The Fort Worth Zoo officially opened its newest exhibit last Thursday: “Predators of Asia & Africa.”
Hundreds of guests came to see the latest installment in the zoo’s $130 million “A Wilder Vision” campaign, which focuses on preserving endangered species that are likely not to survive without protection.
Announced in 2016, the campaign’s first phase opened in 2018 with the “African Savannah” exhibit. Phase two, the “Elephant Springs” exhibit, opened in 2021 and welcomed a new baby elephant in February, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
The latest phase features three new species: the African leopard, the clouded leopard, and the satyr tragopan (the crimson horned pheasant), as well as 11 returning species, including lions, tigers, and hyenas. The exhibit will also showcase 75 plant species.
Avery Elander, director of marketing and public relations for the zoo, highlighted the uniqueness of the new animals.
“You can call a lot of these animals the ‘big cats,’ but they are entirely different animals. They’re individual species, they live in different parts of the world,” said Elander, according to KLRD. “They have different habitats and climates. Most all of them are endangered or at risk of being endangered. They’re incredibly important to their ecosystem, so we want to introduce our guests to all of these animals.”
Construction for the exhibit began in 2020 and took a total of 941 days to complete. It included 170,000 pounds of hand-laid sod. The new exhibit can support 1,500 gallons of recirculated water flowing each minute.
Ramona Bass, board chair of the Fort Worth Zoo, said she hopes the new exhibit can inspire a love of science in children who visit.
“That is really a serious goal,” said Bass, per KLRD. “That’s why everybody is talking about STEM learning because there are so few people getting involved in that kind of work. Hopefully, we will inspire a whole new generation of conservationists.”
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The final phase of A Wilder Vision is expected to open in the spring of 2025 and will be called “Forests & Jungles.”