Countywide : Zoo Exhibit Re-Creates the Amazon

Peering over a wooden rail, Sandy Beneville watched intently as a South American rodent as large as a golden retriever glided through the water below.

After the brown-furred capybara crawled onto the simulated riverbank and started munching on some leaves, Beneville declared the Santa Ana Zoo’s latest exhibit to be “pretty good.”

“It looks tropical and it’s getting people interested in the zoo again. It was getting pretty quiet for a while,” said Beneville, 25, a zoo regular from North Tustin.

She was one of more than 5,000 visitors who filed past the new $800,000 “Amazon’s Edge” exhibit on its opening day Wednesday. It marked the first phase of an ambitious 10-year, $10-million expansion intended to transform the zoo into a showcase for South American animals.

With sunny skies and high humidity, the weather seemed appropriately tropical for the opening of the exhibit, with its wide pool, tall trees and 20-foot-high waterfall. Throughout the day, throngs of people swarmed around the simulated riverbank to view the capybara, lesser Brazilian teal and blue-necked swans.

Several disappointed visitors noted that the black howler monkeys and black capuchin monkeys that are supposed to be part of the exhibit were absent from the opening. Zoo guide Dave Dittman explained that those animals must be introduced gradually into their new home and could move into the enclosure within the next few weeks.

Like most visitors, Casey Beneville, 10, said he liked the tailless, web-footed capybara best. “He’s pretty funny . . . the way he bobs up and down and sticks his head up.”

Still, although Casey enjoyed the simulated Amazon habitat, he added: “I think they need more exhibits. It’s not much compared to the San Diego Zoo.”

The Santa Ana Zoo how holds about 300 animals, and the current expansion is expected to double the population. But what the zoo lacks in size it makes up for in specialization, said Director Ron Glazier.

Santa Ana boasts the only zoo in the country that focuses on South American animals. Zoo officials figure that they can’t offer the diversity that larger zoos provide, but they hope to attract a new audience by focusing on an area that no one else emphasizes. Upcoming exhibits will include jaguars, penguins and llamas, all in similar natural settings. For now, though, Glazier is especially proud of the “Amazon’s Edge” exhibit.

“It’s like having a baby. It took nine months in construction and went through various phases just like having a baby, and when the day finally comes, it’s hard to believe,” he said.

He said children in particular would probably enjoy the exhibit because “it stimulates their imaginations. They can stand here and look at the waterfall and believe that they’re in the Amazon.”

Kasey Myers, 8, of Anaheim, agreed: “I’ve seen everything and I liked everything, (especially) the waterfall.”

Ann McMenamin, 57, of Rossmoor was pleased with the natural-looking setting. Standing alongside her husband, Milt, 58, she said: “We’ve never been to the (Santa Ana) zoo and we heard about this new exhibit and wanted to see it. It’s awfully nice to have it so close.”