Randuwa II: Smithsonian National Zoo: The Main Pathway

Friday, September 26, 2025

Smithsonian National Zoo: The Main Pathway

After reaching the top of the Asian Trail I looked at my phone and discovered that I had just over an hour left before the National Zoo would close. So much left to see--thankfully, the zoo made my first decision for me. The Cheetah Conservation Station and adjacent habitats were all closed and basically in some degree of total redesign. This still left about a dozen possible areas of interest. I immediately, discarded all of the smaller ones. No Bison, No Prairie Dogs, No Gibbons and Siamang, No Przewalski's Horses, No Lemur Island, No Wallabies, etc. Then on to the larger complexes; No Great Ape House, and No Think Tank with the Orangutans and Allen's Swamp Monkeys.

What's left? Time to connect three dots. I started with a breeze through the Small Mammal House. One of the many early 20th Century Romanesque masterpieces. Renovated over the years to host an interior full of open and creative habitats--probably, in the most perfect world--it's ready for a next generation upgrade. l would love to see more naturalistic design and live foliage, flowing water features, natural light--all toward a more immersive guest experience. My upgrade would include an extension on the rear side of the building to also double the existing space to 1) increase the size of all the habitats, and 2) create interior/exterior habitats for many that will provide greater options for both animals and guests.

SMALL ANIMAL HOUSE

Golden Lion Tamarin

Leontopithecus rosalia

Slender-tailed Meerkat

Suricata suricatta

Bearded Emperor Tamarin

Tamarinus subgrisescens

REPTILE HOUSE

The Reptile House is on the renovation block. I wanted to see it before it closed. Like the Aviary, this is a multi-million dollar endeavor that will take several years from inception to completion. As herpetariums go, the National Zoo's is average, and average is good. I feel like the majority of the upgrades will be infrastructural in nature, though an entirely new set of glass windows will undoubtedly reset the habitats to a more pristine appearance. Also I would like to think the arrangement of species within the habitats might have a more geographical theme.