Interactive zoo visitor experiences

Abstract

This chapter provides an emerging body of evidence exploring the impact of interactive zoo visitor experiences on both zoo visitors and zoo animals, with a relatively equal emphasis on both participant groups. Extending what is known about traditional, non-interactive zoo visits, this review has highlighted that such experiences can contribute to visitor knowledge gain and attitude shift, although impacts on long-term behaviour change remain unknown. From the perspective of zoo visitors, interactive experiences can be important for providing an optimal leisure experience, as well as meeting zoo aims of providing opportunities for learning, and fostering appreciation, care and concern for nature. Zoos appear to use a diversity of species as education programme animals, with activities including keeper talks, frequent handling by keepers, and interactive demonstrations either at exhibits or around the zoo. Interactive exhibits – whereby keepers spend a large portion of zoo opening hours in an exhibit and interacting with animals – provide another opportunity for interactive visitor viewing.