A few of us had a brief discussion about the LA Zoo lion exhibit over one of Blackduiker's lion photos in the LA Zoo photo gallery. The LA Zoo lion exhibit is very small and old compared to modern lion exhibits and after the elderly lioness in it passes, it seems unlikely that this exhibit would be used for lions anymore. The LA Zoo has been engaged in an ambitious renewal project since 1998. This building program has helped modernize the infrastructure of the zoo and allowed for a new entrance and education complex, seal exhibit, great ape exhibits (chimps, gorillas, orangs), a new Asian elephant exhibit, an Asian monkey exhibit (originally golden monkeys but langurs at the moment), and upcoming new reptile/invertebrate complex, and South American rainforest complex. Not all of these exhibits have been universally hailed as excellent, but there seems to be consensus that they are all at least good and that the LA Zoo is a much better zoo than it was before 1998. My question for the LA Zoo regulars here, professional zoo designers, and anyone else with an interest in the LA Zoo, is what exhibits need to be replaced in the next wave of LA Zoo renewal. Who knows when it will happen, but we have to at least start dreaming of the future so we can work to make it happen. My 2 cents is that they need to build: 1. African animal complex with new exhibits for lions, hippos (originally part of the 1998 plan but dropped because the ele exhibit got complicated), giraffes and zebras, and black rhinos. 2. New bear exhibits. The LA Zoo once had an excellent bear collection with most species represented. It is good for the animals that they are no longer there because the exhibits were old and sucky, but having at least one bear species in a modern exhibit would be great. There are currently only American black bears that are wild rescue animals. They are in an old retrofitted exhibit. I don't see polar bears happening here because of expense of building a new aquatic exhibit of needed scale, but who knows? A good grizzly bear exhibit would be good. 3. New Asian rhino and tiger exhibits. 4. A California condor exhibit. One of the LA Zoo's legitimate claims to greatness is that they helped save the California condor, and continue to support the wild population through captive breeding and health care of wild condors with lead poisoning. There are now condor exhibits at San Diego and Santa Barbara. LA needs one too. Given economic realities these exhibits probably wouldn't be finished until the 2020s at least, but have to start somewhere.
Blackduiker A revamp of the entire African section, creating an African Savannah and rain forest would be a dream come true. And once Rainforest of the Americas is completed, a redo of the remaining South America section should be in order; like the rumored Jaguar habitat, maybe an Andean Condor aviary, and possibly a larger space for the Maned Wolves and Mountain Tapirs, with Giant Anteaters and Rheas thrown in. I'd also like to see the once proposed Grizzly Bear/Mountain Lion/ California Condor space built, as were in the master plan back in the 1990s. A continued Asian forest remodeling for Sumatran Tigers and additional species. Also a total do over of the hillside exhibits along the back perimeter. But ahead of everything mentioned above, probably the finishing of the old Koala House remodel for smaller Australian mammal species that is long overdue.
@Blackduiker: I was curious about the 1990s master plan that you mentioned and found this 1992 LA Times article describing it: Massive Renovation Plan Proposed for L.A. Zoo : Attractions: Infrastructure of aging facility would be revamped and animals housed in simulated ecosystems. - Los Angeles Times It describes the need to replace the then-crumbling power and water infrastructure (done), build new ape and elephant exhibits (done), build a new African savanna complex for lions, giraffes, and zebras and a modern polar bear exhibit with underwater viewing (mission not accomplished). Interesting stuff. The article mentions an accompanying map and graphic, but I could not find it. If anyone has a link to the actual plan and/or a more detailed description of it I would love to see it to compare what actually happened in the 20 years since it has been out.
I know this is nothing short of heresy but I'd be more than happy to never see another African exhibit again in a zoo again. I'd like to see the LA Zoo be focused on North and South American species - which would compliment SDZ's focus on African and Asia species. Really, the zoo does not need another exhibit dedicated to sleeping lions. I'd also like to see the zoo tear out all those falling apart half circle exhibits. I'd rather see one well done exhibit than 20 dilapidated ones. The LA Zoo suffers from lack of funding. It makes sense to showcase smaller, less expensive (and far more interesting in my opinion) animals in better enclosures. I know it won't happen but that's just my thoughts...
