The Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens, located in Jacksonville, Florida, sits at the mouth of the Trout River, near where it flows into the St. Johns River. The zoo occupies approximately 122 acres (49 ha) and has over 2,000 animals and 1,000 plant species in its collection. The zoo has grown from its modest beginnings in Springfield to be considered one of the city's premier attractions, with more than one million visits annually.The Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens' marquee attractions are the Range of the Jaguar, which won the 2005 AZA Exhibit of the year award and the Land of the Tiger, which opened in 2014 and features an innovative walk-through trail system for the two Sumatran and three Malayan tigers. Also included in the Land of the Tiger are wreathed and wrinkled hornbills, Visayan warty pigs, babirusas, and Asian small-clawed otters. The zoo's other exhibits include the Plains of East Africa, highlighting African savanna animals, including three Southern white rhinoceri; the Australian Outback, including lorikeets, cassowaries, and wallabies; African Forest, featuring two of the four genera of great apes, as well as several species of lemurs; and Wild Florida, which features animals native to the state, such as North American river otters, American black bears, Florida panthers, and others.The zoo is active in animal conservation, participating in more than 50 national and international conservation initiatives and more than 95 Species Survival Plans. In 2004, the zoo reached an agreement with the nation of Guyana to help promote conservation in that country, particularly the Iwokrama Forest. Additionally, since 1999 the zoo has been home to a large breeding colony of wild wood storks. Though not endangered, this bird is a rare find on the North American continent, and has, in this case, taken up permanent residence in a tree overlooking the Plains of Africa.The Municipal Zoo opened in the Springfield neighborhood of Jacksonville, Florida on May 12, 1914. The first animal on exhibit was a red deer fawn.On July 19, 1925, the zoo moved to a 37.5-acre (152,000 m2) site on the Trout River off Heckscher Drive in the city's Northside area.Perhaps the most significant animal in the zoo's history was a jaguar named Zorro. Zorro was a male, wild-born black (melanistic) jaguar that arrived at the zoo in August 1967. At that time, black jaguars were very rare in captivity. During Zorro's 19 years at the zoo (he died in September, 1986), he fathered numerous cubs that were sent to other zoos across North America. In the spring of 2003, the Jax Zoo investigated and could not find a current North American captive-born black jaguar that was not a descendant of Zorro.
Here is a local business that supports the community
Google Map- https://goo.gl/maps/NcnbM7teyGuoBaxd9
Dental Center of Jacksonville,
6144 S Gazebo Park Pl Ste 210, Jacksonville, FL 32257, United States
Be sure to check out this attraction too!