By now our friends, family, and co-workers have become accustomed to hearing the reply “We went to the zoo” whenever they ask us what we did this weekend. However, I still receive surprise looks when I tell them that we visited the zoo in the rain. “How miserable?!?” they usually reply. And although at times they’re right – being at the zoo in a downpour can be miserable – being at the zoo in a light rain or a day in which the radar appears very grim has major benefits.
- The crowds – Some of our best zoo experiences have come on a day that the forecast predicted rain every hour – and although we went to the zoo anyway, most everyone else stayed home. This was the case when we visited Zoo Tampa a few years ago – and not only did we still feed sting rays and giraffes and have a great time, but we had the park pretty much to ourselves…in the sunshine!
- The animals are typically more active in cooler (and sometimes rainy) weather) – a complaint we hear all the time is “We took our kids to the zoo, but the animals were just lying around”. That’s pretty common – animals don’t like to do more than they need to when it’s 90 degrees outside. But when the temperatures are in the mid 50s or 60s, you’ll see tigers, leopards, rhinos, and many other animals much more active. Now it’s true that some animals can’t be on display in cold temperatures (giraffes for example need the temperature to be at least 55 degrees, otherwise most zoos keep them inside or off exhibit), so you’ll still need to temper expectations a bit – but the reward is usually more activity in the animal habitats.
- Animal encounters – One thing that zoos thrive on is great experiences. The more people that visit the zoo, the more they’re able to contribute to conservation. So when the crowds are light and the weather is poor, you’ll typically see zoo staff be a bit more aggressive in assisting visitors in having memorable animal encounters. This was the case in 2017 when we visited Brookfield Zoo. Despite a light rain, we were walking around the wallaby exhibit, when a zoo staffer called us over and introduced us to a wallaby. Now we’ve walked around kangaroo and wallaby exhibits dozens of times, and it’s extremely rare to even have a wallaby on the walking path, not to mention have it be calm enough to let us interact with it.
- Most zoos still have enjoyable indoor exhibits – This is where I’ll admit to you that on rainy days, I’m not necessarily going with my top three points in mind. Specifically in regards to Brookfield Zoo, the indoor exhibits are still worth a visit to entertain my toddlers. The family play zoo has a face painting area, dress up area, and opportunity to see lemurs, an armadillo, and some smaller domesticated animals. On top of that, the monkeys/gorillas, crocodiles, penguins, dolphins, and okapi all have indoor houses for viewing. At zoos like Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo, the indoor exhibits (like the Lied Jungle or the Desert Dome) are actually some of the highlights of the zoo! So don’t sleep on these opportunities just because of a little rain.
Rain in the forecast? No worries, there’s still memories to be made, so get out there and Zoo with us!
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