Chapter 16: Add a little detail!
The third segment for visitors adopted a slit-based observation approach.
The path was dark like mud, slightly rough and uneven, surrounded by dense trees and unknown wildflowers, with the faint sounds of insects and birds chirping in the background.
As visitors walked through here, it was as if they were traversing a quiet, dense forest.
When they emerged from this stretch of forest, what appeared before them was a number of irregularly-shaped huge rocks—in truth, a stone wall that, after treatment, looked more like a natural stone mountain.
The crevices between the boulders, varying in width and direction, were filled with vertical, taut piano wires.
This special type of piano wire was actually another form of iron railing, only much more slender, offering a better visual effect.
Compared to the unobstructed moat and the large glass curtain wall in the exhibit, slit-based viewing allowed visitors to feel the thrill and excitement of stealthily entering the habitat where animals live and observing their lives.
Intervals between the three viewing points were also walled off to block the visitors' sightlines and reduce the animals' psychological stress.
Then some naturalization treatment was done.
For example, planting trees in front to block the view, or covering with climbing vines and other climbing plants.
In short, the goal was to minimize human traces in the environment as much as possible.
"Phew!"
After finishing the design for the visitors' area, Fang Ye stretched, took a sip of water!
Suddenly, he remembered something and asked the system, "System, once I'm done with the design, how will it be constructed?"
Would it be like in a game where objects are created out of thin air, instantly built?
This wasn't a fantasy novel where a structure could appear out of nowhere and be passed off as a miracle to fool the simple-minded residents of another world.
"During construction, a temporary construction team will be summoned to build it, just like a regular construction team would, only much more efficiently."
"I see," Fang Ye sighed in relief, setting aside his concerns.
It was good that the system had a solution; otherwise, it would have been quite a headache to come up with ways to disguise the process.
Continuing, he focused and poured himself into designing the interior scenery of the tiger garden!
First, he made the ground slightly irregular, here a little raised, there dipping down, making the terrain closer to natural.
Next, he selected an area in front of the glass curtain wall and carved out a crescent-shaped, approximately 300-square-meter depression.
Filled with water, it became a beautiful pond!
In the middle of the pond, a series of rough stones were pieced together to form a zigzagging "stone bridge."
The edge of the pond was shallow, suitable for drinking, and on the other side of the stone bridge, the water became progressively deeper, with the deepest part nearly two meters, suitable for swimming and bathing.
Unlike cats, who dislike water, tigers are very fond of it.
In hot weather, they often submerge themselves in rivers and ponds to escape the heat.
And they are very good swimmers!
There have been records of tigers swimming 29 kilometers in a river in one day.
Placing the pond near the glass curtain wall, any drinking or swimming activities by the tiger could be seen by visitors.
Meeting visitors' viewing needs naturally reduced uncivilized behaviors like banging on the railings or feeding the animals.
Behind the crescent-shaped pond, the terrain gradually rose to form a small hill.
In the wild, to survey their territory, tigers find the highest point with the broadest view and watch over their land from atop these peaks. This small hill fulfilled the tiger's need to overlook and patrol its garden.
Near the hill was a simple wooden shelter built from logs.
Four thick columns, a single roof, and open on all sides.
This provided a place for the tigers to take shelter from the rain.
One of the guiding principles for zoo design is to minimize the traces of human construction and stay close to the natural environment!
Therefore, the canopy used untreated logs without decoration, and its appearance was quite crude.
In some zoos, there are exquisite pavilions where brightly colored waterfowl swim in the lakes; they seem quite beautiful and interesting.
That's called a garden, not a zoo!
Attractive architecture is made for human appreciation, for what humans consider beautiful.
Creating landscapes in this way merely makes the zoo look more imposing to visitors, without having any positive impact on animal welfare.
However, the traditional garden's design concept of "meandering paths leading to secluded spots" is quite compatible with zoos, as it prevents visitors from seeing each other at different viewing points and minimizes visual disturbances to the animals.
Next is the perching area.
Varying levels of perches provide more options for animals and improve the utilization rate of space for display.
For some social animals, like macaques, perches offer an opportunity to express their social status.
The higher locations are for the leaders, and the lower ones for the subordinates.
By occupying different heights on the perches, their status within the group is demonstrated. This helps maintain harmonious relationships within the populations and reduces occurrences of aggressive behavior.
For feline animals like tigers and leopards, residing at higher points on the perches, above the visitors' line of sight, helps alleviate the pressure from being watched and allows them to exercise their balance by jumping and walking on the perches.
The perches are also made from dark-hued logs. Dozens of thinner logs are placed side by side, securely tied together to form several platforms at different heights. Some thicker logs act as bridges between these platforms, supported by "Y"-shaped wooden frames.
While reducing human-made traces as much as possible, natural perches have limited functionality and are not suitable for the tiger enclosure.
For macaques, perches disguised as trees can be used, balancing the needs of landscape and functionality. In fact, a rocky hill can also be considered a form of a perch.
Fang Ye designed the perch areas in front of the narrow viewing points. Each viewpoint offers a different angle and a unique scene.
He also had ideas for the moat viewing points.
The white Bengal tiger cubs are arriving in a couple of days; here, some enrichment facilities can be built for the White Tiger cubs!
For instance, plum blossom piles made of short logs; old tires hung with chains to create swings; and placing various small toys.
With the main content arranged, the next step is to add some fine details.
Grass, trees!
Considering the living environment of tigers, Fang Ye chose species mainly from the subarctic coniferous forest and the temperate deciduous broad-leaved forest.
Spruce, larch, red pine.
Poplar, birch, oak.
Swish, swish, swish.
With each tree of varying shape and thickness planted, the tiger garden suddenly looked realistic and bursting with life.
Lower bushes and wildflowers were placed under the large trees, scattered and staggered, enriching the scenery.
Between the rocky crevices of the water pond and stone bridge, tufts of stubborn wild grass also grew, swaying in the wind.
Clear water flowed from the shallow pool, scrubbing over a fallen dead tree and the stone bridge to form a short waterfall.
Splashes of water glittered in the Sunshine, flowing into the half-moon-shaped pond.
Ripples spread, and the cattails at the edge of the pond started to sway, nodding back and forth.
In the game "Plants vs. Zombies," the plant that sits in the pool shooting spikes is based on the cattail.
By the time he finished with the details, the night had already grown deep.
"My neck is even getting stiff!"
Although Fang Ye's body was exhausted, his spirit was exceptionally active and excited.
Finally, he could bring his creative designs into reality!
He was eager to see the day when the tiger garden was finished and the tigers moved into their new home!