Continuing the tour of the Little Rock Zoo, we come to a set of grottos very similar to those described for the bear and otter exhibits in yesterday's post. These, however, are smaller and are mesh-fronted, as opposed to moated, and house smaller carnivores still. Red and gray foxes, small felids, and fossa can be be seen in these, to be frank, serviceable by somewhat unimpressive habitats. A yard for muntjac is also found here.
Down the path is the Arkansas Heritage Farm, an attractive children zoo area that features an assortment of domestic animals. Tucked away in this area is one of the unexpected unique features of the zoo, an indoor/outdoor exhibit for ringtails. These raccoon-like nocturnal mammals are native to Arkansas, so their inclusion in this area makes sense (many zoos feature small native species in their farm areas), but the exhibit is larger and more elaborate than I usually see for this species (on the infrequent occasions when I see them at all). Also nearby is a large waterfowl pond that includes Chilean flamingos and a paddock for giant Aldabra tortoises.
The zoo's largest animals are found across the path in the Asian elephant exhibit. I have no idea what Little Rock's long-term plans for elephants are - the herd at the time of my visit consisted of a few older females, so I have a suspicion that these may be the last members of their species to be housed here. The exhibit was fairly plan but satisfactory for the needs of the animals, but with the constantly increasing standards for elephant husbandry, and with the relatively limited footprint of the zoo, I have a hard time imagining their being much of a future for elephants here. The zoo's old carnivore house is adjacent to the elephant exhibit, and has been refurbished as a café that retains the old charm and historic character of its former incarnation (similar to what Toledo Zoo has done).
The zoo's primary indoor exhibit is the Aviary, Reptile, and Primate building. The primates are represented with a few wire-fronted outdoor/indoor exhibits for smaller New World primates, and probably won't excite too many folks, and look like they could probably use a refresh... if not a pull-down and rebuild from scratch. (More interesting for connoisseurs of unusual species is the small building located nearby that houses pygmy slow lorises in one of the larger exhibits I've ever seen for that species. The birds are represented in a walk-through indoor aviary, featuring many of the usual suspects of such exhibits. The reptile and amphibian collection takes up the lion's share of the building in a few hallways, with a fairly decent collection. As with any reptile house in the US South, on a busy day you can expect to hear many parents helpfully pointing out every snake they see to their children and making comments to the effect of "the only good snake is a dead snake." It's unavoidable. There is an outdoor adjacent exhibit for American alligators; Komodo dragons were slated to be added in a nearby habitat at the time of my visit.
More primates can be seen in the great ape habitats, large, grassy yards for gorillas, chimpanzees, and Bornean orangutans. These exhibits reminded me of the previously-seen big cat exhibits. They're nice enough, but not terribly unique or exciting if you've seen many other exhibits for these species. Rounding out the zoo is Penguin Point, for African penguins (completely enclosed, which many penguin exhibits are not - though I did not see any other bird species sharing the exhibit with them - seems like a missed opportunity), a mixed lemur exhibit, a lorikeet feeding aviary, and a pretty cool outdoor habitat for eastern collared lizards outside of the conservation center, highlighting another local species.
Little Rock has had plans for renovation and redevelopment for some time, but they've always tended to stall or fizzle out. It's municipal management, combined with being the only real zoo in the state, seem to have lulled the place into a sense of complacency. Hopefully the new Komodo exhibit - and the eventual need to do something about the elephant situation - will spur the zoo into action to look towards the future. It's a pleasant facility with an interesting collection, and the historic architecture is of interest to a zoo enthusiast, and some of the exhibits are unique for their species - ringtail, loris, collared lizard. Right now, though, you just get the sense of stagnation, when there is so much that could be done with the space and the animals.
As a final note, this facility could easily be combined with a visit to the Arkansas Fish and Game Commission Nature Center and Aquarium, located in an attractive park on the riverfront and housing a small but interesting collection of native fish and herps, as well as other educational displays.
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