8 • The Louisville Zoo Trunkline • Spring 2016
A Safari
through
New
Y Africa
ou’ve
probably
seen the
signs, read
Zoo articles and emails
or followed our posts
on social media —
waiting patiently with
anticipation. The time
has arrived. An all-new
enhanced and expanded
African area is ready for
you. Come experience
the adventure! Let’s take a
virtual tour first…
Your journey begins at the
Savannah’s edge with a view of
the bongos at play. The large African
antelopes with their distinctive
auburn and white-striped coat are
romping through their new exhibit
space and lounging in the sun on
the flat grassy terrain. As you look
over the barrier to greet the bongos,
one snorts at you in response and
rubs its large curved horns on a stray
log. Nearby sand-colored addax,
native to north central Africa, rest
in a sand wallow. Welcome to the
Louisville Zoo’s African area, a land
of enchantment, excitement and
education for the whole family.
As you round the bend in the trail,
you are greeted by the lifelike “Ely”
bronze elephant sculpture created by
artist Meg White, a perfect location
for a selfie, or ”Elfie” in this case.
From the comfortable vantage point
of nearby benches in the new garden,
you can see an enormous new wall
with its East African tribal patterns.
Beyond the wall, elephants roll in
clay and play in the
water. As you venture
closer to this stylized,
elegant wall inspired by
architecture from Mombasa,
a city on the coast of Kenya,
elephants choose to approach
and size you up while you
gaze back in wonder. A
Zookeeper wanders by to
explain that the elephants
may now choose to press a button
with their trunk to spray themselves
or passersby with water. What a
temptation. Suddenly, you are misted
with cool water from the spigot
above the gate!
Continue along the trail and you
are entranced into trying a whole
new experience and adventure — a
camel ride! Large, trained dromedary
camels are waiting to transport you