Jardim Zoológico -- Rio City Zoo

Frommer's Review

If you haven't got time to get to the Amazon, this may be the place to come. Though not huge, the zoo is green, leafy, and pleasant, and has about 2,000 different species on display, most of them Brazilian. It's particularly good for birds. There are toucans (of Fruit Loops cereal fame), macaws, and other colorful tropical species, some in an open aviary so you can walk among them while they fly around. (That doesn't apply to the harpy eagle: The zoo's example of the world's largest raptor sits caged and alone, looking both ominous and forlorn.) The reptile house and primate displays are also quite good. Some displays are inevitably small and cramped, which may produce cries of pity from the environmental activist, but all in all the zoo does a creditable job reproducing habitats while providing access to the public.

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