Memphis Zoo in Tennessee, US, is preparing to launch its new US$22.3m (€19.5m, £15.7m) Zambezi River Hippo Camp at the end of this month, bringing together a collection of animals in the immersive setting of an African fishing village.
Starring two female hippos with a male hippo from Disney’s Animal Kingdom in Florida, the exhibit – which has been given an opening date of 29 April – will also feature okapis, Nile crocodiles, flamingos and free-flying birds.
Created by Ace Torre of zoo specialists Torre Design Consortium, the experience covers 16,000sq m (174,000sq ft) and mimics a river walk through a remote camp.
“Whether it’s the social biology, the culture or the history, everything that’s involved in an environment we try to tell in a comprehensive way in an immersive exhibit,” said Ace Torre. “When you enter the Zambezi River Hippo Camp it will be a true immersion experience of travelling from Memphis to Africa. You’ll stand on the balcony of a great lodge overlooking a scene of the Zambezi river, complete with crocodiles and hippos moving through the water with underwater viewpoints.
“In this exhibit we’re at a river’s edge. We’re at a bend in the river with a fishing village across the way which features some of the iconography and pattern work you would see in real life. In the centre of the exhibit will be the lodge. It looks completely different to any other exhibit within the zoo and it’s a large part of the immersive aspect of making the exhibit work as a true African environment.”
The opening of the Hippo Camp is a significant landmark for the 110-year-old zoo, with the culmination of its 20-year masterplan. The exhibit is the first new opening at the zoo since 2009, when it opened its immersive Teton Trek.
A new 10-year masterplan for the zoo is currently under development and is expected to be released by the end of this year. As part of this, the zoo is planning to install beacon technology with a smartphone app sending visitors educational notifications depending on where they are within the park.
