An Underrated Potential Exhibit Animal that I Think People Should Talk About

FlameWizard492

FlameWizard492
Behold the Caiman Lizard
Dracaena guianesis

1689947653622.png


These large lizards hail from South America. They can grow from .6 to 1.3 meters (2-4 ft.) long. Their population in the wild is currently data deficient, ant. I've seen them a couple of times in zoos, and I think that if they're caught from the wild, then they're difficult to keep in captivity because of their diet.

Do you think these would make a great addition as an exhibit animal? Should they, like the iguanas, require a larger space?
 

leehonglocal

L
FlameWizard492 said:
Behold the Caiman Lizard
Dracaena guianesis

View attachment 361661

These large lizards hail from South America. They can grow from .6 to 1.3 meters (2-4 ft.) long. Their population in the wild is currently data deficient, ant. I've seen them a couple of times in zoos, and I think that if they're caught from the wild, then they're difficult to keep in captivity because of their diet.

Do you think these would make a great addition as an exhibit animal? Should they, like the iguanas, require a larger space?
Click to expand...
If I say "whatever"?
And if any upcoming Exhibit types will need larger Exhibit spaces, then these would and should be there: king cobra being the 'python-size' venomous snake, green anaconda and larger pythons.
 

Captain Callum

Captain Callum
More exhibit animals the better especially in the forms of reptiles. We still lack diversity for reptile houses for animals that are not an arid animal, however i dont agree with needing to add larger exhibits for anything bigger than a small snake, if anything i would love smaller exhibits.
 

ReptoMin

R
FlameWizard492 said:
Behold the Caiman Lizard
Dracaena guianesis

View attachment 361661

These large lizards hail from South America. They can grow from .6 to 1.3 meters (2-4 ft.) long. Their population in the wild is currently data deficient, ant. I've seen them a couple of times in zoos, and I think that if they're caught from the wild, then they're difficult to keep in captivity because of their diet.

Do you think these would make a great addition as an exhibit animal? Should they, like the iguanas, require a larger space?
Click to expand...
Maybe not up there with the Chameleon, Cobra and Gecko, but I wouldn't necessarily call the Caiman Lizard Underrated, as it has always received a decent amount of attention on the Exhibit Meta-Wishlist, with votes comparable to Mata Mata, Mamba and Bearded Dragon. Although additional Propaganda never hurts. 🙂

I would like to comment on Exhibit Sizes as well. The current Exhibits meet and exceed Arboreal Iguana requirements perfectly, therefore our 2 current Species, the Green and Lesser Antillean Iguanas are just fine in their Exhibits. Only Terrestrial Iguanas like Rock Iguanas, for instance the Rhinoceros and Grand Cayman Blue Iguanas, would require a bigger area, for being mostly confined to the floor space. And since animating them wouldn't be a problem without Climbing being an issue anymore, I would like to see those as Habitat Animals, just like the Monitors. Tegus would also fall into this category. On the other hand, Caiman Lizards will be just fine in a Semi-Aquatic Exhibit of the current size. It meets their space requirements, and also helps with the Climbing Issues they would face as Habitat Animals.

leehonglocal said:
If I say "whatever"?
And if any upcoming Exhibit types will need larger Exhibit spaces, then these would and should be there: king cobra being the 'python-size' venomous snake, green anaconda and larger pythons.
Click to expand...
King Cobra is not larger than the Yellow Anaconda we have and they will be both fine in the current Exhibits. While the Current Exhibits meet the Space Requirements of all Snakes big and small, I wouldn't mind a larger one for the Green Anaconda or Large Terrestrial Pythons, for the sake of Exhibit Design, as they will be ground dwelling compared to our current Semi-Arboreal large snakes that can use All Levels of the Exhibit. A large Water Area is also likely to be incorporated into this design, so a 8x4x4 Exhibit will do the job. But the King Cobra does not need this treatment.
 

Fallax

Fallax
Honestly the caiman lizard would be awesome, they don't actually move that much but they can swim and are very different from the other lizards we have. I've seen them in a few major zoos as well.
 

AlexSea

AlexSea
Oh, yes please! This one is definitely high on my wishlist of exhibit lizards. And I think that the current exhibit size is just fine for them, I saw a few at the Jacksonville Zoo in a tank about the size of the in-game ones.
 

