Santa Ana Zoo

The Santa Ana Zoo at Prentice Park in Santa Ana, California, is a 20-acre (8.1 ha) zoo focusing on the animals and plants of Central and South America. The Santa Ana Zoo hosts more than 270,000 people annually. The zoo opened in 1952 and is owned and operated by the City of Santa Ana. Joseph Prentice donated land for the zoo with the stipulation that the city must keep at least 50 monkeys at all times. The zoo maintains an extensive primate collection with over a dozen species from around the world.[4]

Santa Ana Zoo
33°44′38.094″N 117°50′33.11″W
Date opened1952[1]
LocationSanta Ana, California, United States
Land area20 acres (8.1 ha)
No. of animals250[2]
Annual visitors270,000[3]
Major exhibitsAmazon's Edge, Colors of the Amazon Aviary, Crean Family Farm, Monkey Row, Tierra de las Pampas
Websitewww.santaanazoo.org

The focus of the Santa Ana Zoo is recreation, education, and conservation. It was previously accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA).

History

Joseph Edward Prentice bought the 19.23-acre (7.78 ha) site. He donated 16 acres (6.5 ha) to the city of Santa Ana in 1949 and stipulated that the zoo have at least fifty monkeys at all times. Construction of the zoo began that year,[5] and it opened on March 8, 1952.[1][3] A children's zoo was soon built[3] and the Flight Aviary, now known as the Jack Lynch Aviary, was completed in 1962.[6] In 1983, the amphitheater was completed and the zoo gained AZA accreditation.[7] The 1990s had three major events:[8] in 1990, the Flight Aviary was upgraded and renamed the Jack Lynch Aviary; Amazon's Edge opened in 1992; and Colors of the Amazon Aviary opened in 1996. In the 2000s, the Zoofari Express Train Ride opened in 2000, Crean Family Farm opened in 2004, and Tierra de las Pampas opened in 2010.[9] With its outdated monkey habitats, the Association of Zoos and Aquariums declined to accredit the zoo in 2017.[10]

Exhibits

Tierra De Las Pampas

In April 2010,[11] Santa Ana Zoo opened a new exhibit, Tierra de las Pampas or "Land of the Grasses."[11] It is the first in a series of new exhibits. Covering 2 acres (8,100 m2), Tierra de las Pampas houses giant anteaters in one exhibit, and greater rheas and guanacos in the larger one, with a footpath between them.

Rainforest Exhibit

The Rainforest Exhibit is a small exhibit that represents the Amazon, home to white-faced saki monkeys and green iguanas.

Amazon's Edge

This exhibit, opened on September 1, 1993, replicates a section of the Brazilian rainforest. The exhibit consists of a water moat and a forested riverbank set against a cliff face, with a wooden deck for visitors to see the animals. The species on exhibit include howler monkeys, black-necked swans and crested screamers.[12]

A scarlet ibis on a branch in the aviary

Colors of the Amazon Aviary

The 9,000-square-foot (840 m2) Colors of the Amazon Aviary opened on August 1, 1996. This walk-through aviary displays a variety of South American birds in a lushly planted habitat with meandering streams.

Crean Family Farm

Crean Family Farm opened in July 2004[13] and focuses on rare breeds of domestic and farm animals. The centerpiece of the complex is a two-story red barn which houses pigs and an education space.

Ocelot Habitat and Education Center

Ocelot Habitat is home to a breeding pair of Brazilian Ocelots located in 2 linked habitats. Interactive picnic tables let guests discover the special adaptations unique to ocelots.

List of animals
List of animals
ProsimiansNew World monkeysOld World monkeysApes
Black-and-white ruffed lemurPygmy marmosetSilver langurWhite-handed gibbon
Ring-tailed lemurGolden lion tamarinBlack-and-white colobus
Cotton-top tamarin
Emperor tamarin
Golden-headed lion tamarin
Red-handed tamarin
Dusky titi monkey
White-faced saki
Black howler monkey
Black-handed spider monkey
Crested capuchin
Brown capuchin
Owl monkey
Mammal Collection
NeotropicalAfricanAsian
Giant anteaterCrested porcupineBinturong
Guanaco
Ocelot
Bird Collection
Neotropical Neotropical North American Asian Australian African
Black-necked swan Grey-cowled wood rail Great horned owl Trumpeter hornbill
Crested screamer Sunbittern Barn owl
Blue-and-yellow macaw Scarlet ibis Swainson's hawk
Double yellow-headed amazon Striated heron Bald eagle
Rhea Troupial
Blue-crowned motmot White-bellied caique
White-faced whistling duck
Herpetological and Invertebrate Collection
Neotropical
Green iguana
Boa constrictor
Golden poison dart frog
Slider turtle
Goliath birdeater tarantula
Tropical centipede
Giant cave cockroach

