Tampa’s Lowry Park Zoo One of the first manatee complexes to be built in the USA, the Florida Biome exhibit at Lowry Park Zoo is both an ecological and chronological transect. Starting over 200 years ago in Florida’s development, the visitors move from the north to the south, from “cracker shack” to oak hammock to cypress dome, eventually submerging into the estuaries and rivers where they come face-to-face with manatees and an abundance of fishes, reptiles and amphibians. The story of humankind is presented in the sequence, juxtaposing adaptation and ongoing evolution that is balanced by humankind’s urbanisation of this 1,000-mile peninsula transect. The manatee is clearly the motivator for conservation here, as one has the opportunity to see the affection and elegance of the mammal that humankind challenges. To offer closure (and prospect) at the completion of this experience, the Manatee Hospital was created. Over 300 injured manatees have been healed here, their challenges brought to the eye of exhibit visitors and they are triumphantly released back into the wild – the inspirational message: we can make things better. After a red tide bloom killed a record number of manatees in 2013 by releasing toxins that paralysed and drowned the manatees, the Manatee Hospital discovered that manatees could be saved with life jackets and even pool noodles. Now researchers worldwide can implement similar solutions discovered at Lowry Park Zoo, showing, again, the value of zoos in creating commitment to environmental issues and promoting solutions. Lowry Park Zoo has been operationally self-sufficient for decades, with an attendance of over one million visitors per year. As a result of the zoo’s financial success, it contributes over US$ 1 million annually to conservation.