Spiderhawk

Spiderhawk
I’ve been saying this before
We need a mini dlc that can provide 6-8 exhibit critters
These dlcs can be totally optional to those who refuse to use exhibits and it does not kick away normal dlcs.
This way we can a good group of lizards and or snakes that can fill in gaps in areas we are lacking.
Also, there are very few Asian exhibit critters compared to the rest.
 

leehonglocal

L
ReptoMin said:
Maybe not up there with the Chameleon, Cobra and Gecko, but I wouldn't necessarily call the Caiman Lizard Underrated, as it has always received a decent amount of attention on the Exhibit Meta-Wishlist, with votes comparable to Mata Mata, Mamba and Bearded Dragon. Although additional Propaganda never hurts. 🙂

I would like to comment on Exhibit Sizes as well. The current Exhibits meet and exceed Arboreal Iguana requirements perfectly, therefore our 2 current Species, the Green and Lesser Antillean Iguanas are just fine in their Exhibits. Only Terrestrial Iguanas like Rock Iguanas, for instance the Rhinoceros and Grand Cayman Blue Iguanas, would require a bigger area, for being mostly confined to the floor space. And since animating them wouldn't be a problem without Climbing being an issue anymore, I would like to see those as Habitat Animals, just like the Monitors. Tegus would also fall into this category. On the other hand, Caiman Lizards will be just fine in a Semi-Aquatic Exhibit of the current size. It meets their space requirements, and also helps with the Climbing Issues they would face as Habitat Animals.


King Cobra is not larger than the Yellow Anaconda we have and they will be both fine in the current Exhibits. While the Current Exhibits meet the Space Requirements of all Snakes big and small, I wouldn't mind a larger one for the Green Anaconda or Large Terrestrial Pythons, for the sake of Exhibit Design, as they will be ground dwelling compared to our current Semi-Arboreal large snakes that can use All Levels of the Exhibit. A large Water Area is also likely to be incorporated into this design, so a 8x4x4 Exhibit will do the job. But the King Cobra does not need this treatment.
Click to expand...
King cobra's maximum length was 18-19 feet long. And because/since it could swim, I like it's enclosure to have water.
 

ReptoMin

R
leehonglocal said:
King cobra's maximum length was 18-19 feet long.
Click to expand...
The average King Cobra is 3.2-4 metres and the Model in the game will likely represent this Length, instead of record breakers of over 5.5 metres, not that it matters much. For comparison the average Yellow Anaconda is 3.3-4.4 metres, which is slightly longer than the average King Cobra, and much heavier. The King Cobra is just fine in the current Exhibits. I should also note that most King Cobra Exhibits are much smaller than the in-game Exhibit Box.

leehonglocal said:
And because/since it could swim, I like it's enclosure to have water.
Click to expand...
A lot of animals can swim, but that doesn't mean their Exhibit Designs should have Water Features. King Cobra is not Semi-Aquatic and any large body of water will just end up being a loss of space. Even the Semi-Aquatic Yellow Anaconda is fine as is, in its somewhat Semi-Aquatic Tropical Exhibit with limited water features. Honestly I don't think the King Cobra will even have the amount water we have in the Yellow Anaconda Exhibit, meaning Frontier isn't likely to choose this design for them. Of the 2 Tropical Designs we currently have in the game, it is likely to have the Tropical Forest Floor design with the fallen leaves instead.

My argument on both Size/Length and Exhibit Design not requiring large bodies of water prove King Cobras don't need a larger Exhibit Box. It would actually look silly to have the King Cobra in the hypothetical and larger Green Anaconda Exhibit we talked about, that is half water, half land, something even the Yellow Anaconda doesn't need.

Some IRL examples for King Cobra Exhibits:
1) https://www.zoochat.com/community/media/king-cobra-exhibit.109894/
2)
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/184999497177865179/
Source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/184999497177865179/

Leaf Productions said:
id say they're better off as habitat animals lol
Click to expand...
Sadly not very likely since it regularly climbs, like the Iguanas we have. Frontier has avoided Climbing Habitat Reptiles until now and is likely to continue doing so, unless they figure out a way to manage how to incorporate animals dragging long tails behind them into the Climbing System.

The Carcharodontogenius said:
Nope. Definitely an exhibit animal. We just need a reptile house with different exhibit sizes just like the one at ZSL London Zoo.
Click to expand...
The current Exhibit Box is already larger than the majority of Caiman Lizard Exhibits, but I agree we need multiple sizes in the game.
 
Last edited:

ReptoMin

R
Spiderhawk said:
I’ve been saying this before
We need a mini dlc that can provide 6-8 exhibit critters
These dlcs can be totally optional to those who refuse to use exhibits and it does not kick away normal dlcs.
This way we can a good group of lizards and or snakes that can fill in gaps in areas we are lacking.
Click to expand...
forums.frontier.co.uk

Separate Exhibit Packs Idea (E and WE)

Since the idea of Separate Exhibit Packs saw some traction in the News Thread, I decided to dedicate a thread to this idea in Suggestions. Here, I've come up with several Exhibit/WE Pack Ideas with different Themes. Perhaps they could serve as an inspiration for Frontier to design Exhibit Animal...
forums.frontier.co.uk forums.frontier.co.uk
 

ReptoMin

R
@leehonglocal By the way I think I found the source of your inspiration. It is the King Cobra Exhibit in Singapore Zoo. There can indeed be intuitive and creative ways to exhibit any species, but these are Extreme Examples and since we don't have enough customization in Planet Zoo Exhibits, the chosen design is likely to be of an average situation. Also notice how the Aquatic Section is somewhat separate to the Main Exhibit, added to it almost as a Display Bonus. Both combined they are still the size of the PZ Exhibits, if not smaller.

 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom