Henry Vilas Zoo Not News – History and Other Fantasies I am starting a thread to discuss: questions, controversies, memories, and other topics about the Henry Vilas Zoo that are not news or current events. I will be starting with a couple context pieces about issues that have been previously discussed, but never seem to have been fully resolved or answered ..read more

Henry Vilas Zoo Not News – History and Other Fantasies I am starting a thread to discuss: questions, controversies, memories, and other topics about the Henry Vilas Zoo that are not news or current events. I will be starting with a couple context pieces about issues that have been previously discussed, but never seem to have been fully resolved or answered ..read more

Hello! I'm visiting San Diego next month and have planned for 2 days at the zoo and one day at the safari park. Just wondering if anyone has any up-to-date advice for a first time visitor trying to see everything? From your recommended route around the parks, to aviaries to spend that extra bit of time in, add-ons that are worth spending extra on and species not often kept in zoos - any and all advice will be much appreciated! I've scrolled through past threads and will continue to do so... San Diego Zoo and Safari Trip ..read more

Anyone have any experience with this? My mom and I are visiting (for the first time) this summer and it's the first time I'll have ever seen a beluga in person. I'm deeply considering paying for the beluga encounter, but at $205 per person I'd love some input before I buy any tickets. Ty in advance for any info/input ..read more

Sea World Orlando has opened their new penguin ride/exhibit. From the photos and video the penguin habitat looks really good. There is a very deep aquarium for the penguins to swim in. The ride component of it looks rather lame, but apparently you can see the penguins without having to get on the ride. There is a description of it here with photos: SeaWorld Orlando Antarctica Empire of the Penguin... Empire of the Penguin ride/exhibit has opened ..read more

Good Day fellow ZooChatters! I present to you all another one of my reviews and species lists. Last week, I took a little vacation and visited 4 zoological facilities (3 of which were entirely new to me, the 4th was a place I lasted visited over 15 years ago). For this first review, we will be looking at the Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington, D.C, which was the first of the 4 facilities I visited. Situated within Rock Creek Park along the river of the same name, this zoo is one of many... Smithsonian National Zoo Review and Species List - May 2024 ..read more

A day after visiting the Lee Richardson Zoo and from staying the night in Great Bend, on May 5th, I visited the Great Bend-Brit Spaugh Zoo before heading back to Omaha. This small zoo, opened in 1953, features a decent collection of animals for its size, and shockingly, as with a couple other small Kansas Zoos, is completely free to the public. This zoo is also run by the City of Great Bend. I uploaded new photos of the zoo in the gallery:... Great Bend-Brit Spaugh Zoo - May 2024 - Review ..read more

I’ll preface this by saying that this is my first attempt at a species list, but this place has such a small roster consisting almost exclusively of domestics and native species, so it seemed like an easy enough endeavor. I didn’t realize this facility even had a zoo until I was already in the parking lot for a family visit, which was a nice surprise. It’s a very small zoo completely surrounded by a solid wooden fence (save for the horse yard) to prevent its free-roaming species from... Magnolia Plantation and Gardens Species List (4/2/23 ..read more

This year for my wife and I's now annual tradition of packing up and heading to visit a couple Kansas zoos over the weekend picked the Lee Richardson Zoo in Garden City and the Great Bend-Brit Spaugh Zoo in Great Bend. Living in Omaha, these are two of the farthest ventures into Kansas for us, hence why it took us four years from when we started the Kansas trips to get here. On Friday night, we left Omaha around 4 pm and made the 4 1/2 hour drive down to Great Bend where we made base camp... Lee Richardson Zoo - May 2024 Review ..read more

Date of Visit: May 4th, 2024 Legend Seen *Unsigned but Seen Signed but not Seen Africa Exhibits Eastern Black Rhino (x2 exhibits) "Reticulated" Giraffe (x2 exhibits) Addax East African Crowned Crane, Stanley Crane Fennec Fox African Lion (x2 exhibits) Aviary Building Empty Exhibit Bearded Barbet, Crested Coua Empty Exhibit Chinese Hwamei Bali Mynah, Goeldi's Monkey Walkthrough Aviary (most birds were not out) Speckled Pigeon,... Lee Richardson Zoo - Species List - May 2024 ..read more