Montreal"s Got Zoos... Really
Montreal Zoo Guide
In Montreal zoos, you won't find lions lying in a makeshift savannah. But you will catch golden lion tamarins swinging on tree branches. Tigers? Fat chance. But you might spot a lynx, a feline predator indigenous to Canada. What's different about Montreal zoos is their smaller scale and focus on featuring wildlife native to the Americas. Think indoor recreation of South America's muggy tropical forests, a brush north of the South Pole or a wildlife park filled with 115 species native to Quebec. And the best part? All Montreal zoos are open year-round, even in the dead of winter.
The Montreal Biodome is an indoor zoo, an aquarium and a botanical garden wrapped into one, a series of indoor ecological systems which recreate regions in the Americas and poles, showcasing animal species as well as plant life indigenous to each area, mimicking habitats to the point of regulating the temperature and humidity levels of each showcased ecosystem so the public can not only see what life is like in each region, but actually feel what it's like too.More »
It might be a bit of stretch calling the Montreal Insectarium a zoo considering the nature museum only features arthropods and a chunk of the 150,000 specimens on display are dead, but you will find living, breathing scarabs, tarantulas and scorpions among the hundred or so live species showcased on site. Very kid-friendly with interactive displays and attentive staff passionate about the subject. Features species from across the globe.More »
In Montreal zoos, you won't find lions lying in a makeshift savannah. But you will catch golden lion tamarins swinging on tree branches. Tigers? Fat chance. But you might spot a lynx, a feline predator indigenous to Canada. What's different about Montreal zoos is their smaller scale and focus on featuring wildlife native to the Americas. Think indoor recreation of South America's muggy tropical forests, a brush north of the South Pole or a wildlife park filled with 115 species native to Quebec. And the best part? All Montreal zoos are open year-round, even in the dead of winter.
1. Montreal Zoo Meets Botanical Garden: The Biodome
The Montreal Biodome is an indoor zoo, an aquarium and a botanical garden wrapped into one, a series of indoor ecological systems which recreate regions in the Americas and poles, showcasing animal species as well as plant life indigenous to each area, mimicking habitats to the point of regulating the temperature and humidity levels of each showcased ecosystem so the public can not only see what life is like in each region, but actually feel what it's like too.More »
2. Ecomuseum: A Zoo, A Wildlife Park
The Ecomuseum Zoo wasn't always the wildlife park it is today, having opened its doors in 1988 after years of work revitalizing an area that was wetlands once upon a time. But that ecosystem went out the window with the '60s, when the grounds became landfill as one of Montreal's major autoroutes, Highway 40, was being extended to the west. Though the resulting eyesore didn't last too long. Enter the St. Lawrence Valley Natural History Society as stewards, a non-profit organization founded in 1981 whose main focus and raison d'être centered on rebuilding the land.More »
3. Montreal Insectarium: It's Technically a Zoo, Sort Of
It might be a bit of stretch calling the Montreal Insectarium a zoo considering the nature museum only features arthropods and a chunk of the 150,000 specimens on display are dead, but you will find living, breathing scarabs, tarantulas and scorpions among the hundred or so live species showcased on site. Very kid-friendly with interactive displays and attentive staff passionate about the subject. Features species from across the globe.More »
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