Endangered giant river otters playing underneath a 15-foot waterfall.  Monkeys moving through a treetop system of see-through mesh trails. And a new splash pad area for little kids.

Those are some of the big changes in the works at the Santa Ana Zoo at Prentice Park, which broke ground last month on the new habitat for giant river otters and the new above-ground enclosed trail system for monkeys.

The renovations, Zoo Manager Ethan Fisher said, will offer a more immersive experience for visitors and animals alike.

“We’re going to do these projects and deliver something really special for the community and continue contributing to the conservation of the species in our care,” he said.

Rendering depicts new exhibit planned for the Santa Ana Zoo, where zoo visitors will be able to venture to the river’s edge for a close up view of otters in a new underwater viewing area. Also in the works is a new network of see-through mesh trails for monkeys and a 15-foot waterfall and crystal-clear pool where otters can play. (Courtesy of City of Santa Ana)

Once open, possibly by summer 2023, the exhibits will allow visitors to see giant river otters in a new underwater viewing area while monkeys move separately in a series of overhead walkways.  Endangered giant otters, larger than the sea otters found off California’s coast, live in the Amazon.

The $6.6 million otter and primate habitat is the most complex project the zoo has undertaken, and is the first phase of a 20-year master plan adopted in 2018, Fisher said.

Other projects in the works, funded by additional state grants and other sources, include a splash pad play area for children near the giant river otters.

“We’re trying to make the splash pad at the zoo very natural-looking, with rocks and a little waterfall, reflective of what we’re building at the zoo,” Fisher said.

There also are plans for a new educational building with classroom and meeting spaces, a temporary butterfly exhibit this spring, and some changes in the farm area, so that visitors can visit the goats and brush them.

“That was a common request from visitors,” Fisher said of the goats. “They’ll have the shiniest coats around.”

“Kids have access to cats and dogs,” he said, “but there aren’t a lot of places in Orange County where you can see goats and farm animals.”

The 20-acre zoo is home to more than 260 animals and is best known for its collection of monkeys.  Some 70 years ago, when a local businessman donated 12.5 acres to create Prentice Park, which is named after him, he stipulated that it must maintain at least 50 monkeys.

These days, the zoo has closer to 40 monkeys, Fisher said, but that hasn’t been an issue since 2009, when a relative of the patron who donated the land threatened to sue the city if the number of monkeys dipped below 50.

“We want to honor the heritage of the primates. Front and center when you walk in the zoo, you will see the monkeys,” Fisher said of the new enclosure plans. “The conservation of primates is so important to us.”

The renovations are expected to help the local zoo regain its accreditation with the Association of Zoos & Aquariums. The zoo lost that accreditation in 2017 when the association said the monkey habitats were outdated and not consistent with modern zoological practices.

In the new habitat under construction, monkeys will be able to move more freely through an aerial trail system.

“It will give the animals the choice of where they want to be,” said Fisher, adding that a future project calls for creating a forest for the primates. “Our No. 1 focus is animal welfare and care.”

Some 250,000 people visit the Santa Ana Zoo every year. (And it’s free for Santa Ana residents the third Sunday of the month.)  At the onset of the pandemic, it was closed for six months, but once it reopened, Fisher said “the community really embraced the zoo.”

“Everyone is looking for something outside to do.”

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