A group of animals in general that I doubt will ever make it into the game at this stage, but I've always wanted to see are
shorebirds. They're far from priority over less niche species like ducks, pelicans, or geese (unless Frontier somehow surprises us with more packs and decides to add more birds per pack, which I highly doubt at this point), but they're some of my favorites and I just want to give them an appreciation post and present a few options. If we ever got a coastal pack or something in a PZ2 they'd be really fun to have. I've always wanted to build one of those bird houses with cute lil' biome based displays that seem to be relatively popular in NA, and these funky lil guys would be perfect for that, especially if we got multiple for mixed aviaries.
Pied Avocet (Wild Range - Asia, Africa, and Europe)
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Not very common outside of Eurasia and thus not my first choice for a bird like this, but I've been lucky enough to see them at a couple US zoos and they're just the cutest lil' guys. I admit that I'm not always immune to ZT2 nostalgia and these were some of my favorites when playing modded (I think it was the Aves pack that added them, though I could be wrong!)
Pied Stilt (Wild Range - Oceania and parts of Southern Asia)
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I would shrivel up into mush if I left out Oceania, so here's another pied goober - Australasian edition! Like the avocet, its not too common overseas, but it would be a great addition if we got different alternative shorebirds for different regions. Its not very common within the region so its not a huge priority, but its still a niche that would be nice to see filled.
Black-necked Stilt (Wild Range - North and South America)
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This guy is pretty common in both NA and EU, whilst having a few holdings in SA and one in JP according to Zootierliste, thus is among one of my first picks for this niche. Not too much to say about it, I just think they're

silly and I like them

.
Masked Lapwing (Wild Range - Australasia)
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Here's one that isn't a black & white avocet or stilt if that isn't your thing. Although native to Oceania, these goofs seem to far more common overseas, with 69 holdings in Europe, 39 in North America, 7 in Asia, 1 in South America, and 2 in Australia according to Zootierliste if we include both unspecified subspecies and the northern subspecies (though that might not show the full story since the whole worldwide thing is so new? I've only seen zoo-kept ones in NA, but if anyone else has seen these guys in an Oceanian zoo besides Taronga or Shoalhaven I'd love to hear it!).
Eurasian Curlew (Wild Range - Europe, Asia, and Africa)
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Not too common outside of Eurasia, but I adore curlews and these goobers are so stinkin' cute I've gotta include them (I love weird little guys with long beaks/noses if you couldn't tell lol)
Bush Thick-Knee (Wild Range - Australia)
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An Aussie endemic that's also pretty common in Europe, plus a handful of holdings elsewhere. Definitely one of the more unique looking shorebirds too thanks to its kinda grumpy vibe : p.
Spotted Dikkop (Wild Range - Africa)
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A distinguished gentleman that would be a great addition for African mixed aviaries, very common in both Europe and North America as well.
South Island Oystercatcher (Wild Range - Aotearoa NZ)
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A native manu that I'd love to have. Definitely not essential as its only really found in a handful of zoos, but I'd love to see it someday even if its just as a mod. :>
Anyways, thanks for coming to my TEDTalk, I hope you like these sillies as much as I do! :>
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