If you have ever wanted to go on a safari, or view undersea life in their natural habitat, or even get the chance to interact with animals from other continents, the Wildlife World Zoo and Aquarium in Glendale, Arizona is must visit. From Monkeys to monitor lizards, the zoo offers the most animals for your money. They have over four times the amount of animals as their biggest competitor, the Phoenix Zoo.
"Wildlife World Zoo and Aquarium has Arizona's largest collection of exotic animals with over 6,000 individual animals representing more than 600 exotic and endangered species"
-Southwest Valley Chamber of Commerce
I am an animal lover and have always been interested in exotic creatures, so the opportunity to see so many different animals and even get to interact with some of them is an exciting prospect. Even upon arriving, you get a excited at the sight of the all-encompassing jungle atmosphere. Getting out of your car you can already hear the monkeys screaming and the birds squawking. Your sense of smell is bombarded as you walk through the front gate and get a whiff of the barbecue and hot dogs offered up at just one of the zoo's on location restaurants. Depending on the time you visit, you have the choice to attend the zoo or the aquarium. That option is awesome in my opinion. Not all people are big cat people, and would rather go see all the colorful and bizarre aquatic life in the aquarium. If you would only like to visit the aquarium, you can do so at night for the price of $16.99 for adults and $8.99 for kids ages 3-12. For the purpose of getting the most out of the trip, I decided to get the package deal and explore all that the park had to offer. It is a little pricey, being $29 per adult and $14 for kids 3-12, compared to the $18 a day for the Phoenix Zoo, but it is well worth the price for the incredible diversity of animals and the climate controlled aquarium.
After very little debate, my family and I decided to check out the safari side of the zoo first. Right away you are given a map of the land, outlining where each beast can be seen. We were really interested in the interactivity portion of the zoo, so we wanted to go see the kangaroos in their free roaming habitat that you are actually allowed to walk around in. When you pass through fence, you can see little families of kangaroos hopping around and playing with each other. After years of interaction with humans, these animals are not shy to show off and play with the people visiting them. We got about a quarter of the way through when my sister in law gasped out loud. There was a four foot tall male kangaroo right in the center of the path, and he did not look happy. I tried to show off a little like I was not nervous, so I went and put a quarter in the feed machine, got a handful of pellets and started off to greet the big guy. As I got close he started to sniff the air, I opened up my hand, palm up to show him the food. He did not seem phased at all when his soft little nose and mouth nudged my hand and gobbled up the food. This experience is unique to this zoo, you will not find anything like this in the state of Arizona. Also, the kangaroos are not the only attraction. You can walk up a flight of stairs that are out in a field and buy some food to hand feed the giraffes. This part was cool, but a little gross too. A giraffe's tongue is definitely proportional to it's neck. As I held out a handful of food, the giraffe quickly approached and was not shy to completely cover my hand with it's enormous and sticky purple tongue. The only thing I did not enjoy about that attraction was that they did not have wet wipes for sanitation purposes.
The zoo is pretty big, and has every kind of animal you can think of, (except a liger) and if you do not want to trek through the entire park, there is always the safari train. The safari train takes you throughout the park and into some areas that you cannot get to on foot. It is an awesome ride for the people who want to enjoy the zoo without all the exercise, or those who just want a little shade from the Arizona sun. If you are not afraid heights, there is also the sky lift that takes you above the park to get a bird's eye view of all the creatures in their simulated habitats. I personally did not partake in this event, because my family and I would have had to leave my nephew behind in his stroller. However, this is a good way to get from one end of the park to the other, just in case you get halfway through and decide that you want a more leisurely trip back to the entrance.
One thing that is pretty unique to the zoo, is that they have two white tigers. It was interesting to see these massive beasts, with snow white fur, sharp black stripes and steely blue eyes. Unfortunately, it was a little disconcerning to see how small and relatively bland their exhibit was. While I was viewing the tigers, I was being stalked from above by a leopard that I had not even noticed, in its true to form predator fashion. There was a chain linked fence filled with bushes and trees, and the leopard seemed quite happy to sit up top and take account of all the people entering the exhibit. Again, it was a little concerning to see an animal that is supposed to be running wild and free, in a chain link cage that is smaller than most people's living room.
Do not forget about the sea creatures. The Wildlife World Zoo also has the largest aquarium in the state. The aquarium is inside and has a few different climate controlled buildings that you can visit. As I stated earlier, I am big into the interaction part of these exhibits, and the aquarium offers a unique touch. There is an above ground pool inside of one of the buildings that houses an array of different fish that you can handle. Mainly it is a bunch of sting rays that come up out of the water to greet you. It is a little weird that there are about twenty of these fish all doing laps in the same direction and popping up and out of the water just enough to get food and let you pet them. The cool part about that is, they cannot tell if you have food or not, and go straight for your hand when you submerge it in the water. Their backs feel slimy and smooth one way, and a little rough like sand paper when you go against the grain. If you feel uncomfortable having fishy hands for the rest of the trip, do not worry. There is a sanitation section of the exhibit, for when you are done petting the fish.
The aquarium is awesome and has a lot of different fish from weird and small to huge and scary. The animal part of the zoo is great because they offer a lot of interaction, and tons of different animals that the whole family will enjoy. There are many different birds, if that is your thing, or even a rhinoccerous that plays in the mud. One thing that I am excited to tell you about is the opening of the zoo's newest exhibit, Dragon World. This exhibit houses a ton of reptiles. They have 10 foot long crocodile monitors, huge snakes, and even albino alligators. So, even though the zoo is amazing with all it originally had to offer, they are still building upon their already stellar exhibits, and will continue to capture the attention and wonder of kids and adults alike. No matter what your favorite animal, it is safe to say that you will enjoy the trip from jungle to deep sea atmosphere, a journey you can make in only one day.
For more information, or to plan your own day of fun outside with the all the awesome animals go to http://www.wildlifeworld.com/
Images obtained from the Wildlife World Zoo and Aquarium website
No comments:
Post a Comment