The Best(?) Zoo in Every State

Go Wild! The Best Zoo in Every State, by Melinda Crow

I really like zoos.  I really don't like rankings.  If it's for something that's easily quantifiable, like what is the biggest zoo (either in terms of physical size or collection size), that can be done.  If you're asking about a particular attribute - which has the best elephant exhibit, or polar bear exhibit, or reptile house - than I can at least offer an opinion, though it might not be the right one.  Ask me what the best zoo exhibit is, overall, any species, and I'll pretend to get back to you later.

But to ask what zoo is "the best" - I don't even know where I'd begin.

Apparently, this author is a lot more ambitious that I am, and she's attempted to name the best zoo in every US State, plus the District of Columbia (which is kind of easy, seeing as there is one).  Some of her decisions I agree with; others, I have to question (seriously, Riverbanks didn't win for South Carolina?  And it lost to a tourist trap? What is wrong with you...).  Some were defaults because there was only one zoo in the state, or the state doesn't even have a zoo, so they went for the closest thing.  Aquariums don't seem to have been included.

What was most fun for me wasn't the author's insight - it was the comments.  LOTS of the comments questioned her rankings, not by putting some zoos down (though some do), but by playing others up.  Illinoisans critiqued the author for choosing Lincoln Park over Brookfield, and outlined their reasons why.  Same in Minnesota, where the author's choice of Como Zoo in St. Paul was panned in favor of the nearby (and much larger) Minnesota Zoo.

(Actually, most of the comments were deriding the author for not realizing that the Kansas City Zoo is, in fact, in Missouri, not Kansas, a mistake which the author has since corrected while - possibly not coincidentally - disabling comments).

Anyway, my zoo didn't win, so obviously this is rigged.  Otherwise, enjoy!


There’s lots to see at the Franklin Park Zoo, but the adorable red pandas will always be a crowd-pleaser! (Photo: Franklin Park Zoo/Facebook)