The following post was authored by Jonah Lisa of The Toby Show.

• 903 Tenth Street SW, south of Lead and Coal and north of Bridge Blvd.
• www.cabq.gov/biopark/zoo
• 9:00am-5:00pm daily, except January 1, Thanksgiving Day (11/27/08), and December 25. Ticket booths close one half-hour before closing and no one will be admitted after this time.
• Adults $7, Children $3, Kids under 3 are free.  $12 for adults if you get a pass that includes the Rio Grande Aquarium and Botanic Gardens.
• Great stroller and wheelchair accessibility.

This is a really good zoo.  It’s got all the typical stuff you’d expect plus a few added, interactive bonus exhibits.  The enclosures are big enough that you don’t get too depressed about the animals being caged up (except for the big cats), but they’re still close enough that you can really see them.  The layout is easy and intuitive and it’s big enough that it didn’t feel super crowded, even on a Saturday.

One of the cool extras at this zoo is getting to feed the Lorikeets (African Parrots).

They are gorgeous birds and a tad aggressive.  As fun as it was be warned that young kids should not be allowed to hold the nectar cups unless they are really okay with having these birds ALL OVER THEM.  They are not tiny and their talons can be a it uncomfortable.  Also, some of them..well, nibble…like, on you.  Most kids will probably have a better time watching a parent feed the birds so they can get a close up look without the birds actually ON them.  The staff is pretty good about warning you of these things when you go in.

You can also feed the giraffes at this zoo.

It’s really amazing to get so close to these animals (longest tongues EVER!) and though they don’t like for you to pet them, they are very gentle about taking the leaves from you.  Nectar for the birds and leaves for the giraffes are each an extra $1.50.  We could have had a camel ride too, but Huck just wasn’t into it and, being big and pregnant, I wasn’t very into it either.  And, of course, there are several zookeeper led events throughout the day:  seals feeding, nature theatre show, etc

We didn’t eat at the zoo but there did seem to be plenty of options of the snack bar variety–no chain restuarants in the zoo that I saw.  There’s also a bandshell and spaciou Cottonwood Park inside the zoo  where you can spread out a picnic lunch.  I saw lots of people pulling coolers.  The other nice feature is a big maze-like playground near the mid-point of the zoo.

This zoo also boasts 2 trains.  A small one that just runs inside the zoo and a larger one that goes to the Botanic Gardens & Aquarium.  If you plan a full day at the Rio Grande BioPark, get the package deal with the big train ride for only $12 for adults.

As far as zoos go, this is a very good one.  Maybe not quite as good as the Fort Worth Zoo, in my opinion, but still very nice.

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