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Cheetah Exhibit Landscaping Reflects African Savannah
 The new Cheetah: The Race for Survival exhibit, a gift of Polly Hix and Tony Fair, and in partnership through a conservation education gift from The Tony Stewart Foundation, is exciting for lovers of these amazingly fast felines, but the exhibit may also be enjoyed by plant lovers as well. The landscape of the Plains Biome underwent some major changes to accommodate an exhibit large enough for these spotted predators to stretch their powerful legs. The area had most recently been the home to Australian plains animals such as kangaroos, lorikeets, and emus, as well as a prairie field of assorted grasses and trees.
Many of those grasses and trees were saved and transplanted throughout the Zoo, while some others were salvaged as climbing props for the new exhibit. There was also large array of plants that were added to the exhibit during construction. Cheetah exhibit landscaping included over 4,400 grasses, 469 shrubs, 212 shrubs and 55 new trees.
Some of the beautiful plant life visitors will see includes Mimosa, Honey Locust and Hawthorne, as well as Buffalo Berry and Potentilla. These larger specimens are highlighted by a variety of grasses such as Feather Reed and Black Fountain and flowering perennials such as Astilbe, Rudbeckia, and Salvia. The collection of plants is diverse but also indicative of the natural habitat of the cheetah.
The new cheetah exhibit will surely excite animal and plant enthusiasts alike.
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