Plastic polar bears in the St. Louis Zoo bear pits
Photo by Denise Bertacchi
The St. Louis Zoo has recently caused a stir in the blogosphere by installing three light-up plastic polar bears in the bear pits where real polar bears once lived.
Regular zoo visitors may have noticed that this is, in fact, not the first time our award winning zoo has resorted to decorative animals around exhibits. On arecent visit to the Zoo, this Examiner sought out other examples of artificial animals—hidden and out in the open—at the St. Louis Zoo.
Probably the first use of animal fakes would be the River’s Edge section of the St. Louis Zoo. Anyone who had kids during the grand opening of Raja’s new home can attest to the impression the “dead antelope” in the tree made to first time visitors. There’s also fake bird’s eggs, fake baby snakes in a log, a rather large lizard near the elephants, and some fake bats in the Missouri Cave at the end of River’s Edge.
The Zoo has slipped a few more display only animals around the zoo. Have you spotted the rabbit and the heron’s nest in the Cyprus Swamp? What about the penguin sculptures around and inside Penguin Cove?
Do you think the addition of fake animal displays make the zoo more educational and interesting for children? Have you used any of the fakes as props for your photos? Did the Zoo go too far with the polar bears?
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