An immersion exhibit is a naturalistic zoo environment that gives visitors the sense of being in the animals' habitats. Buildings and barriers are hidden. By recreating sights and other sensorial input from natural environments, immersion exhibits provide an indication about how animals live in the wild. [1]
The landscape immersion term and approach were developed in 1975 through the efforts of David Hancocks at Seattle's Woodland Park Zoo. [2] This led to the zoo's ground-breaking gorilla exhibit, which opened in 1978. [3] [4] The concept became the industry standard by the 1980s, and has since gained widespread acceptance as the best practice for zoological exhibits. [5]
The Oregon Museum of Science and Industry is a science and technology museum in Portland, Oregon, United States. It contains three auditoriums, including a large-screen theatre, planetarium, and exhibition halls with a variety of hands-on permanent exhibits focused on natural sciences, industry, and technology. Transient exhibits span a wider range of disciplines.
Woodland Park Zoo is a wildlife conservation organization and zoological garden located in the Phinney Ridge neighborhood of Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the recipient of over 65 awards across multiple categories, and had served approximately 1.4 million domestic and international visitors in 2019.
The Oregon Zoo, originally the Portland Zoo and later the Washington Park Zoo, is a zoo located in Washington Park, Portland, Oregon, approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) southwest of downtown Portland. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest zoo west of the Mississippi River.
Connecticut's Beardsley Zoo, located in Bridgeport, Connecticut, is the only AZA-accredited zoo in the state of Connecticut. It includes one of the few carousels in the state.
The Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), originally the American Association of Zoological Parks and Aquariums, is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1924 and dedicated to the advancement of zoos and public aquariums in the areas of conservation, education, science, and recreation. AZA is headquartered in Silver Spring, Maryland, United States, and accredits zoos. There were 238 accredited facilities as of 2019, primarily in the US, and also a handful in eleven other countries.
Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium is a zoo in Omaha, Nebraska. It is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums and a member of the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums. Its mission is conservation, research, recreation, and education. In August 2014, TripAdvisor rated it the "world's best zoo", ahead of the San Diego Zoo and Loro Parque, based on an algorithmic assimilation of millions of reviews for 275 major zoos worldwide.
Georgia Aquarium is a public aquarium in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It exhibits hundreds of species and thousands of animals across its seven major galleries, all of which reside in more than 11 million US gallons (42,000 m3) of water. It was the largest aquarium in the world from its opening in 2005 until 2012 when it was surpassed by the S.E.A. Aquarium in Singapore and the Chimelong Ocean Kingdom in China; the Georgia Aquarium remains the largest aquarium in the United States and the third largest in the world.
Lincoln Park Zoo, also known as Lincoln Park Zoological Gardens, is a 35-acre (14 ha) zoo in Lincoln Park, Chicago, Illinois. The zoo was founded in 1868, making it the fourth oldest zoo in North America. It is also one of a few free admission zoos in all of North America. The zoo is an accredited member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA).
The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is a zoological park located southwest of downtown Colorado Springs, Colorado, on Cheyenne Mountain in the United States. At an elevation of 6,714 feet above sea level, it is the highest zoo in America. The zoo covers 140 acres, 40 of which are in use. The zoo houses more than 750 animals, representing nearly 150 different species, with more than 30 endangered species. The zoo was ranked the #4 best zoo in North America in 2018 by USA Today. It is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
The Cleveland Metroparks Zoo aka Cleveland Zoological Park is a 183-acre (74 ha) zoo in Cleveland, Ohio. The Zoo is divided into several areas: Australian Adventure; African Savanna; Northern Wilderness Trek, The Primate, Cat & Aquatics Building, Waterfowl Lake, The RainForest, and the newly added Asian Highlands. Cleveland Metroparks Zoo has one of the largest collections of primates in North America, The Zoo is a part of the Cleveland Metroparks system.
Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium (PDZA) is the only combined zoo and aquarium in the Pacific Northwest, located in Tacoma, Washington, US, owned by Metro Parks Tacoma. Situated on 29 acres (12 ha) in Tacoma's Point Defiance Park, the zoo and aquarium are home to over 9,000 specimens representing 367 animal species. The zoo was founded in 1905; the aquarium was founded in 1935 near Commencement Bay and relocated within the zoo in 1963. Both are accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. In Pierce County, Washington, this is said to be one of the most popular tourist destinations. Bringing in over more than 600,000 visitors per year.
The Memphis Zoo, located in Midtown, Memphis, Tennessee, United States, is home to more than 3,500 animals representing over 500 different species. Created in April 1906, the zoo has been a major tenant of Overton Park for more than 100 years. The land currently designated to the Memphis Zoo was defined by the Overton Park master plan in 1888, it is owned by the City of Memphis. The zoo is set on 76 acres (31 ha), of which approximately 55 acres (22 ha) are developed.
Zoo Tycoon 2 is a business simulation video game developed by Blue Fang Games and published by Microsoft Game Studios and MacSoft. Originally released for Microsoft Windows, Zoo Tycoon 2 is also available for Windows Mobile, PDA, and Mac OS X, although expansions are not included in the Mac version. A Nintendo DS version, titled Zoo Tycoon 2 DS, was released in 2008.
The Edmonton Valley Zoo is a zoo located in Edmonton, Alberta's river valley. The Edmonton Valley Zoo is owned and operated by the City of Edmonton and is open 364 days a year, closing only on Christmas. The zoo is currently accredited by Canada's Accredited Zoos and Aquariums and is one of three accredited zoos in Alberta.
The Kansas City Zoo is a 202-acre (82 ha) zoo founded in 1909. It is located in Swope Park at 6800 Zoo Drive Kansas City, Missouri, in the United States. The zoo has a Friends of the Zoo program. It is home to more than 1,700 animals and is an accredited member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA).
Grant Richard Jones is an American landscape architect, poet, and founding principal of the Seattle firm Jones & Jones Architects, Landscape Architects and Planners. In more than four decades of practice, his work in ecological design has garnered widespread recognition for its broad-based and singular approach, one that is centered on giving voice to the land and its communities. Called the “poet laureate of landscape architecture” Jones's poetry informs his designs.
A zoo is a facility in which animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for conservation purposes.
The El Paso Zoo is a zoo located in El Paso, Texas. The 35-acre (14 ha) facility houses over 220 species, including the critically endangered painted dog and Sumatran orangutan.
Johnpaul Jones is an American architect and landscape architect, partner in Seattle-based architecture firm Jones & Jones Architects and Landscape Architects, best known for innovative habitat immersion method design of zoo exhibits. A Native American himself, he has also executed many projects for various Native American organizations, and was lead design consultant for the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of the American Indian, completed 2004 in Washington, D.C. He was the first architect ever to receive the National Humanities Medal.
David Hancocks is a British architect and designer for zoos, natural history museums, botanic gardens, and nature centers. Notable for overseeing the creation of the Woodland Park Zoo's revolutionary gorilla exhibit, which for the first time utilized mature trees natural foliage merged seamlessly for both the animals and the visitors. The technique was dubbed a landscape immersion exhibit, and has become the often imitated standard for accredited zoos across the globe.