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Ok, I gotta question! So in the NA, in accredited facilities, all our reticulated/Nubian (Rothschild’s) giraffes are hybrids. None of what the AZA considers "generic giraffes" look solely like reticulated or Rothschild’s giraffe, but
blend of the two. But I was looking at pictures from my trip to the ZSL London Zoo, and what they claim to be Rothschild’s giraffes, look like actually Rothschild’s giraffes. I looked at some other zoos in the UK and their Rothschild’s giraffes also have the characteristic dark brown patches, with no resemblence to the reticulated giraffes' pattern. Are Rothschild’s giraffes and reticulated giraffes in the EAZA not interbred/hybrids? What about in Oceania?

I'm curious because I like to get into the nitty-gritty when organizing animals for my zoo life list!
I think the giraffes found throughout the eaza are largely purebred giraffes rather than the generic giraffes found in the aza. Visiting giraffes is hard for me since I live in the north uk, but when Edinburgh zoo got its new herd of giraffes a few years ago, they definitely matched the description of the claimed nubian giraffe instead of the obvious generic giraffes I have found throughout my travels in the usa.
 
just went to a reptile expo and held a cuvier's dwarf caiman and a boa constrictor. the snake felt weird to hold, like rubber and leather had a baby. and no, I did not get a pet, but I wanted to, maybe in the future.
Neat! That reminds me of an experience during a Busch Gardens Tampa trip from when I was a little kid (maybe 2nd or 3rd grade). Some keepers had brought out a huge boa constrictor, and they were asking for volunteers to come hold it for a photo op. I was the only one in my group who wanted to do it, so as a little treat, the keepers actually safely wrapped the snake around me (it was one loop around me, not the whole snake). The picture is probably somewhere in one of my mom's photo albums.
 
A couple shots of my archaeopteryx model that i just finished, really stoked how this guy came out.
And the fact that this guy will be displayed at a museum, no less at one thats pretty near where the orginial archaeopteryx specimen was found in 1861, makes him even more special to me. Even got the chance to see said original specimen on a visit to london last year :)

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A couple shots of my archaeopteryx model that i just finished, really stoked how this guy came out.
And the fact that this guy will be displayed at a museum, no less at one thats pretty near where the orginial archaeopteryx specimen was found in 1861, makes him even more special to me. Even got the chance to see said original specimen on a visit to london last year :)

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That’s amazing!
 
Has anyone ever visited a country to (mostly) see the zoos? I’ve always wanted to see London zoo and Chester zoo.

Also, what zoo has ever surprised anyone? Mine was the Bermuda zoo I remember liking it a lot!
 
It was a while back, maybe before 2016. I was on a cruise and for a day we went to the zoo. I remember loving the flamingo exhibit, and they had multiple walk through exhibits one had golden Lion tamarins another with Lemurs. They should even have a fully established aquarium now too! They had a large tank when I was there which was super cool.
 
Has anyone ever visited a country to (mostly) see the zoos? I’ve always wanted to see London zoo and Chester zoo.

Also, what zoo has ever surprised anyone? Mine was the Bermuda zoo I remember liking it a lot!
Being from the UK, I visit the usa for wildlife and zoo/aquarium trips. A few years ago I visited Florida in search of as much animal orientated attractions I could visit (just not Miami). Of all the zoos, there are 2 that surprised me on both ends of the scale:
  • Good suprise - Jacksonville zoo - A pretty big zoo with fantastic South American and Asian habitats. My favourite all-time big cat habitat is the tiger habitat which is 2 tropical themed habitats linked by a large overhead walkway for mixed malayan/Sumatran tigers. South America area had a great complex for jaguars, giant otters, monkeys and capybaras.
  • Bad Suprise - Zootampa - I visited this zoo back in my childhood which was a fairly good African themed zoo with native Florida habitats. The zoo still was one of the most advertised zoo in central Florida at the time and it really was a suprise in the bad way. Very high admission costs, half the zoo felt overgrown/forgotten about and any apparent upgrades to native Florida habitats or African areas left much to be desired.
 
Bad Suprise - Zootampa - I visited this zoo back in my childhood which was a fairly good African themed zoo with native Florida habitats. The zoo still was one of the most advertised zoo in central Florida at the time and it really was a suprise in the bad way. Very high admission costs, half the zoo felt overgrown/forgotten about and any apparent upgrades to native Florida habitats or African areas left much to be desired.
Forgotten how so? The most that I remember was the construction going on in the primate area to convert the former chimp habitat into what is now hamadryas baboons. I also remember visiting during the construction of the refurbished Florida habitats, but I haven’t seen it yet. Also, I just looked it up: they’re reconstructing their stingray pool and Australian area. I don’t know, maybe my nostalgia is making me give them the benefit of the doubt by saying that they might be in a “transition period” of some kind.
 
Forgotten how so? The most that I remember was the construction going on in the primate area to convert the former chimp habitat into what is now hamadryas baboons. I also remember visiting during the construction of the refurbished Florida habitats, but I haven’t seen it yet. Also, I just looked it up: they’re reconstructing their stingray pool and Australian area. I don’t know, maybe my nostalgia is making me give them the benefit of the doubt by saying that they might be in a “transition period” of some kind.
Must be nostalgia for the older habitats for me as well, either that or I remember it to be much better than I thought, either way I'm hopeful with the master plan with what it could bring. For me it could of been just bad luck on timings, the Florida and reptiles / primate habitats were half empty making me focus on the foliage rather than the actual animals. I'm sure the summer isn't the best time to judge a zoos quality. I do love the African parts of the zoo though, unlike planet zoo, African habitats are my favourite real zoo experiences. If the construction gets underway in the near future, I'll be sure to visit it again.
 
Has anyone ever visited a country to (mostly) see the zoos? I’ve always wanted to see London zoo and Chester zoo.

Also, what zoo has ever surprised anyone? Mine was the Bermuda zoo I remember liking it a lot!
Earlier this year, I flew out to the Houston Zoo in Texas. I’m a Florida resident, so the distance made the experience close enough to traveling to a different country. I remember going there exclusively to see the coquerel’s sifakas because I don’t think there are any zoos in Florida that house them, and because I watched Zoboomafoo as a little kid, I had to see that part of my childhood. I was pleasantly surprised by some of the enclosures over there. There was this giant building dedicated to the gorillas and chimps, and I even saw two male gorillas play-fighting. They also had a huge lion habitat that featured a large tunnel that ran underneath the habitat for guests to walk through and see the lions. Also, the South American Pantanal area was shockingly well-themed, especially in the area surrounding giant otters, jaguars, and anacondas. Lastly, I couldn’t miss out on their new Galápagos area with the sea lions and penguins.

I also went to the Toronto Zoo in middle school, maybe 7th or 8th grade. I remember seeing the pandas being a treat, and I’m glad that I was able to while I did before the CCP asked for all of them back. I think I also remember seeing some white lions, which was a nice surprise.
 
Has anyone ever visited a country to (mostly) see the zoos? I’ve always wanted to see London zoo and Chester zoo.

Also, what zoo has ever surprised anyone? Mine was the Bermuda zoo I remember liking it a lot!
Well im planning a trip to Berlin in the coming months to see boths Zoos aswell as the natural history museum. Its not a different country, just across the country idk if that counts :)
 
Do any of you ever feel as if we’ve kinda been neglecting this thread a little bit? Sometimes I feel like chatting on this thread is just a nice way to get to know each other and socialize.
Well ok guys, what is your opinion on the tv show version of Don't Hug Me I'm Scared. Honestly, it's not as scary as the original but its way funnier and has some really creepy moments, I actually like it more than the original YouTube series.
 
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