Zoo InternQuest is a career exploration program for high school students. For more information see the Zoo InternQuest Journals. For more photos see the Zoo InternQuest Photo Journal.

The San Diego Zoo has dedicated itself to this cause. Unfortunately there are pressures on animal populations from the illegal trade of animal goods and habitat loss due to human activity, and large endangered animals teeter on the edge of extinction. The demand for leopard pelts and carvings in elephant tusks has led to a black market for these products harvested from endangered species. The Zoo is involved in extensive breeding programs for several animal species, elephants chief among them. However, the Zoo’s current elephant exhibit is too outdated and the herd is too small for the elephants to breed successfully.

Luckily, architect Steve Fobes has come to the rescue. He and teams of specialty architects and designers have undertaken a project of elephantine proportions: Elephant Odyssey, which will feature new homes for animals such as tapirs, capybaras, exotic horses, big cats, and, of course, elephants. From the design that Mr. Fobes showed us, it is evident that he has made the elephants’ comfort and health one of his top priorities. The elephant enclosure will span a full two acres more than their current half-acre one. The land will not be too steep for easy locomotion, and heaters will be hidden in trees to encourage the elephants to sleep and lay down outside. The Elephant Odyssey will certainly pamper these placid pachyderms, but that might be what it takes to have them eventually partake in a successful breeding program.

The resounding purpose of the Elephant Odyssey is to give the public a chance to see these large mammals behaving as they would naturally, so the exhibits will mirror the animals’ native habitat to accommodate natural interactions. Seeing lions roughhousing and elephants nuzzling each other’s trunks as they would in nature will inspire people to conserve these amazing creatures.

In addition to a fun place for elephants and other animals, the visitors will find lots of interactive elements to teach and inspire. Elephant Odyssey will present the public with the fate of ancient mammoths and saber-toothed cats at the hands of humans and compare it to the unfolding story of elephants and jaguars. Hopefully, visitors will be inspired to compare the two parallel tales and steer elephants and other large animals to a happier ending than the one the mammoths had!

Lauren, Conservation Team

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Scroll to the end to leave a comment. Pinging is not allowed.