I also cannot stand those 1960's-era concrete blobs that dot the zoo grounds. Los Angeles Zoo has improved considerably in recent years but those half-circle enclosures (even though some have been extensively renovated) are a major detriment to the establishment.
That condor, mountain lion, and grizzly bear set of exhibits sounds like a great combination. In my opinion, every zoo needs an exhibit dedicated to its local habitat or else the community loses touch with their nature. Even if their local habitat is still in touch, in a zoo you could still do something exciting when staging that ecosystem. As of right now, there aren't any real Chaparral ecosystem exhibits. Condor Ridge and Santa Barbara's California exhibit come close but they don't mention chaparral.
I think that there climate would fit perfectly for a sun bear exhibit. Would it be possible to put them near the orangutans?
How bout a cool jungle exhibit for the harapan the sumatran rhino. Also include anoa, orangutan,komodo dragon, sun bear,sumatran tiger,vanities,sulawesi macaque,short clawed offer,dismantle,white handed gibbon,cendrawasih.
I don't know if it still exists, but there used to be a trail at the very top of the garden pathways at the Safari Park that actually went through some chaparral and had some interpretive signs. This may have been replaced by Condor Ridge as I haven't seen it for several years. Back when they had the monorail also the guides would sometimes talk about how a large portion of the then-WAP was permanently protected to conserve the coastal sage scrub and chaparral. My day job is currently helping to develop regulations for conserving chaparral and coastal sage scrub when someone wants to develop a project within these ecosystems, so any exhibit that could help people appreciate these ecosystems that are literally in their backyards would be great.
I really don't understand this statement. How are these exhibits any different then the multiple bird and monkey exhibits that dot any other zoo (e.g., the Austalasian aviary complex at San Diego)? Have you seen the snow leopard, sifaka, Komodo dragon, and multiple bird exhibits that have been built out of these structures? I think that their quality matches that of the exhibits at most other zoos that display these species. I don't see how these exhibits are "major detriments" to the LA Zoo when they provide good homes for the species within them. Can you explain why you call them "major detriments"? One of the very frustrating aspects of the roundhouses amplifies a major problem with the zoo itself, which is that they are at the end of cul-de-sacs that are very frustrating to navigate because it easy to get lost in them. That unfortunately cannot be fixed at this point with anything less than a time machine to go back and slap some sense into the original designers of the zoo layout, who apparently were real estate developers with no zoo experience.
The snow leopard was not a retrofit of an old roundhouse - it is an entirely new exhibit (built on the site of a demolished roundhouse). While it is certainly decent, it is by no means outstanding for a newly built exhibit. But the number one need that should be addressed immediately is jaguar. If (as I have heard) it has been cut out of the Rainforest of the Americas, they need to do something desperately. Having that magnificent cat in that tiny section of a roundhouse is deplorable. As an emergency measure (if funds are unavailable), they could at least connect its middle enclosure to the two other enclosures on the right and left. Still would be subpar, but better than what they have now.
@DavidBrown: only hardcore Los Angeles Zoo fans ever defend the god-awful roundhouses, and you bring up a great point in that there are a handful that are decent but by my extremely rough estimation I'd say that a minimum of 80% of them are very poor. There are many keepers, assistant directors and various other folks who work in the industry on ZooChat that abhore them but are keen on dipomacy on this forum. Whether the zoo builds a plethora of fantastic animal habitats all around the 20+ roundhouse exhibits is besides the point, as the c-shaped monstrosities will surely remain for a number of years before they are hopefully bulldozed into oblivion. You mentioned San Diego Zoo, and there are some god-awful enclosures there as well and perhaps even more so than Los Angeles. The small carnivore cages down in one of the canyons are atrociously small, the 4 metal primate exhibits near the entrance of Sun Bear Forest are equally horrible, and the entire "Urban Jungle" zone is a disaster. All of those outdated enclosures are just as detrimental, if not more so, than the half-moon cages that are scattered across the grounds at the Los Angeles Zoo. Such exhibits are detrimental to a zoo because they often taint the visit of any avid zoogoer, and while no zoo is filled with flawless exhibits there are a few that will be perhaps 90% flawless in a few years (Woodland Park, North Carolina, Saint Louis, Sedgwick County, etc). By that I mean that all of the animal habitats will be of average to superior quality and there will be nothing truly shocking at any of those zoos.
