Wandering the World (1428): A Winter Visit to Dalian Forest Zoo

One day in late February 2021, taking advantage of the warm winter sun, I visited Dalian Forest Zoo with my wife and our little grandson. Photos taken at Dalian Forest Zoo.

Dalian Forest Zoo is located in the Baiyun Mountain scenic area on the southern coast of Dalian and is currently the largest city zoo in China. Photos taken at Dalian Forest Zoo.

Dalian Forest Zoo covers an area of 7.2 square kilometers and exhibits over 200 species and more than 3,000 animals. It is one of the first batch of national 4A-level scenic spots. The picture shows a panoramic view of Dalian Forest Zoo.

Pandemic prevention has become routine, so we still need to wear masks when going out. This is a photo of our little grandson posing with a sculpture at the entrance of the forest zoo.

From the name "Forest Zoo," it can be understood that its greatest feature is allowing animals to return to nature. The design of the zoo's tour routes and viewing methods follows natural principles. A long wooden boardwalk meanders through the mountains, appearing and disappearing along the terrain. This is a photo of grandma and our little grandson on the boardwalk.

The most popular place in the zoo is the giant panda house. The picture shows a distant view of the giant panda house.

Escalators are available to enter the giant panda house.

There are currently three giant pandas living in the giant panda house, one male and two females. These three giant pandas enjoy national treasure-level treatment at the forest zoo, with each having a separate residence of over 2,000 square meters and an outdoor activity area of 1,200 square meters. The indoor temperature is maintained between 10 and 23 degrees Celsius year-round. The exhibition area is surrounded by bamboo groves, with a babbling stream and a swimming pool for the pandas to enjoy. The picture shows one of the lovely giant pandas.

Giant pandas are very picky about the quality of bamboo. To meet their needs, the zoo airlifts a thousand kilograms of fresh bamboo from the south every week. Such extravagance can only be compared to the Tang Dynasty's "the red dust concubine's smile." The picture shows one of the lovely giant pandas.

Next to the giant panda house is the red panda house. This is one of the red pandas inside.

The zoo has also built a small animal village specifically for children to play with small animals. The picture shows a photo of our little grandson taken at the small animal village.

The zoo has also built a small animal village specifically for children to play with small animals. The picture shows a photo of our little grandson taken at the small animal village.

This is an anteater in the small animal village.

This is a fennec fox in the small animal village.

This is a bat-eared fox in the small animal village.

This is a black fox in the small animal village.

This is the tropical rainforest reptile house at the forest zoo.

This reptile house is the largest in northern China, featuring an entrance complex area, a human-nature area, a desert landscape area, a tropical fruit area, and a tropical rainforest area. Stepping inside feels like walking into a charming tropical plant kingdom, giving visitors a sense of returning to nature. The photo was taken at the entrance complex area.

This is the souvenir shop in the entrance complex area.

This is a cactus in the desert landscape area.

Inside the tropical rainforest reptile house, there are exhibition areas for pythons, tortoises and giant tortoises, frogs, lizards, and crocodiles. It exhibits over 30 species and nearly 100 individuals of amphibians and reptiles, including Siamese crocodiles, golden pythons, reticulated pythons, Aldabra giant tortoises, chameleons, and more. These animals are all "heavyweight" stars of their kind, particularly large, and can be considered treasures among treasures. The picture shows our little grandson watching crocodiles in the pool.

This is a giant tortoise in the giant tortoise exhibition area.

This is a tortoise in the tortoise exhibition area.

This is the python exhibition area inside the reptile house.

The golden python in the python exhibition area.

There is also a Panda Restaurant inside the forest zoo.

There is also an Ice and Snow World inside the forest zoo.

Most of the animals in the forest zoo are free-range, allowing us to see the wild beasts' true faces and primal nature. Visitors can walk along the boardwalk with a picnic-like mood, enjoying the mountain scenery while watching the animals.

These are free-range ostriches.

These are free-range zebras.

These are free-range alpacas.

This child is watching a blue sheep.

These are free-range wild donkeys.

These are free-range white yaks.

This child and his father are watching camels.

The golden monkey house is the zoo industry's first thematic exhibition hall integrating animal raising, display, and conservation education. The picture shows a close-up of a golden monkey.

Currently, the zoo keeps 32 golden monkeys, with the population size and number ranking among the top in the domestic industry.

Here you can see African wild dogs chasing each other on the grass, black bears pacing on the slopes, and tigers lazily stretching on the roadside. The picture shows a resting tiger.

These are two tigers.

These are two lions.

This is a wild squirrel.

Dalian Forest Zoo also has a crane exhibition area. It is said that there are only 15 crane species left in the world, and the zoo exhibits 13 of them, demonstrating the important status and influence of Dalian Forest Zoo in crane conservation and display.