Today’s modern zoos are a lot more habitat-friendly than the zoos of yesteryear. Instead of cramped indoor cages, the animals roam freely in landscaped areas mimicking their wild relatives’ natural surroundings as closely as possible. Some animals, extinct in the wild, can only be seen in our zoos. Though it’s a highly commercialized attraction, Disney’s Animal Kingdom in Central Florida is one of the better eco-friendly parks. According to Animal Operations Director John Lehnhart, “the back-story of the park is conservation and connecting people with nature.”
The Disney park contains some 1,500 exotic animals, not including birds and fish. The landscaping recreates a portion of the African savannah, where wild animals roam freely. Safari jeeps transport tourists through the 110-acre habitat. On America’s West Coast, San Diego Wild Animal Park’s Lion Camp, associated with the Wild Life Trust, provides homes for African lions, wild dogs and cheetahs. Again, the habitats mimic areas of the African savannah and all that separates humans from the big cats are large glass panels, where visitors can watch them play or lounge in the sun.
The National Zoological Gardens of South Africa offers visitors the opportunity to camp next to their habitat enclosures for a close-up and personal experience with the animals. At France’s Beauval Zoo in the Loire Valley you can see white tigers residing in their lush habitat. If you get a chance to visit China’s Singapore Zoo, you will also get the feel of being up-close, as only a moat separates visitors from most animals. Basel Zoo in Switzerland was ranked second only to Disney’s Animal Kingdom by Forbes Traveler. This park contains over 6,000 animals, including the rare dwarf hippopotamus. Other zoos that made Forbes’ best list include Berlin Zoological Garden, Bronx Zoo in New York, and Chester Zoo in England.
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