You keep calling them "monstrosities" without specifying what you mean. Most of them are adapted into habitats appropriate for their inhabitants, be they primates, birds, reptiles, or small mammals. I am obviously a fan of the LA Zoo, and you know that I greatly respect you as a zoo reviewer, but you seem to be making some really harsh statements that are not based in reality here. You obviously viscerally disliked this aspect of the LA Zoo and you are of course entitled to your opinion. I also hope that the roundhouse exhibit that truly is bad (jaguar) will be renovated in the next wave of projects after the Rainforest is complete (or with it). Other of the exhibits are coming down since you have been here (siamangs). I guess this is just an area where we just agree to disagree.
Surely a zoo that has done so much to SAVE a species, should be justly proud to show the general and fee paying public, just exactly what their hard earned visitor dollars have saved. Of course i am talking of the Californian condor.
I am far from a hardcore LA Zoo fan, and I think most of the roundhouse exhibits are just fine. Obviously their fencing isn't as nice as to look at as an exhibit with open, glass, and/or a quality mesh viewing, but they are generally reasonably spacious and well planted for their inhabitants. Replacing some or all of them with more modern exhibits would be nice, but I don't think it's an immediate need by any means.
I would like to echo this statement as well. I am by no means a hardcore LAZ fan, but the exhibits are well suited for their inhabitants (minus jaguar) as they have been refurbished to meet newer husbandry requirements. They are not nice looking but they are not monstrosities that should be bull-dozed in an instant like how many zoochatters want. Every institution has old exhibits but they cannot immediately just destroy them. I think that some people's distaste for older enclosures here is too drastic when they make such rash recommendations. Many zoos recognize that these enclosures are out of date and have done their best with a low budget to accommodate the needs of the animals, but in the long term they have plans to replace those enclosures. If I was the LAZ, I would hope that they slowly phase out their C-shaped exhibits, or at least plan a way to update them or deal with them. After all, improving exhibits is what zoos should always being doing and many of them have the entrepreneurship to do that. It just takes some time and some financing.
After my recent visit, I'd like to emphasize these thoughts. Most of the roundhouse exhibits are actually average to quite good for their inhabitants. I think anyone who says otherwise hasn't been recently and/or has their view tainted by the repetitive nature of the exhibits and their less than ideal viewing. Put the exact same animal spaces into themed exhibit complexes with glass/open/mesh viewing and they'd mostly be considered good to very good exhibits imo. So again, yes, they should make upgrades for viewing and theme reasons along with to provide even better homes for the animals, but most of them are far from detriments to the zoo imo.
I'm sure there are plenty of people at the LA Zoo that want to replace some of those older exhibits, but I also trust their ability to prioritize especially given the budget crunching that goes with municipal involvement. Anyone who has frequented the LA Zoo over the last ten years knows not only are the newer exhibits generally quite nice to look at, but that they were also very necessary. For example, LAIR isn't just beautiful, the old reptile house was in terrible condition. Rainforest of the Americas is needed for some of the animals in South America. As it has been said, ugly does not always mean bad condition. If it were up to me, Iwould expand Rainforest of the Americas, call it a "second stage" or "phase 2" if you will, and clear out as much of that old South Americna area as possible so it could be used in a future project. I love the concept of an African Savannah but the Giraffes/Zebras would need a lot of space and it would cost a lot of money. I think the LA Zoo should phase out Lions altogether for a while until iut becomes logical and reasonable for them to build a new habitat, i.e. after all the animals currently at the zoo who need replacement homes can get them.
Heres my ideas: 1. Andean bears in rainforest of the americas 2. Get rid of the lions and make it a bigger exhibit to share for giraffes and zebras 3. Make new exhibits for that whole group of exhibits with ABC animals in the way back- Rhino, Hippo, Black Bear, Tiger. Maybe they could make an asian themed zone in the spot above rainforest of the americas and adjacent to elephants of asia. They could put sloth bears, rhinos, tigers, snow leopards etc. and have it work with elephants of asia. Most of those animals are already in that part of the zoo so it could work. I think it would be cool if the zoo had different zones that were shown on the map. For example, at San Diego Zoo some of the zones are elephant odyssey and northern frontier, and these parts of the map have a different color of the ground to symbolize that area. At the LA zoo they have some parts of the zoo zoned, but most of it isn't so it doesn't really work too well.