Species formerly kept

Primates

Black lemur, Greater bushbaby, Golden-bellied mangabey, Lion tailed macaque, Celebes crested macaque, Lesser spot-nosed guenon, Stump-tailed macaque, Rhesus macaque

Other Mammals

Günther's dik-dik, Sika deer, Mule deer, Collared peccary, Rock hyrax, Cat, Oncilla, Mountain lion, Serval, Tayra, Swamp wallaby

Birds

Ocellated turkey, Channel-billed toucan, Chestnut-mandibled toucan, Burrowing owl, Red junglefowl, Emu, Magpie goose

Other attractions

One of the most popular attractions at the Santa Ana Zoo is the Zoofari Express children's train. There are two engines: 1030 and 1036. Both are 14 gauge, 4-4-4 configuration locomotives.

The original 1030 engine was constructed in 1954 by the Hurlbut Amusement Company of Buena Park. Engine 1030 was originally installed at Santa's Village in Sky Forest, California. It operated there continuously for 44 years. When Santa's Village closed in 1998, the Friends of Santa Ana Zoo purchased the entire train and 660 feet (200 m) of original track. The train was then restored by volunteers from Mater Dei High School with the help of Bud Hurlbut. The restored train opened at the Santa Ana Zoo in the spring of 1999. The track length was expanded to 1,850 feet (560 m). Engine 1030 was gas-powered, but in 2006 it was converted to electric power.[14]

Engine 1036 is a new electric-powered locomotive that was installed in 2005, along with new passenger cars.

The zoo also features a Conservation Carousel with a 33 animal line-up including the giraffe, giant panda, African elephant, cheetah, hummingbird, gorilla, bald eagle, jaguar, zebra, Bengal tiger, otter, panther, seal, sea dragon and a custom-made anteater. The carousel also features a wheelchair-accessible Studded Leather Swan Chariot.

Incidents

In July 2018, Aquinas Kasbar broke into the enclosure for lemurs and capuchin monkeys and stole Isaac, the oldest living ring-tailed lemur in captivity at the time, to keep as a pet. He left the animal, unharmed, outside a Newport Beach hotel the next day with notes identifying him & instructing he be returned to the zoo. In July 2019 Kasbar pleaded guilty in federal court to unlawfully taking an endangered species and U.S. District Judge Andrew Guilford sentenced him to three months in prison, run concurrently with a state sentence for a series of residential burglaries.[15]

Visitor information

The Santa Ana Zoo is located at 1801 East Chestnut Avenue in Santa Ana, California.

The zoo is open daily, except for Christmas Day, New Year's Day and Thanksgiving Day . The hours of operation are 10:00 am to 4:00 pm daily but guests may remain in the zoo until 5:00 pm year round.

See also

References
  1. "The 1950s". santaanazoo.org. Santa Ana Zoo. Archived from the original on August 21, 2011.
  2. "Orange County Zoos" (PDF). ocgrandjury.org. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 28, 2011.
  3. "SAZOO's Story". santaanazoo.org. Santa Ana Zoo. Archived from the original on August 19, 2011.
  4. Barnett, Lindsay (January 25, 2009). "The Santa Ana Zoo takes its monkeys seriously...all 50 of them". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016.
  5. "SAZOO's Story". santaanazoo.org. Santa Ana Zoo. Archived from the original on September 30, 2011.
  6. "The 1960s". santaanazoo.org. Santa Ana Zoo. Archived from the original on August 19, 2011.
  7. "the 1980s". santaanazoo.org. Santa Ana Zoo. Archived from the original on August 20, 2011.
  8. "The 1990s". santaanazoo.org. Santa Ana Zoo. Archived from the original on August 18, 2011.
  9. "The 2000s". santaanazoo.org. Santa Ana Zoo. Archived from the original on August 20, 2011.
  10. San Román, Gabriel; House, Christina (December 15, 2022). "The Santa Ana Zoo has a monkey problem: Not enough of them". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
  11. "Tierra de las Pampas". santaanazoo.org. Santa Ana Zoo. Archived from the original on October 4, 2011.
  12. "Attractions at the Zoo". santaanazoo.org. Santa Ana Zoo. Archived from the original on October 4, 2011.
  13. Mena, Jennifer (July 5, 2004). "Down on the Crean Family Farm". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on November 7, 2012.
  14. "Zoofari Express Engine #1036," Flickr Web site (https://www.flickr.com/photos/imagineeringmyway/5382073623/), Retrieved 8-13-2011.
  15. "Man who stole Lemur from Santa Ana Zoo sentenced to 3-month prison term". ocregister.com. The Orange County Register. October 28, 2019.
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