Zoo Miami is in Ron Magill’s blood. As he celebrates his 37th year at the Florida attraction, he’s also celebrating the opening of the long-awaited Mission Everglades exhibit, which focuses on the wildlife and habitats of the zoo’s own doorstep.

Built with an investment of $33m (€31m, £26m), the 4.5-acre (1.8-hectare) expansion features 60 different species native to the region, including alligators, crocodiles, black bears, the Florida panther and a variety of birdlife. The aim is to give visitors an understanding of the importance of the Everglades and demonstrate that local wildlife is under just as much pressure from loss of habitat as species further afield.

“Florida: Mission Everglades is the culmination of many years of understanding the need to have an exhibit that showcases some of the amazing wildlife that occurs right in our own backyard,” says Magill, director of communications at the zoo. “It’s a condensed trip through this natural treasure, providing some amazing up-close and interactive experiences that would be extremely rare or impossible in the wild.”

Entering Florida: Mission Everglades, visitors first experience the aviary and the lake, where they see a variety of indigenous birds such as blue jays, red-bellied wood peckers, pelicans, ibis and herons. Next visitors can enjoy the river otter exhibit and the crocodile exhibit, both of which feature underwater transparent viewing tunnels, before going on to meet land mammals like the black bear and the endangered Florida panther – with live demonstrations between zookeepers and animals – and a variety of native reptiles and amphibians.

Lastly, visitors enter the boardwalk where they can take a rope bridge across the alligator’s watery den, learn the story of the zoo’s rehabilitated bald eagles and climb the treehouse to spot the bobcat, racoon and grey fox. All this is complemented by the cypress-themed adventure playground and cafeteria and a new boat ride, the Lostman’s River Ride.

Threatened ecosystem
“The aim is not to satisfy one’s curiosity about the Florida Everglades, but rather to ignite a passion for it that will inspire the visitor to want to learn more and go out and experience the real Everglades for themselves,” says Magill, who started his career at the facility as a zookeeper in 1979. “The message is that all of these natural treasures are directly connected to us in providing not only beautiful wild areas for us to enjoy and visit but also being our main source of fresh drinking water and that to compromise any of these elements can threaten the entire ecosystem which could have catastrophic effects on our quality of life.”

Due to its many innovations and several “firsts” for the zoo, the project posed a fair number of challenges. Some elements had to be dropped in order to stay on budget, and the project was delayed several times due to the demands of the complex engineering and building needed.

“The Life Systems Support elements alone were the largest ever done at the zoo and required a tremendous amount of planning and development,” says Magill.

Magill, who founded the Ron Magill Conservation Endowment to support conservation of the wild counterparts of the zoo’s exhibits, says Mission Everglades has received an overwhelmingly positive response in its first couple of months, the only complaints being that the Florida panther and bald eagle are fairly timid and difficult to see and that the boat ride, which costs $5 per guest, has had mixed reviews.

“With the panther and bald eagle, it’s take time for them to become more comfortable. With the boat ride, we are currently exploring enhancing the ride as well as alternative pricing options.”

With this project, Zoo Miami is investing in its own surroundings to help preserve the Everglades long into the future.

Magill says: “We believe that most visitors will come to the natural conclusion that the Everglades is too beautiful and important to lose and will remember the impact that their visit made on them when it comes to making decisions in the future regarding the protection and wellbeing of this precious environment.”