More, Better Acres for Elephants

Tucson (AZ) Reid Park Zoo is planning a new, larger, 3-acre elephant exhibit. The Arizona Daily Star suggests they plan for 7 acres (coincidentally, the NC Zoo plans 7 acres for its new African elephant exhibit). (Link)

"Zoo Administrator Susan Basford says that it is better for the elephants to remain in Tucson in a much improved habitat than to go to a sanctuary. "It has much more to do with the complexity of the exhibit than it has to do with the actual acreage," she said in an interview. "Having 20 acres of flat space is probably not as effective as 3 acres of really interesting space.""