LINCOLN PARK — The towering structures that will soon be home to The Lincoln Park Zoo's red-faced snow monkeys are beginning to take shape.
Workers began construction on the exhibit for the Japanese macaques in July 2013, and the area is finally looking like it will be ready for the animals when they arrive this fall.
The towering artificial trees, the most prominent features that are visible from inside the zoo grounds as well as from the gardens to the west of the zoo, will define the top of the forest habitat.
Those poles will hold up a draped net over the entire exhibit.
Boulders and the rocky terrain that will be part of the monkeys' home are also coming into form.
The 7,300-square-foot Regenstein Macaque Forest is being designed to mimic a rocky northern climate and will also include a stream and hot tub (to mimic a hot spring.)
That hot spring, where the animals are expected to soak in the winter, is in front of a massive viewing window for visitors.
The highly intelligent monkeys are known to be good swimmers and have been seen making and playing with snowballs.
The zoo is also constructing a research tunnel that experts are calling a "hobbit hole," according to a post by zoo president Kevin Bell, that will allow scientists to study the primates from a centralized spot.
"After a long winter — and plenty of work at ground level — it’s exciting to see Regenstein Macaque Forest reaching up into the sky," Bell said in a blog post.
The exhibit is part of a $15 million improvement plan that is underway at the zoo, which also includes the construction of an immersive Lionel Train Adventure.
The new exhibits are expected to be a focal point at the zoo when they open in the fall.
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