Auckland Zoo's biggest renovation yet, which comes with a $58m price tag
Monday, 8 July 2019
Open-air tiger bridges are at the heart Auckland Zoo's biggest, most expensive redevelopment ever.
It's still under construction, but when it is finished the $58 million South East Asia Jungle Track will bring visitors closer to the animals than ever.
There will also be a high-ropes course where orangutans can swing above their human relatives and a swamp forest featuring an underwater aquarium-like crocodile display.
The new habitats will encircle a huge lake, situated a stones-throw from the zoo's iconic band rotunda.
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Zoo Director Kevin Buley said the 'world-class development', due to be finished in 2020, was unlike anything currently offered in Aotearoa.
'It's all about connecting visitors with wildlife and giving them experiences they can't get anywhere else.'
The swamp forest, encompassed in a tropical dome, will be the first of its kind in New Zealand.
The transparent double-skinned dome will be 23 metres in diameter, and a balmy 28 degrees year-round - making it a cozy home for the endangered sunda gharial crocodile and other species of reptiles and fish.
The dome roof, made from ethylene tetrafluoroethylene, keeps the bad weather out while still allowing the sun's light in, ensuring animals and plants get the critical UV they need.
Another innovation was giving the tigers high-up vantage points in the form of aerial bridged pathways.
Head of facility services, Monica Lake, said the apex predators like looking down on prey, so the bridges help create a dynamic found in the wild.
'[This will] enable them to move along and look down on otters and visitors and look across to other areas of the zoo, including the lake where they could see orangutans and siamangs.'
The primates also get their own version of aerial pathways.
The high-ropes course extends out of their aboral enclosure and runs all the way across the central lake and back.
Three different ropes will be suspended 23 metres in the air, between the 13 massive poles - forming circuit that enable the apes to comfortably pass one another.
Buley said zoo picked South East Asia as a habitat to champion: 'as it is a neighbouring region close to our hearts'.
'It's one we've focused on and supported for more than 20 years. It's also one of the most importantly bio-diverse, life giving yet threatened places on earth with huge conservation issues and challenges.
'By providing people with the opportunities to immerse themselves in the South East Asia experience, we hope to inspire them to make small practical changes at home and locally that can have a positive impact globally.'
The works include the construction of a new cafe and the renewal of vital services including water supplies, electrical infrastructure, gas, data and sewage systems.
The South East Asia Jungle Track is part of a bigger $150m 10-year programme funded by Auckland Council.
The rest of the budget will be used to develop a refreshed South American trail, new entry and family facilities and an African Forest track.
Four new habitats
High canopy habitat - for orangutan, siamang gibbon and other primates
Lowlands - for Sumatran tiger and Asian small-clawed otter
Tropical dome swamp forest - for Asian crocodile and a diversity of other reptiles and fish
Lake and wetlands - extended climbing range for our arboreal primates featuring a boardwalk bridge
When will it open
Christmas 2019 - New cafe and function venue
Summer 2020 - the high canopy, home to primates
Winter 2020 - the lowlands, home to tigers and otters
Spring 2020 - the river's edge tropical dome, home to crocodile, fish and other reptiles