domed rainforest, as well as the first tunnel through a gorilla exhibit. It has nothing rare in terms of collection, and its level of exhibitry isn’t superb. It has a very easy to follow layout, and all can be seen with minimal backtracking. I shall describe the exhibits in a counterclockwise direction. Kansas Carnivores is two side by side exhibits opened in 2009. The first is a decent, caged exhibit for mountain lions. It is planted with native Kansas grasses, and actually looks very nice for its small size. It can be viewed through the wire, or through glass panels. Next to this is a pretty large exhibit for North American river otters. This is also planted with Kansas grasses. It has a small pool near the viewing windows that is too small in my opinion. After this is Black Bear Woods. It can be seen from an elevated boardwalk as well as from ground level. The first exhibit is a large yard for a single pronghorn, full of tall grass. This can be seen from behind glass in a viewing shelter, or from above on a boardwalk. There are two very large aviaries for bald and golden eagles. The golden eagle exhibit is larger, and can only be seen from the boardwalk. The bald eagle exhibit can be seen closer from the ground, as well as the boardwalk. In the center of the exhibit is a well planted arctic fox exhibit. The best exhibit here is a beautiful one for four American black bears. It is very large, has many trees for them to climb, and even a small pool from them. On the boardwalk is a cabin with graphics about bears. The bears can also be seen through glass under the boardwalk. The last exhibit is a nice pond for Trumpeter swans and wood ducks that is surrounded by thick foliage. Located near the middle of the zoo are two sizeable waterfowl ponds. One is only home to wild birds, and has a small boardwalk extending out onto it. The second has more land area and foliage. It is home to bar-headed geese, swan geese, Canada geese, wood ducks, and mallards. They are both attractive, but could house many more birds, maybe even flamingos. The Children’s Zoo has two parts. One is a nice, but basic playground structure. The other is a series of four pens with sheep, goats, and a llama. It is as boring and basic as it can be, and nothing I haven’t seen done in every other zoo I’ve been to. The small rainforest was the first one in the whole country, back in 1974. However, it has been surpassed by much larger buildings at zoos such as Omaha, Sedgwick County and the Bronx. It is still a nice exhibit though. Outside is a small fishing cat cage, which also has a decent, dark indoor exhibit. Neither exhibit provides a good view of the cat. A small loop trail leads visitors around the building, as well a tall overlook of the exhibit. There are several nice exhibits for dwarf caimans, Asian small-clawed otters, Southern three-banded armadillo, and red-kneed tortoise, Malayan chevrotain, and a cage for Brazilian porcupines. These exhibits are concrete fronted, but feature plants and natural substrate. There are several interesting free-roaming animals, such as a Hoffman’s-toed sloth, Chinese muntjac, Ryukyu flying foxes, and even a tamandua. The large number of free-roaming birds includes blue-throated piping guan, gray-necked wood rail, crested wood partridge, white-faced whistling duck, ringed teal, red-crested cardinal, Bali mynah, scarlet macaw, gray parrot, scarlet ibis, hamerkop, and white-crested laughing thrush. The small building is full of lush, mature foliage, as well as a pools and even a tall waterfall. I find it to be about as nicely done as possible for a building its size, and has a nice mixture of birds and small mammals. Animals & Man is a boring building that serves as the zoos holding building for their large mammals. On one side are two exhibits for hippopotamus, one with a large pool. Towards the back of the building are a couple of holding spaces for reticulated giraffes. The hippopotamus and giraffe exhibits are just bland concrete holding areas. Along the other side are a series of tall, glass fronted exhibits for black and white ruffed lemurs, African crested porcupine, and Rio Fuerte beaded lizard. They are decent in size, but aren’t very attractive at all. There are also two terrariums for Dumeril’s ground boa and Solomon island skink. Outside are three exhibits. The first is a very nice giraffe/gray crowned crane exhibit toward the front of the zoo. It is viewed from across a moat, and is filled with tall grass. On the back of the building are exhibits for hippopotamus and elephants. The hippopotamus exhibit has a decent amount of land, and a very nice pool. The elephant exhibit is pretty bad. It is small, dusty, and viewed through thick cables. They keep one African and one Asian elephant in this exhibit. For a zoo this size, they should not be keeping elephants. Across from the hippo exhibit are two side by side big cat exhibits called Jungle Cats. At first glance, they appear quite small, but are actually of adequate size, and very nicely planted. The first is for Sumatran tigers. They have climbing structures (I’ve seen one in the fake “tree”), and a large swimming pool. The second is a more lushly planted, and for a black leopard. These exhibits are actually pretty decent, or at least they seem so to me. Lion’s pride is a large, wooded exhibit for African lions. The lions can be viewed through harp wire, or through glass in a viewing cave. The exhibit is nothing great, but has enough space for the cats. Near this are two exhibits for future development. One is labeled “African Antelope,” of an unknown species. The other is going to house African wild dogs, and looks nearly complete. Discovering Apes is one of the first exhibits built at the Topeka Zoo. It houses the zoos Bornean orangutans and gorillas. As you walk in, you can see the Sumatran orangutan exhibit at tree level from behind glass, it is the same quality of most indoor orangutan exhibit at large zoos across the country. It is located in a themed room, supposed to look like some kind of wooden house. Below the floor are winter exhibits for leopard and African spurred tortoises. A small room between the exhibits houses a tropical aquarium and terrariums for knight anoles and bumblebee and blue poison dart frogs. A tunnel leads between two small gorilla exhibits. One exhibit can be seen from outside across a moat. Both exhibits are too small, though they only have one elderly female gorilla. Orangutans also have a fantastic, net covered, outdoor yard with climbing structures. It is actually comparable to exhibits and Sedgwick County at Saint Louis, though a little smaller. Scattered around the zoo are circular cages for barn owls, North American porcupines, Pallas cats, bobcats, and barred/great horned owls. Also near the giraffe exhibit is the summer home for leopard and African spurred tortoise. Overall, it is a nice zoo, and one of the better ones in Kansas. It has seven cat species, both elephant species, and three porcupine species. The exhibits are usually fairly nice, with a few exceptions. It would make a nice trip to anyone in the area.
I'm letting both reviews stand. It will make a nice comparison in the evolution in the zoo and the evolution of the reviewer
