Attend Date: All the
time 2016-2018
Rating: 8/10
Price: $
Parking: $5 During the
Season, Free During the off season
Now I may be a little
biased when it comes to this Zoo, but I will speak absolutely honestly from the
perspective of a zoo-goer (with some inside information of course) !
ZOO OVERALL:
The Buffalo zoo, being
in the middle of the city, is small. Unfortunately, this is because they are
surrounded by a park and houses, making them unable to expand. But don’t let their size
fool you….they have a lot going for them!
Right off of Main
Street, the Buffalo Zoo is home to many historic buildings that have been there
from the start!
EXHIBITS:
Overall, this zoo
provides for their animals really well considering their size limitations and
rules surrounding historic buildings in Buffalo.
Their newest change to
the zoo was the addition of Arctic Edge a couple years ago. It features our two
fan favorite polar bears, Luna and Sakari, as well as our eurasian lynx, Arctic
foxes, and bald eagles. The exhibits are modern, natural, and decently size -
especially the polar bear exhibits!
The pride and joy of the Buffalo Zoo is their Rainforest exhibit. It showcases a two story waterfall and makes you feel like you have been immersed inside a rainforest!
Caution: It is very warm in there, so be prepared to SWEAT if you visit the zoo in the middle of summer.
Even more exciting (for
me anyway), is the renovation of the reptile house! The zoo finally reached the
amount of money they needed to take on this project, and I am super excited for
the addition of some new animals, such as Komodo dragons! This project is set to be finished by late spring of 2019.
Now for the not so good…
It has become common
knowledge that elephants shouldn’t be kept in captivity, because zoos just can’t
provide for them the way they need to. That being said, Buffalo has 2
elephants. This is especially hard, as Buffalo = Winter for most of the year.
The elephants are stuck inside the elephant house for most of the winter.
The good news is, I
believe these two girls are the last elephants Buffalo will house! And their
keepers are amazing and make sure to take great care of them.
Similar to the
elephants, are the giraffes. Their yard is big, but obviously could be much
bigger, and I think one of the main complaints I hear from zoo goers is about
our giraffe house. Like the elephants, they are stuck inside most of the year,
and the giraffe house really isn’t that impressive on the inside.
CONSERVATION:
Fairly unique to the
Buffalo zoo is their work conserving species in their own backyard!
As much as the zoo promotes conservation of exotic species, they are an active contributor to hellbender research and conservation! In the old reptile house, you could see into their lab and see the hellbenders - I am assuming they will have something similar in the new reptile house.
As much as the zoo promotes conservation of exotic species, they are an active contributor to hellbender research and conservation! In the old reptile house, you could see into their lab and see the hellbenders - I am assuming they will have something similar in the new reptile house.
FOOD AND SHOPPING:
There is a cafe window
at the front of the zoo, and Beastro towards the back. Overall, the prices for
food compared to other zoos are fantastic! So far I have no complaints about
the food I have received there. (I recommend their chicken tenders, grilled
cheese, and fried dough).
We have three gift shops
- Arctic, Rainforest, and the Zootique.
You can probably guess
where the Arctic and Rainforest shops are. If you are looking for arctic or
rainforest specific items, don't miss the shops, because a lot of times they
have unique things you won't find in the main shop!
I said it when I first
visited the zoo in 2012, and I have many guests telling me to this day - our
gift shop is extremely unique and one of a kind. Many items you find in our
shop, you more than likely won’t find in any other gift shop!
FINAL WORDS:
The best time to go to the zoo is when its cooler out - especially the middle of winter! Nobody comes in the winter, because of the cold and snow, but the animals love to play in the snow! This means if you come, you get the zoo to yourself AND get to see all of the animals having a blast!
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