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Zoo plans changes to sea lion, bear habitats
(by Kara Krekeler - June 23, 2010)
In the midst of celebrating its centennial, the St. Louis Zoo is also preparing for its future. On June 3, Zoo officials announced “The Living Promise,” a $120 million, seven-year campaign that will rebuild several of its older exhibits and strengthen its infrastructure.
“As we plan for the St. Louis Zoo’s future, we have made a promise to always care deeply for animals and the natural world, to remain accessible to all our visitors, to be a leader in wildlife conservation and to steward our resources carefully,” said Jeffrey Bonner, president and CEO of the Zoo, during the campaign announcement. “We are celebrating the Zoo’s 100-year anniversary this year and now it is time to plan for the next 100 years. We promise to make them memorable for generations to come.”
Among the major changes in store are new habitats for the Zoo’s bears, a new habitat and arena for the sea lions and a fourth Asian elephant habitat featuring a forest environment. Elephant Woods in the River’s Edge is currently under construction, as are the Wachovia Wells Fargo South Arrival Entrance and the behind-the-scenes Myron Glassberg Family Maintenance Facility.
The Zoo is set to break ground on its next addition, Sea Lion Sound, this fall. The 1.55-acre complex will feature salt-water pools, underwater viewing and an underwater walk-through tunnel, as well as the new Lichtenstein Sea Lion Arena for public shows. Construction on the complex is scheduled to take about 18 months, with a planned opening in spring 2012.
Bonner said that the current sea lion habitat, which opened in the 1950s, has a host of problems that make it difficult to care for the sea lions, including antiquated plumbing, a tendency to flood in heavy rains and no adjacent holding area, meaning that the entire area must be drained to care for the animals. Sea Lion Sound will fix those problems and add opportunities for visitors to see the sea lions underwater, which is currently not possible.
Further down the road, the Zoo plans on replacing its historic bear pits, which opened in 1921 and were one of the first open zoo exhibits in the country. The pits will be replaced by Grizzly Ridge and Polar Bear Point, which will be similar in style to the Fragile Forest ape enclosure, which opened in 2005. Additionally, Polar Bear Point will feature an underwater viewing area.
Bonner said that replacing the bear pits will likely be the last project in the Living Promise campaign, taking place anywhere from five to seven years in the future, depending on funding.
The Zoo currently does not have any polar bears, as both died in recent years, and Bonner said that he hopes to wait until the new enclosures are finished before acquiring new polar bears. However, it is possible that the Zoo will be asked to hold polar bears before that time.
The Zoo’s other bears, the Andean bears and Malayan sun bears, will have their own habitats in the River’s Edge. The Andean bears will take up residence in Andean Bear Ridge across from the capybaras and giant anteaters, while the sun bears will live in Sun Bear Forest, near the Asian elephants. Moving the bears to the beginning and end of the River’s Edge path will allow visitors to see animals sooner on the path, and allow for more variety in the types of animals seen there, Bonner said.
Missing from the bear equation are plans for the Zoo’s black bear. Bonner said that considering the strong comeback black bears have made in the wild, he doesn’t plan on exhibiting them at the Zoo in the future.
“We really have to focus our resources on the spectacled and sun bears, which are endangered,” he said. The black bear that currently resides at the Zoo is “really, really old and we don’t anticipate him living that long.”
Since it began receiving funding for the campaign two years ago, the Zoo has already received about $74 million in pledges for the campaign, including a $5 million gift from Emerson, which is the largest single charitable gift in the Zoo’s history. In recognition, the Zoo plans on redubbing its popular train attraction the “Emerson Zooline Railroad.”
In addition to the physical changes to the Zoo, the campaign is also intended to increase the Zoo’s endowment, which is currently around $30 million. Bonner said that he expects to add about $35 million to the endowment through the campaign, making a significant dent in his ultimate goal of $110 million.
“There’s no rule of thumb, but if there was it would be to get your endowment to about two times your operating budget,” which is currently about $55 million a year, Bonner said. He added that the Zoo, like any institution, is always seeking to grow its endowment fund.
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