San Diego is a city of different flavors and topography. First, I went to the World Famous San Diego Zoo in Balboa Park which is one of the largest and most progressive zoos in the world with over 4,000 animals of more than 800 species. The zoo offers a guided tour bus that traverses 75% of the park. There is an overhead gondola lift called the Skyfari, providing an aerial view of the zoo. There is a Sea Lion Show spotlights the California sea lions. There is also the An Avian Adventure show at Hunte Amphitheater. This amazing new free-flight bird show, by trainer and producer extraordinaire Steve Martin, showcases the airborne comedic talents of winged wonders including ravens, eagles, storks, macaws, and many more during daytime presentations.
The Elephant Odyssey exhibit was opened on May 23, 2009 in the area once known as Hoof and Horn Mesa. The main feature of the exhibit is the 2.5-acre (10,000 m2) elephant habitat more than three times the size of the Zoo's former elephant exhibit, in what used to be Elephant Mesa (now the "Urban Jungle"). The herd includes one male (Ranchipur) and six females (Tembo, Mila, Devi, Sumithi, Mary and Shaba) and consists of a blended herd of three African and 4 Asian elephants. Elephant Odyssey also features a glimpse of the past with the Fossil Portal and life-size statues of ancient creatures of Southern California next to the exhibits of their modern-day counterparts. The ancient life represented include the Columbian mammoth, the saber-tooth cat, the American lion, the Daggett's eagle, and the Jefferson's ground sloth. Elephant Odyssey's other animal exhibits include African lions, jaguars, Baird's Tapirs, guanacos, capybaras, Kirk's dik-diks, secretary birds, dung beetles, water beetles, desert tarantulas, toads, newts, turtles, frogs, dromedary camels, pronghorn, horses, burros, llamas, rattlesnakes, and the California condor.
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